Delivery Comes Standard, Insolence Is Extra

(The store I work for allows customers to order merchandise online in the store and have it delivered to the store or their home. I am cashiering and a customer enters.)

Customer: “I need to know if my keyboard has been delivered. I ordered it on Thursday.”

(I page the appropriate person — we have radios with earpieces — and they inform me.)

Me: “I am afraid it hasn’t, but will probably be in later today, since no deliveries were made yesterday because of Labor Day.”

Customer: *irate* “They said it would be here Friday! I need it today!”

Me: “I apologize for the misunderstanding. Packages sometimes take more than one day with delivery, and that since it was ordered Thursday, today is the second possible day it could arrive. It should be there this afternoon, at the latest.”

Customer: *huffy* “Well, that doesn’t help me now!“

(She leaves. For the next two hours, the day progresses as usual and I kind of forget about it. Customers who get huffy because they don’t pay attention are nothing new. But then she comes back, slaps a receipt down on the table, and says:)

Customer: “I want my money back for this!”

Me: *smiles* “Absolutely.” *processes her refund* “It has been credited directly back to your credit card. Have a wonderful day!”

Customer: “Oh, I will, because I’m going to [Competitor] where they have the product and aren’t going to be insolent and rude about not getting it to me when they promised!”

Me: *squealing, my smile broadening* “That sounds fabulous!”

(Out she goes with a huff. I prepare to forget it again, when less than five minutes later I am paged via earpiece:)

Coworker: “Hey, that package for [Customer] arrived!”

Me: “Funny story about that!”

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