Too many promises!

Good Day,

I took out a contract with MTN where I received a Huawei P30 Lite. Initially, the phone was great. It matched the exceptional standard of the P10 & P20 I previously had.

After approximately 3 months, I experienced a problem with my. I drove 20km/30 minutes took it to the Huawei Repair Centre in Melrose Arch. The device was booked under warranty and the problem was investigated. I received feedback that the device was not reading the sim card but they had repaired it and it was ready for collection. I then drove another 20km/30 minutes to collect my repaired phone.

A few days after receiving my repaired device, I experienced the same issue. Once again, I had to drive 20km/30 minutes to the Huawei Repair Centre in Melrose Arch to have the phone booked in AGAIN. The phone was fixed and ready for collection. So AGAIN, I had to drive all the way to Melrose Arch (another 20km/30 minutes) to collect the device.

A few days late, surely not, but my P30 Lite let me down and had the SAME PROBLEM AGAIN. So another 20km/30 minutes later, I was back at Melrose Arch dropping my phone off. At this stage, I requested that my device be replaced which the store did for me.

I thought all my problems had been resolved on the cusp of the new year and the new decade, surely nothing could go wrong. But on Tuesday, 7 January 2020, I experienced the same problem ON THE NEW DEVICE. I needed to leave work early to drive another 20km/30 minutes to Melrose Arch for my phone to be checked. I was assured that the store manager would escalate the query that day and I would receive an email by close of business Wednesday, 8 January 2020 from someone at the Melrose Arch store with feedback. I checked my email through out the day and can you believe it, I never received an email.

On Thursday, 9 January 2020, I checked my email once more and there was still no feedback. I therefore decided to contact the Hauawei Head Office. I spoke with Terri-Lynne and asked her if there was any feedback regrading my device. She advised that she would escalate the query to level 2 (not too sure what that means) as she was not sure if the store had escalated the query and that i would receive feedback. After speaking with Terri-Lynne, I decided to call the Melrose Arch store and spoke with Greta. I informed Greta that I would like to speak with the manager. She informed that the store manager was off but after insistance, I was handed over the Gabrielle. She was very understanding and sympathetic of the situation and assured me that she would do everything to assist me. I was informed that the store was due to have loadhedding so they would have no phone lines but Gabrielle would phone me, even if it meant it was from her cellphone. She asked if she could give me her number but being so trusting, I believed that she would. I waited in anticipation for Gabrielle to phone me as she had rebuilt my trust in Huawei. But as the day drew, my hopes started to fade of Gabrielle calling me back.

It is now Friday, 10 January 2020, Almost 3 days without phone and I still cannot get any answers. You would think that 3 days without a phone would be peaceful, but its not. Its an inconvenience and truly annoying. I tried to call the Melrose Arch store this morning but after MANY attempts, there was no answer. I soon found out that they were experiencing loadshedding so their phones were not working. My next best option, was to phone the call centre. At approximately 9am, I spoke with Thabang. I told him my whole long story. He simply could only escalate the query (not sure how many times 1 query can be escalated). What made me upset was that after phoning the call centre in the morning yesterday, the query was only escalated at 5.30pm - why did it take so long? As a result, I asked to speak with a more seniot team member. I was then handed over the Sipho. I had to explain the full story to Sipho all over again. He promised that he would phone me with feedback by 11am... 11.20am and still no phone call from Sipho. I phoned the call centre back and spoke with Thapelo. I requested to speak to the Call Centre Manager, Nazeem. I was informed that Nazeem was off and that I could speak with Sipho. I was informed by Thapelo that "Sipho was just about to phone). I advised Thapelo that I did not want to deal with Sipho and therefore requested to speak with Nazeem's Manager. Thapelo advised that he would have someone phone within the next 30 minutes... 12.04pm and still no call back from Huawe. I phone the call centre once more and came across Sean. Mid-call with Sean our electricity returned and the call was cut off. Within minutes, Sean phoned me back which was great. I explained the long story to Sean who then referred me back to Sipho.

When Sipho came on to the call, he informed me that he was just about to phone me back - 1 hour and 20 minutes after he was origionally meant to phone me. He was quick to tell me that I hadnt given him the opportunity to resolve my query. He saidhe would phone me back and that I didnt have to follow up. He had been busy with other calls and had been delayed. I insisted on speaking with someone more senior but was informed that there was no one else to assist. When I asked to peak with Nazeem's manager, he informed me that the manager does not speak to customers. I find this unbelievable and such poor customer service. We had a long conversation and a lot was said and done that I find completely unacceptable and way below par when it comes to how cutsomers should be treated. I have been informed that an email has been sent to John and Stevens (apparently managers within Huawei) and I will get an email or phone call, Im not really sure at this point.

As of my last call from Sipho at 1.30pm, I have no phone, no concrete feedback, management who dont speak to clients, no trust in anything a Huawei employee tells me and sim card that just isnt big enough for me to dial on... Maybe I will get the update email at 3.30pm as promised...