MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I stopped by McDonald's for a quick bite this afternoon. There was a young lady complaining that she had ordered an unsweetened tea, but had been given sweet tea instead. She declared that she had many health issues and couldn't have sugar. The gal she talked to apologized and gave her a cup of unsweetened tea. The girl then suggested they also give her a gift card "to make it right". The poor folks behind the counter were confused by this request, and called for the manager. The manager brought out some insurance forms to fill out, which she said was policy when there was a health issue involved. The girl didn't want to give her name -- she just reiterated that they should give her a gift card to make it right. The manager said she couldn't do that, but gave the girl her money back (out of her own pocket), and the girl left, not too happy. I was telling some friends about this incident, and most of them immediately said "entitlement mentality". I had immediately thought "scam". What do you all think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertBlossom Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Both? 20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Both? McDonalds could just served unsweentened tea and ask customers how many packs of sugar they want instead. That is what they usually do for coffee. Save them from having to deal with this kind of customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lang Syne Boardie Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Someone should have told the poor girl that following up with an unsweetened tea, as she ordered, WAS making it right. And the health forms being brought out to file a report on this situation? Ridiculous. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerileanne99 Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 OMG, no. Just, no. That is so NOT the same thing as sweet tea. Gag. Lol, chemistry prof hubby always uses the example of Southern-style sweet tea when he discusses super-saturated solutions. You have to add the sugar when the water is boiling to force that much sugar into solution. Adding even half that much sugar to ice cold tea would just get you a thick layer of sweet sludge on the bottom of the glass. Gross:) 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seasider Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 And the health forms being brought out to file a report on this situation? Ridiculous. I wonder if this is a common scam and the manager has come up with the health form as a way to separate scammers from actual problems. And I agree, giving her the unsweetened tea was making it right. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Someone should have told the poor girl that following up with an unsweetened tea, as she ordered, WAS making it right. And the health forms being brought out to file a report on this situation? Ridiculous. Really?? I think it's brilliant. If it was a legit health issue, she would have filled out the forms. 27 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I agree that the forms were a good idea. It deterred the woman from pushing her demand and maybe from trying this again. All without making the manager look uncaring. ;) I don't know if this lady was trying to scam or has an entitlement mentality or was just having a bad day. Maybe it was the 15th time that McD's messed up her order. Maybe she just broke up with her boyfriend. I'd have to see more than that one encounter with her to judge. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I agree that the forms were a good idea. It deterred the woman from pushing her demand and maybe from trying this again. All without making the manager look uncaring. ;) I don't know if this lady was trying to scam or has an entitlement mentality or was just having a bad day. Maybe it was the 15th time that McD's messed up her order. Maybe she just broke up with her boyfriend. I'd have to see more than that one encounter with her to judge. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Someone should have told the poor girl that following up with an unsweetened tea, as she ordered, WAS making it right. And the health forms being brought out to file a report on this situation? Ridiculous. I got the impression that the manager was trying to make a point: You think our mistake was a big deal? We'll treat it as a big deal. 18 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lang Syne Boardie Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I understand that the manager was probably doing a CYA move combined with forcing the point; I'm just saying I miss the good old days when a manager or proprietor saying, "This is all we are willing to do to correct an honest mistake, period," didn't leave any possibility for heavy drama or lawsuit attempt. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 IMO, it's a kind of entitlement mindset. I've come across lots of people (most, but not all, are older folks) who are of the "When I complain, I expect something above and beyond for free in order to consider the situation rectified" mentality. I don't consider it a scam, necessarily--more of a pushing of the envelope in an attempt to get a corporation to go the extra mile to keep a customer happy. I think the health forms were a brilliant response too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I think it's probably more the entitlement mentality. A scam would have been if the woman had drank the tea, pretended to go into anaphylaxis, jabbed herself with an epi-pen, then limped up to the counter and demanded a gift card or else she'd sue. Either way, the whole thing is ridiculous. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 It sounds like she got a gift card because of a similar service issue before and was trying to milk this to get free stuff. "The customer is always right" mentality. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fdrinca Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I think entitlement. The over-inflated sense of self - "you've inconvenienced me, so you need to double my benefit to make it OK." This reminds me that I used to LOVE when Starbucks would mess up my order, because I'd end up with a voucher for a free drink. Also reminds me that my father used to cause scenes similar to this. His attitude was borne entirely from entitlement/anger issues. In his world, there was very little room for people to make honest mistakes. So, if he'd brought home a sandwich made the wrong way from McDonalds, he'd call the store, complain, drive back, and demand a new sandwich PLUS gas money for his trip out and back. I'm so thankful my father has mellowed in his older years! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Whether it was a scam or a misplaced sense of entitlement, that young lady was a real weasel! I feel sorry for whomever dates her, what with the whole world revolving around her and what she wants. :ack2: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyJoy Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I would assume entitlement rather than scam immediately. It's possible she's received "above and beyond" compensation before and has come to expect it. Personally I think an "I'm sorry let me fix that for you," should be enough in a case like that where there is no significant inconvenience to the customer. The McDonald's in the last place I lived was known for its generous manager. We once ordered 2 cherry pies and 2 sodas at 10:30 pm. After we'd sat for 5 minutes, the employees realized they were out of cherry. The manager brought us 8?!?! apple pies, an apology, and a refund. Then 15 minutes later he dropped off a card for a free value meal. At Arbys we were often given free turnovers for a wait of more than 10 minutes (though we didn't complain). At Dutch Bros they've messed up my order twice and compensated me with a remade drink and a full punchcard for a free drink next time. Jack in the box replaced 1 missing jalapeño popper with 4. At Freddy's we've been given 5 free meal cards due to messed-up condiment orders and undercooked grilled cheese. The generous attitude toward fixing mistakes definitely influences our decision to dine there again. We've come to anticipate these restaurants' generous fixes, but haven't demanded or complained to trigger it. My husband tried to wave off the manager at Freddy's a couple days ago but she insisted on leaving a free meal card and told us it was her policy to fix mistakes and make sure we wanted to come back. Between the tasty food, cleanliness, and generous fixes they definitely succeed with us! DH's parents are embarrassing to dine with because they freak out over minor mistakes (or their own unfounded assumptions about hotel amenities) and get rude and demanding in a desire to get free stuff. It is completely calculated and the "righteous anger" is played up for the show then turned off and chuckled over outside. Yuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Is anyone else wondering if she really was served the wrong tea in the first place? I'm thinking scam - esp since she was persistent about what she wanted. Smart manager - though I feel sorry for them that they reimbursed her out of their own pocket. They should have been able to do that from the till. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Total scam. This has nothing to do with entitlement. This person was scamming a business for free stuff because they are a criminal. It probably wasn't even the wrong tea. This kind of scamming has been going on since there were businesses to exploit. The insurance forms was an excellent idea. Real health issue and they would have filled it out. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 I never expect compensation other than "please give me what I actually ordered", but I often receive a little something extra. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I make it a point to be pleasant. And as another poster said, I remember and return to places where I've been treated well. One of my favorite "above and beyond" stories: A couple of years ago, I was teaching some Summer classes. One morning I was running behind, and stopped at the local Bojangles to get a breakfast biscuit. On a whim, I asked if it was too early to order a salad to go for lunch later. The manager said they usually get the salad ingredients prepped between the breakfast and lunch crunches, but they could get it ready while I ate my biscuit. When he brought me the salad a few minutes later, he gave me the store's phone number, and told me that in the future, if I called the store as I was leaving home, they would start making my salad so that it would be ready when I got there. We chatted a while, and the next time I came in, he remembered that I had said I was teaching that day. He instructed his staff to give me the educators discount whenever I come in. I didn't even know there was such a thing, and I never ask for it, but it's nice to get. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Is anyone else wondering if she really was served the wrong tea in the first place? I'm thinking scam - esp since she was persistent about what she wanted. Smart manager - though I feel sorry for them that they reimbursed her out of their own pocket. They should have been able to do that from the till. Yes, I wondered that too. And I was thinking that it would have been easy to say "unsweetened" when ordering in such a way that the "sweet" was emphasized and was heard. She must have done the drive-through lane, because inside, the tea is self-serve. I had the feeling that it was simply easier for the manager to do it that way that go through the till. It was only a buck plus tax. I was really impressed with how she handled the whole thing. She was probably about 50yo, and was doing a great job of showing the young staffers how to deal with complaints. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I think it's 50/50. Could be a scam, although somebody trying to scam for a McD's gift card must be starving and I sort of feel bad for that person. Just as likely though, she really is that entitled. Lots of people are although the debate over where the line is... is not for this forum. LOL. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 And I must say that I don't like it when someone doesn't say "I'm sorry" when there has been a mistake or a delay. Coincidentally, the same week I had the above and beyond service I mentioned above, I had my worst experience. I sat down for breakfast in a fast food place and got the seat of my pants soaked. I looked around, and realized that several booths had puddles of water on the seats. When I talked to a worker about it, there was no apology, only this explanation: "It rained really hard overnight." Well, yeah, I said, that was true. But this was indoors! He explained that it had something to do with the vents for the air conditioning system leaking. I explained that it would have been nice to dry off the seats for their customers. He said they don't have towels or anything like that. I said they could have put signs on the doors or tables or verbally warned their customers to look out for wet seats. He stared blankly at me. I saved my receipt and submitted a formal complaint online. I never heard a word back. It was a long time before I stepped foot in that place again. I had to explain to my students that I hadn't really wet my pants. I was so soaked that it took quite a while to dry out. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Workers who are that apathetic can be as much a symptom of a broken workplace as a lazy worker, but overall I agree that at least a friendly warning would be nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Both. It takes an entitlement mentality to pull off scams for money. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Both. It takes an entitlement mentality to pull off scams for money. I disagree. I don't think scammers feel entitled at all. They are just lousy human beings who think they are ripping off a faceless corporation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 There are a few faceless corporations I wouldn't feel too badly about ripping off, but that's wandering into politics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Both. I find people are much more likely to bend over backwards to be nice when you are polite. Throwing a fit rarely helps. McDonald's "made it right" by giving her what she actually ordered. They went above and beyond when they refunded her money. It's tea for goodness sake. Mistakes happen. Once my sister was flying back to TX from MD after a visit home and there was some sort of major weather thing and lots of flights were cancelled. People were screaming and yelling. It is absolutely a pain in the butt to have travel delays but weather really can't be controlled. My sister waited in line and once she got to the counter she told them what airport she needed to get to and they were able to put her on a much later flight, and it would be one with a change of planes rather than nonstop like her originally flight should have been. She smiled and thanked the woman at the counter and the woman said, "You are the first person to smile at me in the last 30 minutes. Hold on a minute." The woman got someone to come over and they upgraded her to first class on both legs and then gave her free ticket vouchers. Her next two trips home were completely free. They gave her a couple more first class upgrades for those as well. You never know the power of a kind word and a smile even in a stressful situation. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I've had McD staffers mess up my orders many times. Usually I don't even say anything (because I've driven away), but when I do, I get an apology and the corrected order. I would not expect more. The point of going to McD's is to eat whatever I ordered. I could see why they don't have a policy to give perks for complaining. In some areas, there would be complaints all day long, mostly undeserved. McD food is cheap enough that they don't need to be giving freebies all day long. (And if they did, someone organization would be blaming their fixit policy for the nation's obesity problem, LOL.) I like it when I get an unexpected freebie, but I feel a little guilty too. In the past month, two different Starbucks gave me free coffee because their machines didn't know how to process my Discover card. I won't be going back to Starbucks with that card because I don't want to basically steal a coffee. (The card is almost expired - hopefully the new one will work.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Rest easy that Starbucks is not hurting for your free coffee. They've driven nearly every independent coffee house in the country out of business and in many places have locations on opposing street corners just to make sure they don't miss any passers by. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Rest easy that Starbucks is not hurting for your free coffee. They've driven nearly every independent coffee house in the country out of business and in many places have locations on opposing street corners just to make sure they don't miss any passers by. The nearest Starbucks to me is an hour and a half away. Our town has three independent coffee shops but no chains (unless you count McDonald's McCafe products, which I don't). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I think you live in a blessed place. :) I can think of one independent coffee house left in my hipster-rich state. I'm sure there's probably 3 or 4. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Scam. Off the subject, but McD's unsweet tea is often the way I reward myself. Often purchased through the drive-thru, I always take a sip before leaving the window. (It is just too easy for them to get it wrong, and I hate sweet tea.) Once this summer when I was given a sweet tea instead (one of the new fruity ones), I told the girl at the window it was incorrect. She actually told me, quite insistantly, that I was wrong; it was unsweet. I handed it back to her. She took the cup and tasted it herself. After I, a total stranger at a drive thru window, had sipped from it! Much to her amazement, it was fruity and sweet. She apologized at that point and made me a new drink. I sat there in shock. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I can't fathom somebody bothering to taste it themselves as if you're a liar (or as if they're going to hand it back to you after proving you wrong???) but as for the complete stranger bit, meh. The chances of transmitting something on a straw are infinitesimal. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenC Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Scam. Why is someone with many health issues eating at McDonalds? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I think you live in a blessed place. :) I can think of one independent coffee house left in my hipster-rich state. I'm sure there's probably 3 or 4. I don't really care if a coffee house is independent, as long as I get my caffeine. :P I usually don't spend money at Starbucks, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. ;) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Oh hey I've gone to my share of Starbucks. I'm just saying I wouldn't lose sleep over costing one $3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greta Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I can't have sugary drinks (reactive hypoglycemia) so I can relate to some frustration on the part of any customer whose order gets messed up. If it happens once or twice, I simply request a replacement. Not a replacement plus a refund plus a free meal, just a replacement! Mistakes happen, we all make them, life goes on. If it happens three times, I stop patronizing that particular restaurant, because that's more than a mistake, that's a pattern. (There's one particular Sonic location, for example, that I have learned to avoid. Other locations of the same chain are fine.) This customer's reaction definitely strikes me as a scam. She wanted something from them, but she wasn't willing to give them her name? Um, yeah, could that be because she knew she was in the wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I can't fathom somebody bothering to taste it themselves as if you're a liar (or as if they're going to hand it back to you after proving you wrong???) but as for the complete stranger bit, meh. The chances of transmitting something on a straw are infinitesimal. Takes too long to put a straw in. I lift the lid and sip. She took lid off. Still not much risk, but...GROSS!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I discussed this scenario with dh and his thoughts are as follows: If there was no mistake and the tea truly was as ordered then it was a scam. Trying to get something for nothing. If there was a mistake then it was entitlement because once the mistake was rectified they were demanding more because they felt their inconvenience warranted more. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 I can't have sugary drinks (reactive hypoglycemia) so I can relate to some frustration on the part of any customer whose order gets messed up. I was hoping to hear from someone who is truly very sensitive to sugar, which it sounds like you are. I'm not a big tea fan, but the times I've had McD's sweet tea, one sip was all I needed to know it was sweet. I can't imagine someone ingesting enough sweet tea in one taste that it would have lasting health issues, although I suppose it is possible. But if that were the case, I would think the person wouldn't hardly dare to eat or drink anything she hadn't prepared herself. There is a little bit of sugar hidden in lots of things most of us probably don't think about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I tend to think entitlement, because it would be a really lame scam. But when I say scam, I mean she made up the whole incident. I would not be surprised though if her feeling of entitlement made her exaggerate the situation for her own benefit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greta Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I was hoping to hear from someone who is truly very sensitive to sugar, which it sounds like you are. I'm not a big tea fan, but the times I've had McD's sweet tea, one sip was all I needed to know it was sweet. I can't imagine someone ingesting enough sweet tea in one taste that it would have lasting health issues, although I suppose it is possible. But if that were the case, I would think the person wouldn't hardly dare to eat or drink anything she hadn't prepared herself. There is a little bit of sugar hidden in lots of things most of us probably don't think about. Yeah, the difference between sweet tea and unsweet is so stark, that I really can't imagine anyone accidentally ingesting more than a sip. Maybe others are more sensitive, but one sip isn't nearly enough to do me any actual harm. The difference between diet soda and regular can be a bit less clear. At least, it is to me. Maybe it's because I don't drink sodas very often, but to me, even the diet tastes super sweet! I have my daughter take a test sip for me, because she's much better at distinguishing them than I am! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkW Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 The biggest problem I've ever had with McDonald's sweet tea is that if I don't get one early in the season, it's a crap shoot whether I'm going to get a nice sweet, smooth tea drink or something that tastes like swamp water because they've been using the same tea bags for hours or haven't cleaned out the carafe in a month... :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Why??? I mean McDonald's has messed up my cheeseburgers (no onion no mustard) if they accidentally put mustard on it then I don't complain but onion is a whole other issue :) I usually end up going to counter to get a new one and that's all I want. I usually order the 2 cheeseburger meal and if they don't push the right key on the register, one will be right but not the other. If they replaced the mix up then the lady should have been happy about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BooksandBoys Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 This kind of thing happened often at the restaurant where I waited tables. It was always the worst behaving people who demanded gift cards (more reasonable people were offered gift cards too. The difference was in who demanded them and who politely reported s problem without demand.). Of course, then the challenging people would return with their gift card and act horrifically all over again. It was incredibly frustrating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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