Me: I'd like to book a function room, could you put me through to banqueting please.So for the whole week they have no one capable of taking a new business enquiry. This doesn't strike me as a hotel which is being hit by a recession, does it? Guess I will now look elsewhere.
CityInn: Sorry, no answer.
Me: Er, well I'd like to enquire about rates, can someone help?
CityInn: No, sorry, they are all away at a conference.
Me: So there's no one who can tell me if a room is free and how much it will cost.
CityInn: No, they are all at a conference.
Me: And when might they be back?
CityInn: Friday.
UPDATE: The General Manager of the City Inn has been in touch to profusely apologise. I am seeing him on Thursday, so all's well that ends well.
UPDATE Thursday: Just had an excellent meeting with the City Inn's General Manager. All is well and we will definitely be using the hotel. And he is now a regular reader of the blog, so a result all round!
36 comments:
Have always found City Inn to be excellent and when I emailed them on similar lines I got a personal reply from the MD. Recommended.
Presumably they are all away at a conference to learn how to deal with customers and attract new business.
Are you taking the piss?, the City Inn may have a strange attitude to new business, however it is a bit rich you complaining about their behaviour during this recession, could you not have found a nice cheap hall somewhere else in London?.
It seems that all of you Westminster village inhabitants have no idea about how the economic downturn is impacting us lesser mortals.
I am forced to work abroad to ensure that my family can afford to live in the UK, yet someone like you complains about a minor issue you have with an up market hotel, did you consider that the poor receptionist may very well be sacked due to your blog?, also I would expect a right of reply from the hotel to put their side of the story.
God you have made me angry.
With service/brains like that, I suspect they had booked themselves into their own conference facilities just to keep the cashflow going...
Duh.
Ha ha, get used to it Iain. This kind of response is what passes for normality in many, many businesses these days.
£9 for nine chips.
Sod that for a game of soldiers.
In this world you get "can do" folks and "fuck off" folks.
For some reason, the service industries attract the latter, which is puzzling to say the least. It's not so long ago that some stupid c%%t refused a room to a wounded serviceman.
Should you ever decide to have a conference up here, you will find that my friend Ann Rossborough and her excellent staff, of the Rossborough Hotel, Dunbar, will welcome you with open arms.
you ever tried enquiring about rates to join a gym - both Virgin and David Lloyd you have to make an appointment - just to find out their prices!
Anonymous, you really are an idiot. If I wanted a cheap hall elsewhere in London I would have booked one. I didn't. I wanted a hotel near Parliament. Was it unreasonable of me to want to know if they had a room free or what it might cost? I think not.
Your attitude just about sums up what's wrong with this country - especially as you won't even put your name to your comment.
If the City Inn get in touch I can assure you I will post it.
Yes, the City Inn is usually a good bet but I prefer the bar in the Sofitel St James in Pall Mall. However it is French owned and I stood next to two French speakers at the Remembrance service last Sunday and they talked during the Silence and glared at me when I 'shooshed' them! Maybe I'll return to the City Inn.
anon @2.37 - the receptionist is not doing her job, and the management should be made aware of this. There are probably plenty of people out there who would be willing to take his/her place.
So you have to work hard to support your family - welcome to the club!
I got charged £10 for a bacon butty! A bacon butty.
Also, I got stung by some bees the other day £6 for a jar of honey. Err..Cheque please.
"this country"
Congrats Iain, you really are gearing up for a Daily Mail column aren't you?
Why dont you hold your event under waterloo bridge? people are homeless you know and its disgusting for you to even think about hiring a room for such a pointless exercise as business.
you should sit on folded cardboard boxes that have gone mushy with the rain, swill cans of xxx, and draw pastel coloured hearts on the paving stones for entertainment.
thats how non-westminister village people live.
Yes, anon 2.37, let's all boycott places unless they are really cheap. That will show those fat cats who answer the phones and change the beds and bring the sandwiches in all those posh places a thing or two. They'll be on the street eh? They won't be laughing then.
@ Anonymous 2:37
'God you have made me angry.'
But not angry enough to post your name, eh troll?
Cussma serviss, innit, Mista? Wojoo expec, like?
I do hope that the poor bod you spoke to does not carry the can. The failing is probably entirely that of his management who apparently did not ask themselves how enquiries would be covered during this absence. (I get VERY cross at inadequate managers blaming their staff for their own shortcomings.)
anonymous @ 2.37 PM. Reflect on your anger. If the City Inn continues to treat its potential customers in this way the receptionist will certainly be out of a job. Along with everyone else who works for the hotel.
This is normal. Having a Labour government means going on racial awareness courses is much more important than making money. Now the customer is always wrong and has no higher status than the service provider - that's equality. You seem to be expecting gumption, interest and efficiency from the British hotel industry! Where do you think you are, Switzerland?
http://partiparry.blogspot.com/
new blog by a teenager on politics
Anonymous said...
I am forced to work abroad to ensure that my family can afford to live in the UK,
November 11, 2008 2:37 PM
Well, take your family with you and we won't have to read your whining drivel.
I'll put my 'Business School' hat on and say that's a typical problem of staff training deficiencies! Or skills gaps (as opposed to labour market shortages). Though I'm surprised City Inn hasn't identified this problem from the many other complaints it's had.
Have you complained? Or have you taken the classic British 'take it on the chin' and not complained? The Americans would have complained - a classic Fawlty Towers with the complaining American guest was on last night. Send him to City Inn!
They do have a massive problem with their staff. Generally i quite like the place, but regularly having to wait 20 mins+ for a drink when there are 3 men and a dog in the place is not good.
Off Topic
With such economic novelties such as the ones Dave launched today, I think the first Conservative MPs meeting after the next election will be held in a taxi.
Dave, your (or George's) economic ideas do not stack up. Neither do Brown's, but you, Dave, are meant to be coming up with better ones...
This economic crisis has certainly spawned a flock of headless chickens.
Five things the pompous and pretentious say.
1. This is precisely what's wrong with the country today.
2. Don't you know who I am?
3. I'm not going to rant about this, but...
4. Was I unreasonable when I said...
5. I think not.
The poor guy who answered the phone might have been on his first day. He might have been in training. You've probably lost him his job now.
But then you Tories never care about people losing their jobs do you... Presumably that would be a sign that the market was working.
Getting a grumpy old bugger, aren't you?
Frustrating yes, but I'd be inclined to give them a second chance.
I came on here to berate Iain for using his blog, again, to report tedious happenings in his life, but I am struck by what a tw*t Anonymous 2:37 PM is.
So in an economic downturn private enterprises cannot pay for a room in a commercial hotel and have to go for the cheapest room available? No, in an economic downturn, like at any other time, private enterprises like Iain's can use their own money (or Lord Ashcroft's, arf arf) to do whatever they want. We are still, just about, capitalists. You, sir, should be directing your attentions at civil service, government and bbc overspends. That's the money you need to worry about. If someone is spending private money to make more money, that's ideal. The economy will start to grow again.
And I doubt you are not "forced" to work abroad to ensure your family can afford to live in the UK. We have a welfare system and lots of well paid job. Maybe you're just spending too much.
Has anyone actually stayed there? The hotel looks nice but the rooms are all subdued tones of grey and peach and very low lit. So much so I found it totally impossible to read. 10/10 for energy saving, 0/10 for eye saving.
It's also ion a bit of a desolate wasteland, miles from anywhere one might want to go....except the Houses of Parliament
Iain,
you really should have tried escalating it first - otherwise it's just griping. You have every reason to feel aggrieved, but shouldn't it be a monumental cock-up to warrant airing here?
It is true that it's *your* blog - but aren't you doing to us what the City Inn did to you? "I'm sorry, Mr Dale can't do anything political at the moment, he's off griping".
You're right, your enquiry should have been handled professionally. Any reasonable person would also have been peeved. However, you haven't paid them to do something for you which they've gone and cocked up - which is what motivates criticism of the government - and you're far better at that.
Pete, I have read your comment three times and I still don't understand your point. If you are saying you think I have overreacted to this then we must disagree.
Anonymous 8:31
It is because of people like you that service is such shite in this country. Apologising and making excuses when somebody gives you bad service. If you ordered a steak and the waiter brought you a well done turd on a plate you would probably thank him profusely and say 'yum yum' as you tucked in. You're not a Lib Dem by any chance are you?
I don't care if it was the person's first hour on the job there must have been somebody senior to whom he could have referred the call. But no, it was the typical can't be arsed attitude that you find all over this country. And don't give me the usual apologist tosh - well what do you expect, he's only on minimum wage? I have had many minimum wage jobs in my life - it is a helpful attitude that could very well raise someone out of that wage and get them promoted. And anyway, it is a matter of honour to do a job the best you can no matter what the salary. No doubt this kind of attitude is lost on apologists like you.
Iain, well done for exposing the City Inn's couldn't care less attitude.
And can I add that I hate anonymous whingers.
Computer says "no".
Please:
"to apologise profusely"
I apologise if my comment was arcane. My point was that you usually blog about events which are an insight into your life and views. Sadly, incompetent customer service is something we all get to enjoy.
To my feeble mind, you're much more engrossing when you're addressing political issues.
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