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I got a call this morning at 3am to do a tow on a Saturn Ion. Usually not a big deal, but the owner wanted a tow out of town. Before I go into greater detail, a quick lesson how BBB Roadside Assistance works(not the real company name);
For most places, BBB contracts with independent tow companies to handle service calls. Please note the word independant. The member calls BBB, BBB calls the contractors and asks them if they can assist the member. The contractor then decides if they want to do the call.
So back to this call.....I do my job and call all the contractors....
Primary Provider; Unable to assist, did not have enough fuel to complete the call and get back to town(the owner does not give thier drivers a fuel card for overnight).
Secondary Provider; Does not run on Saturday nights.
Third and Fourth; Declined the call because thier drivers had already ran all day and were just to tired to try and safely make an out of town run.
This is normal. At least once a weekend we are not able to get a contractor to do a call. At that point, dispatch has to call the member and tell them thisand see if they can either wait till morning, leave the car and do an unattended tow, or seek service on thier own and submit for riembersment from BBB.
So I call the member, and advise her that I was unable to find a contractor. Now in the call details, it said she would follow the tow truck. I ask if she has someone coming to get her, she said yes, and that was when I offered that I could get a truck out to her car at around 6:30am. That's when the regular Fleet drivers get to work, and as BBB employees, they can't decline the call.
She was understandably a little miffed and asked if she could call me back. I was nice enough to give her my direct line so that she would not have to navigate the automated system. About five minutes later my phone rings, and it turns out to be the members' father.
He introduced himself and asked why I could not get service out to his daughter untill 6:30am. I explained that none of the contractors in the area would not come out. He proceeds to tell me that this was lousy service, and this is not what he signed up for, that I was leaving his daughter in an unsafe part of town (it was not that bad an area) and that BBB is junk. I let the guy rant for a bit because he was right, the situation was a crappy one and it involved his daughter. I kept my cool while he went on, and I did try and explain why it was happening. But I was getting nowhere with him. He kept asking if BBB was no longer a 24 hours service, and I was trying to explain how the whole contractor deal worked in my area. He said he did not want to hear about fuel problems with the drivers, and how he was just so upset about the lack of service. He actually told me that he was a pharmisist and that he works 24 hours a day.
After about the 14th or 15th refrence to me not doing my job and my company sucking more than a black hole, I waited untill he stoped talking and I calmly said "Sir...I sit at a desk and call tow truck companies to see if they can do the call. If they say no, they say no. It's not like I can hold a gun to thier head."
I think that might have got through to him, because he calmed down a little and agreed to the unattended tow. I got some further information out of him to make sure my guy picked up the right car, and thankfully was able to hang up on him. About five minutes later one of our call takers called back to see if they could get faster service if they changed the tow location to an in town drop point. The CT called me and I said that it should not be a problem. The guy decided that he would stay with the unattended tow.
Now like I said earlier, I understand he was a little upset about this. Any father would be. But what the hell am I suppose to do? I can't create a tow truck by positive thinking. It's not like I'm doing this on purpose. This is the single most frustrating this about my job. I want to help these people, but there are times when I can't. And as a former tow truck driver, it really kills me. I'm so glad this is my last week here.
For most places, BBB contracts with independent tow companies to handle service calls. Please note the word independant. The member calls BBB, BBB calls the contractors and asks them if they can assist the member. The contractor then decides if they want to do the call.
So back to this call.....I do my job and call all the contractors....
Primary Provider; Unable to assist, did not have enough fuel to complete the call and get back to town(the owner does not give thier drivers a fuel card for overnight).
Secondary Provider; Does not run on Saturday nights.
Third and Fourth; Declined the call because thier drivers had already ran all day and were just to tired to try and safely make an out of town run.
This is normal. At least once a weekend we are not able to get a contractor to do a call. At that point, dispatch has to call the member and tell them thisand see if they can either wait till morning, leave the car and do an unattended tow, or seek service on thier own and submit for riembersment from BBB.
So I call the member, and advise her that I was unable to find a contractor. Now in the call details, it said she would follow the tow truck. I ask if she has someone coming to get her, she said yes, and that was when I offered that I could get a truck out to her car at around 6:30am. That's when the regular Fleet drivers get to work, and as BBB employees, they can't decline the call.
She was understandably a little miffed and asked if she could call me back. I was nice enough to give her my direct line so that she would not have to navigate the automated system. About five minutes later my phone rings, and it turns out to be the members' father.
He introduced himself and asked why I could not get service out to his daughter untill 6:30am. I explained that none of the contractors in the area would not come out. He proceeds to tell me that this was lousy service, and this is not what he signed up for, that I was leaving his daughter in an unsafe part of town (it was not that bad an area) and that BBB is junk. I let the guy rant for a bit because he was right, the situation was a crappy one and it involved his daughter. I kept my cool while he went on, and I did try and explain why it was happening. But I was getting nowhere with him. He kept asking if BBB was no longer a 24 hours service, and I was trying to explain how the whole contractor deal worked in my area. He said he did not want to hear about fuel problems with the drivers, and how he was just so upset about the lack of service. He actually told me that he was a pharmisist and that he works 24 hours a day.
After about the 14th or 15th refrence to me not doing my job and my company sucking more than a black hole, I waited untill he stoped talking and I calmly said "Sir...I sit at a desk and call tow truck companies to see if they can do the call. If they say no, they say no. It's not like I can hold a gun to thier head."
I think that might have got through to him, because he calmed down a little and agreed to the unattended tow. I got some further information out of him to make sure my guy picked up the right car, and thankfully was able to hang up on him. About five minutes later one of our call takers called back to see if they could get faster service if they changed the tow location to an in town drop point. The CT called me and I said that it should not be a problem. The guy decided that he would stay with the unattended tow.
Now like I said earlier, I understand he was a little upset about this. Any father would be. But what the hell am I suppose to do? I can't create a tow truck by positive thinking. It's not like I'm doing this on purpose. This is the single most frustrating this about my job. I want to help these people, but there are times when I can't. And as a former tow truck driver, it really kills me. I'm so glad this is my last week here.
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