Imagine trying to help a customer solve a problem, finally understanding the problem and the misunderstanding, and then trying to explain what’s wrong to the customer.

What would you do if the customer still clearly didn’t understand? Would you try to explain again, or would you let it go?

In today’s story, one employee is in this situation.

Let’s see how they handle it.

“No, I can not use the money from a phone card to pay for your minutes.”

At my retail job, we also sell minutes for phones, but they come in two verities, the carded versions, which are used for long distance, and the ones we print out that are connected to the actual companies (Bell, Sasktel, Rogers, Koodo, etc) but once they are printed I can not refund it and they must contact the company that made it.

My store does not have the power to deactivate them.

Here comes in a customer wanting 30 dollars in Sasktel minutes, and he has a 10 dollar phone card.

He couldn’t make it work so wanted me to take the 10 dollars from the card and put it towards the SaskTel minutes.

That’s not possible.

Me: Sorry I can not do that

Customer: Why not? It is on the card

Me: Because the card has no monetary value, it is attached to that card

Customer: But it doesn’t work, so I want you to transfer the money from the card to the minutes

He tried to help him another way.

Me: Sorry but that is impossible, and I can not refund it.

Customer: But I can not make it work

At that point I helped him out and told him what to do, he called the number he needed to, but then looked at me.

Customer: See I can’t put it in, it says I have no minutes

The employee suddenly understood the problem.

That was when I realized that he was trying to use a card for long-distance calls to make a call…. when he had no minutes left.

He was using it as a substitute for his actual minutes.

I explained it to him what the problem was and finished the transaction.

The customer still didn’t understand.

Told him to put in the codes for Sasktel and he can use the phone card to call the other number.

He took it all back, but during the transaction he still told me to take the 10 dollars from the card and put it towards what he owed.

I do not think what I said went through too him.

That does sound confusing. I’m glad my phone has unlimited minutes with my plan.

Let’s see how Reddit reacted to this story.

Apparently this story takes place in Canada.

Here’s another opinion.

Yes, definitely user error.

This would be a good idea, and a good comeback.

He’ll probably never understand how to use that phone card.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.