Welcome to the United Corporate Tricks of 99% of America: 21st Century Guide to Customer Service for Newcomers in the Unites States

I’ve become increasingly frustrated with the corrupt round-abouts and dead-ends provided by the customer service and medical industry in the US. Statistics over the last 3 decades show how the private outsourcing and automation of almost everything has played a large role in funneling money from the lower and middle classes up to the ultra wealthy (see Harvey, W. Brown, Graeber, one can google to see the high percentage of errors in medical bills). Increasingly, I have to spend hours of my Fridays waiting, getting angry, fighting billing mistakes.

Given the field I work in, I have gotten to know hundreds of people who live short or long-term in the US and I have learned that, upon arrival, they are not warned or versed in the trickery of American customer service. Imagine coming to a foreign country and having to defend yourself from this automated aggression! And in a foreign language! So, today I finally sat down and wrote some tips that I had in my head that maybe could help someone navigate this deliberately unjust and kafka-esque customer service system. Can you give me any feedback on this? Could this be useful or is it trivial stuff that could be googled? Anything you would add? 

1- an alive human being at customer service is called an "agent" or "representative." 

2 - often you don't need to waste time listening to the automated phone tree. You can simply dial zero (0) to speak with an agent/representative.

3 - if the agent/representative doesn't know, don't waste your time, you have the right to ask "can I speak/chat with your supervisor?" Often that will solve the problem. 

4 - if you can't pay your medical bill, call the local hospital/clinic to ask if there is a solution to reduce the payment or to pay over a long period of time. Very often there is. If that doesn't work, call your health insurance company, but be prepared to wait on the line for a long time. See #2 above.

5 - never pay full price for something sold at at a regional or national company/franchise. This is too vast to explain right now, but there are infinite ways to save a percentages here and there. For example, see Rakuten, credit card cash back, and store "point" cards. Also, most companies will offer 20-25% off on your first purchase or when you sign up for a store card with them. (Warning: getting involved in acquiring discounts and cards here and there makes paying bills much more complex, there's a higher chance you could make a mistake and end up with a late fee.)

6- if you get a late fee, and you have a good record of paying on time (e.g., credit cards), call the company and explain the mistake. They will usually offer a "one time courtesy credit." In other words, they will often remove the late fee.

7 - if you're fighting a billing mistake, ask for the name of the person with whom you are speaking. They won't give you their full or real name, but they will usually give you a first name or their work ID number. Document this along with the day/time you spoke with them and what they told you. You may need this information later and, the more specific it is, the more convincing it will be. 

8- at regional and national companies, do not believe discounts, free things, memberships, or fee that are presented clearly before you. They are presented with exciting hype and they promise to save you money, but that is often not the case. These are often tricks and I've seen them become more complex and sneaky over the years. For example: Costco's membership fees, Xfinity/Comcast's bundle packages, cellphone deals, and car dealerships. Ask lots of questions, even if the agent/representative gets aggressive (don't be scared, aggression is not usually a problem, usually the agent/representative hates the company as much as you do). 

9- if you sign up for some kind of membership, carefully read the fine print. Usually you will automatically be billed for the following period without any warning.  

10- be very careful signing papers at the doctor's office/clinic/hospital. Read the fine print. Often they will ask you to sign papers that entail sending your address to a third party and that third party will send you a surprise bill. 

11- if you cannot solve your problem with a business with the tips above, 4 other recourses come to mind:

    a. if you paid with a credit card -- mark the charge as "fraud" with your credit company. Call the credit card company and explain. They will ask you to reach out to the company. Tell them you already did and they may be willing to try to speak with the company on your and their behalf.

    b. I have never used it, but there is a non-profit service called the Better Business Bureau. You have the right to file an official complaint here for free. Supposedly, many have found a fair response this way.

    c. for smaller businesses, you may receive a helpful response from the company by leaving a negative Google review. (However, most of these problems are not caused by small businesses.)

    d. if you have money, you can hire a lawyer.