No Way To Accent Their Bad Behavior

(I am working at the help desk. I sit next to a gentleman who speaks three languages fluently. He has a slight accent, but no one in the office has ever had any problem understanding him. I take a call from a customer who, after hearing my rather generic, north-east accent says:)

Customer: “Oh, thank God! Finally, someone from the US! Maybe you can help me.”

(Quickly, I check the account history and find out that they were on a call with my coworker just a few minutes earlier. I review the information we have.)

Me: “I’m sorry, ma’am, but there’s nothing else we can do. And for the record? You spoke with [Coworker], who sits right next to me here in Pennsylvania.”

(There was some sputtering involved, and the call was “disconnected” on her end.  Never assume that just because someone has an accent that they are overseas somewhere, or that someone without an accent can help you better. My coworker was ten times more knowledgeable about the issue than the caller was!)