Bad Service from 2 Consultants at Telkom Carnival Mall

I upgraded online last week and received my new Samsung S24 FE and Watch last week Thursday 17/10/24.

I did all my transfers to my new phone Thursday evening. Friday morning when I woke up I had no Coverage and I could not even phone Telkom to query.

I had to wait after work to go to Telkom Outlet at Carnival Mall. I arrived there at around 13h30.

I explained my issue to the consultant Lizane Maarmal and she said that since I ordered online I need to speak to them. She said that they are doing the activation and I must just wait and that it could take up to 7 days to activate. I then asked her if she could at least check on the system if she sees anything wrong. After rolling her eyes at me and clearly showing me that she did not really want to assist, she then looked on the system and said with an attitude that anything seems fine and I should have coverage. She then said I need to wait for Miles Matthews the Technical Consultant. I then waited for about 15 Minutes and when I asked him he then said if I upgraded online then he cannot assist and I must phone Telkom Online. He did not even try to assist. I then told him that I cannot phone them because I do not have any coverage. He then gave me a landline phone to phone online myself. I then phoned Telkom Online from Telkom's Landline. The online Consultant said that I should have coverage as my sim card is activated and all seems fine. She suggested that I must try the sim card in another phone. I then asked Miles if they have a spare phone for me to borrow to try the sim card. He then said no. I told the consultant that they could not assist and I then have to drive all the way back home to try it in my spare phone which is at home and that I do not want to drive all the way back to phone her from Telkom's outlet's Landline phone should the sim card not work in the spare phone. She then said I must ask the consultant for a free sim card so that I can phone Telkom online when I get home. I then asked Lizane if she could give me a free sim card. She told me to take a ticket and wait in the queue again. I got very upset as I had been there for about an hour already and was there before all the other clients waiting in the queue. Sibusiso Nkosi who is one of the consultants at the branch then offered to assist me. He was actually the first consultant that went out of his way to try and assist me. I was very grateful for that. He then went into the system and saw that my sim card was activated. He then took my sim card from my phone to check the number. He then noticed that the sim card number that Telkom online activated was different from my current Sim Card in my phone. I also did not receive a new sim card when they delivered my new device. Sibusiso then said I need to do a Sim Swap and it will cost me R99. I then said it is not fair that I must now pay for Telkom's mistake. I also did not have R99 to be able to do the sim swap. He then tried to do the sim swap on my Telkom Account so that Telkom bills me at the end of the month. But he could not as that part was greyed out on the system. He then gave me the free sim card and activated it for me to phone Telkom Online when I get home. I phoned Telkom online when I got home and they apologised for the mistake and said the only way I do not have to pay for a sim swap is if they send me a new sim card via courier and that will only be delivered next week as the couriers do not work over weekends. I now have a brand new Samsung S24 FE and it is the 4th day that I can not use it. What worries me is who has the sim card that has been activated and are they using it?

I can accept the fact that Telkom messed up and I am without coverage for days, but what upsets me the most is the poor service I got from Lizane Maarmal and from Miles Mathews. I really think they need to be reprimanded for their attitude and unwillingness to assist. I had to spend about 2hrs at the branch. If Lizane assisted me the way Sibusiso did the first time, then I would not have been so upset and would have understood.