Poor customer service

We app**** for a new contract @ MTN. We received approval within 40 minutes. Carnival Mall MTN contacted us to confirm device after approval. We also stated when we would collect device. When we went to collect device, the wrong instrument was given to us, and we queried this. Staff member then said that because the box had been opened, and we don't want device, we have to cancel this and start with new application. According to her, this should only take minutes. We completed application again, and waited for approval. Now, 24 hours later, we are still awaiting approval. I went to MTN/ again this morning, and staff said that they can only escalate call after 8 hours waiting period. I said that they should have escalated this immediately, as I had already been approved for a specific device and contract, and that the mere formality to swop out devices should not delay the process - it's MTN's own internal policies that take so long, and I should not be kept in the dark for more than a day because of this. I feel that some staff members are great and very efficient, but others are lacking serious s****s in customer services, because they don't treat applications with any urgency, and they play the blaming game by saying the supervisors are dragging their feet in completing the approval, they refuse to escalate the application in due time, and they just pull up their shoulders when confronted with a request to get a final answer, or to give out contact details of supervisors "dragging their feet".

I have been a loyal customer for 18 years now, but today we live in a consumer world where loyalty is not a priority. We don't have to stay loyal to any brand with poor customer service when there are so many other service providers with similar, or sometimes better deals.