Friday, June 27, 2008

Ditched Helicopter Award - Abbey

This comes from David Winch:

"I am moving shortly and, having been completely satisfied with Abbey's home insurance products in the past, I contacted them for a quote for the new place.

One of the first things they wanted was the postcode, which I gave. I was met with the classic 'Little Britain' "Computer says No" response!

"This is an incorrect postcode, Sir. Please can you give me the correct postcode so I can proceed with your quotation?"

So I informed them that:
a/. This was the postcode on the Estate Agent's particulars
b/. I had put this postcode into Streetmap.co.uk and it had showed me the correct location to view the property
c/. While we were talking, I put it into Multimap.co.uk and achieved the same correct result
d/. Also while we were talking, I had entered the address into the postcode finder on Royal Mail's website and it had given me the same postcode

"Ah, but my computer's telling me it doesn't recognise this postcode. Is it a new property?"

So I told them that it was approximately ten years old, but I was aware that the village in question had all its postcodes changed - about four years ago! - so I hoped their system might have caught up by now.

The poor operative had no where to go but to say once more that she couldn't proceed without a postcode that her computer deemed to be correct.

Are you surprised that I've gone elsewhere?"

A definite Ditched Helicopter Award to Abbey

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I am an Oxford based Business Expert, International Speaker, Business Advisor, Author, Mentor and Consultant who (I am told!) inspires and entertains my audiences with my acclaimed 'Staying in the Helicopter®' series of keynote speeches, seminars, workshops and master classes focussed on transformational change and profitable growth. I am a former plc CEO, The Academy for Chief Executives Speaker of the Year and Past-President of The Professional Speakers Association. So what all that means is that I just love working with people helping them to grow and develop their businesses - from the smallest one-man start-up to the largest multi-national corporate. It's all about seeing the wood for the trees, getting up in my helicopter, and keeping it simple! I do believe that business is really simple it's just us human beings that make everything complex.