I think it was my fault. After I bought the groceries in Lidl, I dutifully moved to the counter to pack it all away. Then, I noticed I’d spilt most of the blueberries on the ground.
I started to pick them up, and the security guard came to help. I apologised, and he told me it was no problem, and to go and take another packet. “But – but – it was my fault,” I whimpered, slightly mortified.
“No, no problem, take another one,” he insisted. The shop assistant nodded in agreement. Still feeling a little like a thief, I went back and grabbed them.
I was pretty impressed with this. But am I easily impressed? Should supermarkets pay for our mistakes? What normally happens, for instance, when you smash a bottle of wine on the floor?
My sister says that McDonald’s also have excellent customer service in this regard. She’s noticed, on a few occasions when taking the kids there, that if someone drops a packet of chips all over the floor, they’re immediately given a new packet. Or a half-eaten burger, returned with a complaint that it’s cold, is replaced without quibble (she’d like me to point out that she herself has not done this).
What should happen here? Is it a gesture of goodwill to replace the wine/ chips/ blueberries, or should we be told to suck it up and be more careful?
Have you got a good customer service story to share?