Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff II

Teaching the Cell Phone Company Manners!

This is a series of short articles on why you should not “sweat the small stuff”. Pick your battles and be smart. In this installment we’ll learn about cell phone companies and consumer rights.

Mrs. Smith, a new immigrant from Great Britain, came to Israel with a “high dose” of expectations but a “very small dose of reality”.

Mrs. Smith, whose Hebrew was poor (she could understand well enough but could not read or speak Hebrew with any proficiency), went on her first mission as an Israeli consumer. She wanted to enroll in one of the cell phone company’s plans and purchase her first phone as an Israeli. This was the last step she did with that big smile of hers, from here things just deteriorated badly for her.

Mrs. Smith waited more than 40 minutes to be attended by the agent. Mrs. Smith politely offered her humble observation that the elapsed time was very long and a waste, just to be reprehended on the spot by the agent’s answer: “You could have scheduled this meeting in advance through the internet”.

Mrs. Smith did not know how to answer. She was taught this was a rude and completely unnecessary response but she decided to “let it go” and asked if she could see any brochures in English concerning the different plans and prices in order to decide what would be the best plan for her!

Again the answer came fast and sharp: “We don’t have brochures, but we do have a “list” of the different plans but you have to ask me about the prices because they vary depending on where you work, etc., and by the way … nothing in English of course. We are in Israel, remember?” It didn’t stop here and now the “final blow” came to Mrs. Smith head: “I will tell you which plans will best suit you”.

Enough was enough. Mrs. Smith decided to ask for an English speaking manager! She actually insisted on that but to her dismay she was told not one manager could speak English, “especially because of your strong British accent”. She was now in tears.

Mrs. Smith left the place and went home with a new feeling in her heart: She would now teach these people some manners and would educate them to serve better.

Her first step was to write a letter to the “local manager” in that specific store and tell him not only what happened but also how he should change the service. This was a two-page letter in English which I suspect was sent to the trash right upon receipt.

The entire saga kept Mrs. Smith busy and angry. She could not understand why her second letter to the cell phone company (now sent to the company’s general manager) was not answered and why she could not, as she requested “receive a formal apology”.

In the end, Mrs. Smith decided to go to another cell phone company and this time was accompanied by a friend, also not very fluent in Hebrew. She signed on for a plan and was told about the fees. As she later commented she was given “all the information she needed to sign the contract”.

Three months after signing that contract she was extremely disappointed to find out there was no connection between the prices she was given and the real amount she was actually paying in the bank.

She tried everything but got nowhere. This motivated person never gave up. She hired a lawyer and asked for the following:

From the first cell phone company:

A formal written apology from the “central management”, a copy of a contract in English, a list of the different plans they have to offer or at least some brochures in English and an interview in that same store, done by an English speaking manager or at least some educated English speaking clerk.

From the second cell phone company:

Asked for a cancellation of the contract, a formal written apology from the “central management” for the misleading information she was given, penalties and compensation for her losses.

At this point Mrs. Smith became even more disenchanted by her perception that lawyers in Israel know nothing about consumer rights and they are lazy - all this because the lawyer refused to accede to her requests, even for a fee.

Mrs. Smith eventually found her way to my office, only to be disappointed again because we also refused to write the claim she was “demanding”. Instead, we offered to write a one page document asking for a cancellation of the contract.

We promised her she would win, the contract would be cancelled saving her 15 more months of high costs and all this for a 50 shekel fee (paid not to us but to the small claims court). I tried to explain about the: “don’t sweat the small stuff” concept but couldn’t move her. She was going on and on about the importance of service in Israel, why we should “teach them a lesson”, why the Judge would be favorable to her, etc.

She would not compromise in anything. She wanted to not only “change the mentality”, but also to receive compensation!

Mrs. Smith, tired and disappointed, decided not to “use our free legal services” and we never heard from her again.

She could not understand how “not to sweat the small stuff”, how to let it go and try to concentrate on minimizing her damages. She wasn’t willing to pick her battles wisely by just legally cancelling the contract, and at a later date sending letters to everyone demanding whatever she thinks is the right thing to ask.

Letters and apologies are a good tool but generally they will not solve your problem.

A word of wisdom:

Israel is a relatively young country with generations of mixed mentalities from very different backgrounds. We are working through our first steps in becoming more aware of consumer rights. Compared to ten years ago we have come a long way.

Try to focus on the main issues and try to choose what the most important issues are that you need to solve immediately. Concentrate on that because it is the best and most secure way to avoid confrontations you can’t afford now (because of your poor Hebrew, lack of time, etc.) and at the same time save you disappointments and money.

Sincerely,

Tzvi Szajnbrum, Attorney at Law