Lesson #1: For Some Customers, Logic Is Not An Option

I was working the register when an older gentleman came in and started raising Hell about something. I was occupied, and there was a new boss talking to him, so I wasn’t paying much attention. The new boss was a younger girl; she’s a real sweetie, and I don’t think she deals with things like that well, so this guy was just reaming her.

One of our services is filling propane tanks, like you use on a grill, and I guess this guy was missing an O-ring for his tank. He was saying we were responsible for maintaining the tanks, and we needed to take care of this problem for him. [New Boss] was trying to help him, but she screwed up at first and told him we didn’t maintain the tanks, and that wasn’t what he wanted to hear, so he was on a rant — a rant like I haven’t heard out of a customer.

I finished with a customer and had a bit of time, so I walked over and caught up with what was going on just as he was talking about our responsibility to maintain his tank again. I stepped in and told him we filled the tanks and that was it. I told him we didn’t have parts, training, or any kind of tools to work on tanks. He wasn’t having it and seemed even more angry that I was arguing with him. He kept repeating himself about our responsibilities, so I asked if the gas station where he filled his car was responsible for maintaining it. That pushed him further over the edge, but he just kept repeating the same thing over and over. It didn’t matter what we said; if it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, he wasn’t going to acknowledge it.

I finally just told him he needed to leave, and he told me wouldn’t be back. I don’t recall ever seeing him there before, so I doubt he’ll be missed, but now I know what it’s like to have an unreasonable customer.