Page 2 - Customer Service

Banks' reliance on AI to handle customer service worries consumer watchdog

Can you trust Erica, or Sandi or Amy to increasingly control parts of your financial life without giving you inaccurate information or sending money to the wrong place? That's what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is asking in a report released Tuesday, where the bureau lays out a number of concerns about the growing use of chatbots by banks to handle routine customer service requests. The CFPB worries that banks or loan-servicing companies may cut back on human customer service employees and push an increasing number of routine tasks to AI. Further, the regulator says poorly designed chatbots could run afoul of federal laws that govern how debts are collected or how personal information is being used. If firms poorly deploy these services, there's a lot of risk for widespread customer harm, said Rohit Chopra, director of the CFPB, in an interview with The Associated Press. For several years, banks have been handling more and more customer service requests with chatbots, of

Layoffs coming: US telecom carrier Verizon warns customer service employees

The layoff warning as the company lost 127,000 postpaid subscribers in the first quarter this year

Delhi Jal Board plans to hire experts to train staff in customer services

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) said on Monday that it plans to hire experts to train its staff on providing better customer services. The utility will also conduct a special drive to disconnect connections of commercial and government consumers who have defaulted on their bills. During a meeting with senior officials, DJB Vice Chairman Somnath Bharti emphasised the need for DJB officers and employees to provide better customer satisfaction. He suggested that they undergo training on the lines of multinational firms to improve the way they interact with consumers. "The DJB will avail the services of experts for training the employees. In the training, the DJB employees will be taught ways to behave better with customers," a statement said. Bharti also directed officers to take strict action against commercial and government users who have defaulted on bills. The defaulting consumers with commercial connections owe Rs 18,000 crore to the DJB. Bharti also said that centralised monitoring

Insurance Samadhan, Ola unit announce collaboration for customer solutions

Partnership will involve grievance services like mis-selling, claim rejection, delay, and short settlement

Air India's low-cost subsidiaries move to single unified reservation system

The two carriers, Air India Express and AirAsia India, have also adopted a common social media and customer support channel; air operating permits and regulatory posts to be merged later

Demand for call center jobs see sharp uptick since pre-pandemic: Report

Businesses are recognising the rising importance of improving customer experience as there has been an exponential surge in demand from jobseekers for call centre and remote customer service jobs since pre-pandemic, says a survey. According to data from leading job site Indeed, there was an elevated demand for call centre and remote customer service jobs in the period from January 2020 - January 2021, with a sharp increase of 498.40 per cent in job postings and a tremendous increase in jobseeker interest. The uptick was largely owing to the pandemic necessitating more virtual customer service representatives, an exponentially rising demand for quick-commerce platforms and the growth of the app economy. Gig work also grew during this time frame owing to the emergence of work-from-home as a predominant model of work. However, job trends over the past year reveal a moderate drop in both job postings (by 73.50 per cent) and jobseeker interest (by 64.50 per cent clicks per million) as t

Mix of PSBs aided in boosting customer services, creating strong banks: MoS

The amalgamation of public sector banks has helped in improving customer services and creating strong banks, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash said on Wednesday. In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, the minister said the objective of amalgamation of the banks was to facilitate consolidation among PSBs to create "strong and competitive banks" capable of achieving economies of scale and realisation of synergy benefits with wider product and service offering to customers. "As a result of this effort, customers of amalgamated banks received access to increased number of branches and ATMs from which they can now avail banking services. Customers have also received access to a larger bouquet of products and services," he said. The amalgamation also enhanced their lending capacity for loans of a larger size and has also enabled banks to open/reorganise, controlling offices and processing centres, equipping them for better customer serving, Parkash ...

Realme to set a benchmark in tech industry with new care service system

In October this year, Realme launched Realme Care service system for seamless and simplified end-to-end customer support for its users

Want to close or cancel your credit card? Here's a step-by-step guide

When you are considering canceling a card, it should be taken into account how the cancellation of your credit card will affect your credit score

Customer protection the core of new RBI microfinance rules: Dy governor Rao

These measures, along with a cap on repayment obligations and steps to check over-indebtedness introduced by the regulator, will eventually bring down interest rates for the borrowers, he says

PSBs to soon have a helpline for customer grievance redressal: Report

This comes against the backdrop of a large number of complaints by customers over non-operating helpline numbers of several branches of PSBs in India

After RBI missive, FIDC asks NBFCs to revise codes of conduct

Has asked them to insert penalty cause for repeated breaches

Ozonetel starts WhatsApp platform for firms' customer communications

Service will reduce organisations' cost of operations by over 75%, says company

Walmart India team playing key role in innovation: CEO Doug McMillon

He added that they've changed the way people spend and save and their perception of value as well as how they travel, communicate, and work

Banks ensure their systems speak to each other for customer service: FM

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday urged banks to ensure that their systems speak to each other so that they are able to serve customers in a better way. The minister, while delivering the keynote address at the 75th annual meeting of the Indian Banks Association (IBA), said many a time customers are forced to transact with multiple lenders due to which it is important that the systems of one bank talks to that of other. She termed such a mechanism as an artificial wall erected by lenders to protect their turf. The finance minister also underlined the need for ensuring that banking personnel converse in the local language so that their customers are served better. Banks need to ensure that their systems speak to each other so that the common man banking with multiple lenders is not inconvenienced. Also, another key element of serving the customer better and more effectively is conversing in the local language, Sitharaman said. She also said it is essential that banks inv

Flipkart launches hotel-booking service, sees travel industry gaining

Flipkart Hotels will provide room bookings at 3 lakh domestic and international hotels. It will offer customers services like flexible travel and booking-related policies, and easy EMI options

Do you know your customer's decision journey?

Often, just a few key activities are all that you need to ensure that your brand does not become a leaky bucket that keeps losing customers at the last stage

Do you feel you were overcharged? Why are service prices not transparent?

Usually there is a marked difference between the charges promised and what we pay at the end of a service, whether at a restaurant or booking an air ticket. How can we ensure price transparency?

Unicorn Gupshup acquires OneDirect to strengthen conversational platform

Gupshup became a unicorn last year after it raised $100 million in funding at a valuation of $1.4 billion.

RBI-constituted panel to review customer service standards in banks, NBFCs

The RBI on Monday said it has set up a committee to evaluate the efficacy, adequacy and quality of customer service in banks, NBFCs, and other entities regulated by it.