This is to inform you that I had gone in for a TATA Indicom phone connection last year but surrendered the phone due to continuous faulty connection as well as uncaring customer care personnel. The connection was finally removed after nearly 5 months of filing the complaint.

When the sales person (Mr Diwarkar) visited our home, he suggested that there was abetter scheme where one could pay Rs 1122 and get a new connection where one doesn't have to pay any rentals for 3 years. My husband decided to go in for it and paid the cash amount of Rs 1122 on Oct 26th 2006, and a cheque of Rs 250 for installation, to Mr Diwakar, who said that he did not have a receipt and that he would bring the receipt and the instrument the next day. We waited for 5 months and in spite of repeated reminders to this person, he did not install the new phone.

The TATA Indicom tele-helpline is a waste of time as our calls keep getting cut or error messages and our endless calls were met with several excuses including personal problems for not fixing our phone. Towards the end, he refused to even pick up our phone. Finally, my daughter called from her phone and his wife answered the call and gave it to him, unsure of who the customer was. When Diwakar came on the line, we requested him to return the amount that was due to us as the connection had not been installed for nearly 6 months.

He came home 2 days ago with the cheque of Rs 250 and said that he would return in the same evening with the cash amount and the complaint form. He also said that he has lost his phone... the mobile no. he gave us was 09243452472 . With no address and an untraceable phone to contact him, we are finding it very difficult and near impossible to retrieve the amount that is due to us.

We are sure that TATA Indicom is aware of its dealers and their personnel but it is indeed awful that customers like us, who are elderly people, have to bear the brunt of their untrustworthiness and utter incompetence. If there is anyway, the higher authorities can trace Mr Diwakar and his ilk, and take them to task, they would save their clients from undue harassment and restore some faith in their business operations.

Kavery Ganapathy,
Bangalore.