Listening skills should be something everyone has, but unfortunately, that is not the case.

That seemed to be what the hotel worker in this story was dealing with when an online travel agent called to try to uncancel a reservation that had been cancelled the day before.

Even though this person tried to explain that once a reservation is cancelled, it can’t be reinstated, the agent just kept trying to get him to do it.

It is a very frustrating story to read since I’m sure most people have experienced something similar. Read through all the details and see what you think of the situation.

Why Ask If You Won’t Listen?

Have you ever had someone just not paying attention to a word you said?

I like this guy’s writing style.

Tonight, gentle readers, we shall speak of those most awful and horrible people that our profession must deal with.

The ones who would see our homes shattered and burnt, the rivers run with blood, and laugh as the life fades from our eyes.

Let’s see where this story goes.

I am of course speaking of Online Travel Agency Customer Support agents.

If anyone needs a little unicorn time, Buttercup the Emotional Support unicorn is over in her paddock, enjoying a bit of fresh clover, still glittering with a bit of late spring rains.

Our Tale begins at the beginning of my shift. I am about three bites into my dinner (grilled salmon with pesto pasta – the local supermarket has an excellent grab and go selection) when the phone rings.

It sounds like this type of call comes in pretty regularly.

“Good evening and thank you for calling Lacking Tea in Town, this is Skwrl speaking, how may I help you?”

“Ah. Hello. Yes. This is Booking calling about a Mutual Guest. May I have your name please.”

“…My name is Skwrl, and I work the front desk.” Not my first rodeo.

They really want to get the information down in detail.

“Ah. Yes. Can you spell that for me? And what is your position please?”

“S. K. W. R. L. And I am on the front desk, like I just told you.”

He knows what he is doing.

“Yes, I am calling regarding a mutual guest regarding a cancellation. Would you like the confirmation number?”

“I would like the guest’s name and date of arrival. Your confirmation numbers do not show up in our system.” Again, I have done this dance before.

The confirmation number won’t help.

“Yes, I understand, the guest’s confirmation number is 1 2 3…”

“NAME. I need their name…”

This would have been good information to provide from the beginning.

It takes a bit of rummaging, as I cannot find any reservations under that name. The agent then mentions that oh yes, they are calling about a cancellation that has already happened, and not a pending arrival. Sigh. Cancellations for tomorrow, there it is.

“Okay, I have the cancelled reservation for John Smith on my screen. What do you need?”

You can’t uncancel a cancelled reservation.

“So yes, it turns out that Mister Smith cancelled the reservation in error, and he wil need the reservation reinstated for the original dates and rate.”

“That is not something we can do. The system does not allow for reinstating a cancelled reservation.”

Prices change, so they wouldn’t get the same rate they had before.

This is one of my many pet peeves about this system, by the way. “Additionally, this is a prepaid reservation, if I make a new reservation, it will not have the single-use card for payment.”

“Ahh. Could you please reinstate the reservation, at the original rate?”

I have to assume that this is pretty standard.

“…I just told you, that is not something that I can do. The reservation cannot be reinstated. A new reservation must be made, with a new payment card.”

“Oh… So you are saying that the reservation cannot be reinstated?”

You have got to be kidding me.

“…Yes. multiple times now. The reservation cannot be reinstated. The reinstatement of the reservation is not something that can be done. You will need to make a new reservation, because the old one cannot be reinstated. At all. Ever. Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“Oh, okay. May I please have your name and position?”

What an annoying caller.

Sigh. “Skwrl. Front desk. Good night.”

While I am always careful to never underestimate the capacity for human error, I am pretty sure that I was speaking with some sort of AI agent. I was very tempted to ask it for a recipe for blueberry muffins.

That or just put Buttercup on the line.

Honestly, I would think that an AI agent would do a better job of listening. I think this was likely just a real person who wasn’t paying close attention.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a hotel worker who doesn’t want to let guests reserve handicapped parking spots in advance.

Read on to see what the people in the comments have to say about it.

At the very least, this would throw them off guard.

Now this is just too funny.

Yeah, people assume they know how a conversation will go, though.

Is AI getting better? Or are people getting worse?

This person has a great suggestion for these situations.

Why even bother calling if you aren’t ready to listen to the people on the phone? This type of person just ends up wasting everyone’s time, which is very annoying.

I do think, however, that this guy could have offered to rebook the customer at the current rate. Or at least check what the old rate was to see if they could match it.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a thrift store employee who refused to play “guess the price” without seeing the item in question.