I have just moved into a new flat, and I get my first energy bill. It comes in at about twenty times what I expect — around £600 for one month’s electricity for a studio apartment — so I call the company.

Me: “Hi. I’m calling about my energy bill. I’ve been here for a month, and I’m still getting set up, so I haven’t used much electricity, and yet my bill seems to be enough to cover my whole building.”

Agent #1: “Oh, that’s weird. Do you have a smart meter fitted?”

I agree to the smart meter, and it’s installed a month later. In the meantime, I am billed another £600, but I have only a direct debit for £75 a month. As soon as the smart meter is fitted, it’s clear from the readings that my usage is more like £40 a month, but the back charge hasn’t been cleared. No worries; maybe I need to call again. 

I talk to [Agent #2] and clear the security questions.

Agent #2: “Hi there. I see you owe us £1,150. How would you like to pay for that?”

Me: “I would not, actually; I’m trying to resolve this. I had a smart meter fitted which shows that, since the date of that meter fitting, the readings have dropped all the way down. It’s clear that the original readings were wrong, and I’m trying to get that cleared.”

Agent #2: “Oh, I’m looking at your records and I see exactly what you mean. I’m going to forward all this to the correct department. You should see this removed by the next billing date.”

Brilliant, I think. Sorted. 

But three months later, I’m still getting emails about this overdue amount (which is steadily going down as I’m still overpaying for my actual energy usage). So, I call again. And I have the same conversation again. I’m now being redundant and I’m stressed out of my mind, but the agent assures me that it will be resolved by the next billing cycle. 

Three months pass, and the amount is still showing on my bills. I’m signed off work with chronic pain and anxiety (not helped by this bill), and I call again. This time, I am overwhelmed and not hiding it well when I get this awful agent. 

Agent #3: “Hi. I see you owe us [amount]. How would you like to pay?”

I repeat my spiel about the bills and go on to say:

Me: “This has been going on for six months now, and getting these constant emails is negatively impacting my mental health.” *Starting to cry* “Can you please just remove these overdue charges?”

Agent #3: “Yes, yes, I understand. It must be very hard for you, being a woman.”

I immediately sober up emotionally. 

Me: “Actually, you know what? Leave a note on my file. I’m taking this to the ombudsman.”

Agent #3: “Whatever, lady.”

And he hangs up. I’m livid, so I let myself calm down before quickly calling back. I get another agent. 

Agent #4: “Hi. I see you owe us [amount]. How would you like to pay?”

Me: “Actually, I would like to make a complaint. Can you see who accessed my file earlier today?”

Agent #4: “I can’t see any access today from anyone.”

Me: “So, he didn’t even access my account? That’s insane. I was talking about my bill. Can you see the notes?”

Agent #4: “Give me one moment.” *Pauses to check* “Okay, I see. So, you’ve been overcharged?”

Me: “With the last guy, I was explaining how this bill is affecting me, and he essentially said that I was emotional because I’m a woman, even after I explained my long-term health conditions. I don’t appreciate being belittled like that.”

Agent #4: “You’re right; that’s totally unacceptable.”

Me: “I know it’s not your fault, and you’ve been great, but at this point, I have to go to the ombudsman as I don’t feel like I’m getting any support from your company. Can you please leave a note on my file that that’s what I’m doing, as well as my complaint about the previous agent, whoever he was?” 

She was nice, and while it took another six months, my contact with the local ombudsman services had them reverse the charge, along with a suggested £100 credit. But it was the most exhausting year of my life.

I go with my friend to the emergency room for support. When we enter, there are quite a few people. One is an older lady in a wheelchair who starts asking me questions even though I obviously do not work there.

Lady: “Is there a water fountain around here?”

Me: “I’m not sure — I just got here — but I can look.”

While my friend sits down, I try to be helpful to the slightly distressed lady who doesn’t have money for the vending machine. I walk around the room where everyone is sitting and check by the bathrooms, and I don’t see anything. I come across an employee.

Me: “Excuse me. Is there a water fountain?”

Employee: “Not here, no.”

I found the lady again and apologized while telling her I hadn’t found anything.

Seven hours later, my friend was free to go, and we exited to the main ER area on the side of the room opposite where the chairs were… right beside a water fountain.

I work at a coffee shop inside of a bike shop. I have a sign that says, “I AM ON MY LUNCH,” on one side and, “I AM TAKING TEN MINUTES TO RESTOCK AND CATCH UP,” on the other. The number of people who just stand and stare at me is astounding.

Sometimes, I’ll even tell folks, “Sorry, I’m on my lunch,” and point out the sign, and they’ll go, “Oh, that’s fine. I just need a coffee.”

Facepalm.

I work in a vegan restaurant. We open at 11:00 am. People will walk in prior to 11:00 am or expect us to let them in prior to 11:00 am, even though the business has never opened prior to 11:00 am. We have signage out front stating so, and the time is also listed on our website. People have tried the main front door, discovered that it’s locked, and seen where the opening time is written, and still proceeded to try the second door. It’s ridiculous.

They also sometimes try this one when they walk in before 11:00 am.

Me: “Excuse me, ma’am. We are not open.”

Customer #1: “I just need to use the restroom.”

Me: “Sorry, ma’am, we are not open for any business right now.”

Customer #1: “Just really quick?” 

Me: “Try [Coffee Chain], ma’am; they are open.”

As it says online, in-store, and on every single poster and menu in the building, we are a 100% vegan food restaurant. And yet, we run into this all the time, too:

Customer #2: “Do you guys have any real chicken?”

Me: “No, we are an entirely vegan food restaurant.”

Customer #2: “Really? Nothing?”

No, I don’t have a secret stash of chicken for you in the back, my guy.

My workplace is close to the train station — about 200m/600ft away. During renovations, they found a buried aerial bomb. In order to safely defuse it, they had everyone in a radius of 500m evacuate and had police lock up the area. Nobody unauthorized was to enter for their own safety. This was across the news on TV and the radio, fire trucks were driving around making announcements, etc.

The bomb was safely defused and transported away.

When we returned to work the next day, we had an angry voicemail from a client.

Client: “I wanted to come by today, but I am standing in front of your doors, and they’re locked! Why are you closed?!”

How he managed to sneak past the barriers and police without realizing he was entering a restricted zone is beyond me.