I thought NTL were pants
Jul 4th 2005, 10:20 pm
#1
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
Joined: May 2004
Location: Umina, NSW
Posts: 2,453
I thought NTL were pants
A lovely tale about the costs of technology
What a world? (country NSW)... On Thursday, 24 January 2002, Derek
Guille broadcast this story on his afternoon program on ABC radio.
In March, 1999, a man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW received a
bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00. He
ignored it and threw it away. In April he received another bill and
threw that one away too.
The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating
they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by
return mail. He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a
computer error and they would take care of it.
The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried out
the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the account
it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament. However, when he
went to use the gas, it had been cut off.
He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once
again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a
bill for $0.00 stating that payment was now overdue. Assuming that
having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was yet another
mistake, so he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as good as
their word and sort the problem out.
The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he
had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps
to recover the debt. Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the
company at their own game and mailed them a cheque [check] for $0.00.
The computer duly processed his account and returned a statement to the
effect that he now owed the gas company nothing at all.
A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking
Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing
writing cheque for $0.00. After a lengthy explanation the bank manager
replied that the $0.00 cheque had caused their cheque processing
software to fail. The bank could therefore not process ANY cheques they
had received from ANY of their customers that day because the cheque for
$0.00 had caused the computer to crash.
The following month the man received a letter from the gas company
claiming that his cheque has bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 and
unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate steps
to recover the debt.
At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against
the gas company. It took him nearly 2 hours to convince the clerks at
the local courthouse that he was not joking. They subsequently assisted
him in the drafting of statements which were considered substantive
evidence of the aggravation and difficulties he had been forced to
endure during this debacle.
The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome
was this:
The gas company was ordered to:
[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or show
cause, within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher
court for consideration under Company Law.
[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.
[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients
whose cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been.
[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and
[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period
March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had
caused their client to suffer.
And all this over $0.00.
This story can also be viewed on the ABC website.
Who employed these idiots??
What a world? (country NSW)... On Thursday, 24 January 2002, Derek
Guille broadcast this story on his afternoon program on ABC radio.
In March, 1999, a man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW received a
bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00. He
ignored it and threw it away. In April he received another bill and
threw that one away too.
The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating
they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by
return mail. He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a
computer error and they would take care of it.
The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried out
the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the account
it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament. However, when he
went to use the gas, it had been cut off.
He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once
again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a
bill for $0.00 stating that payment was now overdue. Assuming that
having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was yet another
mistake, so he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as good as
their word and sort the problem out.
The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he
had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps
to recover the debt. Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the
company at their own game and mailed them a cheque [check] for $0.00.
The computer duly processed his account and returned a statement to the
effect that he now owed the gas company nothing at all.
A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking
Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing
writing cheque for $0.00. After a lengthy explanation the bank manager
replied that the $0.00 cheque had caused their cheque processing
software to fail. The bank could therefore not process ANY cheques they
had received from ANY of their customers that day because the cheque for
$0.00 had caused the computer to crash.
The following month the man received a letter from the gas company
claiming that his cheque has bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 and
unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate steps
to recover the debt.
At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against
the gas company. It took him nearly 2 hours to convince the clerks at
the local courthouse that he was not joking. They subsequently assisted
him in the drafting of statements which were considered substantive
evidence of the aggravation and difficulties he had been forced to
endure during this debacle.
The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome
was this:
The gas company was ordered to:
[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or show
cause, within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher
court for consideration under Company Law.
[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.
[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients
whose cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been.
[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and
[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period
March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had
caused their client to suffer.
And all this over $0.00.
This story can also be viewed on the ABC website.
Who employed these idiots??
Jul 4th 2005, 10:33 pm
#2
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,277
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Last edited by kirsty&al; Jul 4th 2005 at 10:36 pm.
Jul 4th 2005, 11:39 pm
#3
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: May 2004
Location: Birkdale QLD
Posts: 7,642
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by kirsty&al
I love snopes.com.
I can get lost there for hours reading the urban legends.Heres a good one, thats also true!
http://www.snopes.com/business/consumer/nissan.asp
Jarrod Byrne
Underground Maintenance Planner
Bounty Gold Mine, Mt Holland
Forrestania, Western Australia
Tel (090) 394 527, Fax (090) 394 528
Nissan Motor Co (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
C/O 244 Welshpool Rd, Welshpool
W.A. 6106
ATTENTION: Mr Neville Green, General Manager — National Parts
Dear Sir,
I would like to bring to your attention some serious faults in Nissan Motor Co in regard to parts availability, lead times and pricing. Currently we have a Nissan W40 Civilian bus that we cannot use to transport staff to and from the mine. The reason this bus is not operational is not labour or condition related, it is because of a denial on the part of yourself and Nissan Motor Co to adequately supply your clientele with parts. I give you the example of the following items:
ITEM PART NUMBER QUANTITY BEGGED FOR
Nut NI-40208-00221 10
Washer NI-40208-82100 10
Seal-Oil NI-48252-32100 2
Wheel Rim NI-40800-99071 2
Drum Brake NI-40206-T8100 2
Hub Bolt NI-40222-J5625 10
Brake Shoes NI-43060-T9627 1
Nut NI-40224-J5610 10
Nut NI-48226-J5610 10
Of these items I tried to purchase, only 3 are available in W.A. It stretches the bounds of credulity that items such as wheel nuts (a consumable in most of the known world) are available with a lead time of 4 days-ex east. What resoundingly snaps the bounds of credulity clean in half is that items such as brake shoes are ex Japan (6 weeks). I cannot deny the effectiveness of these components, they not only slow the bus down, they have the ability to stop it stone ****ing dead for 6 weeks! I didn't even bother enquiring availability on such complicated parts such as washers etc. — the only washers in stock would be — Washer? Wind **** out of this customer and tell him it's ex east.
On the rare occasion we have been delivered parts within an acceptable time period, they have been entirely wrong. It is not that the wrong parts are ordered, it is that some of your parts interpreters are so green I couldn't set them on fire with petrol.
These are not isolated incidents, they occur every time we try to purchase parts, from $10.00 hoses, at $109.40 each, through to internal gearbox components that are second only to thermonuclear warheads in their capacity to annihlate all that surrounds them.
It is astounding that in this day of interstate air and road transport at least 6 times a day, you peanuts take 4 days to get a part across the country. May I suggest you stop freighting the parts with Nissan transport vehicles as the 3 week delay in Nissan's 24 hr roadside assist is becoming too much for us to bear.
I could elaborate on the complete frustration I feel from trying to keep the bus on the road safely. Suffice to say the bus driver now has a firm belief in the afterlife and we haven't ruled out danger money for the position.
Please don't get me wrong, I could handle the first 35 times of being ****ed around, (the apologetic kiss from customer support was always welcome). Now that you've turned it into a bizarre form of sado-masochism complete with scratching and biting, I feel I have to complain...
I look forward to discussing every single frustrating event of the past 8 months with you.
I SINCERELY HOPE YOU ****S NEVER BUILD PLANES
Yours in utter amazement,
Jarrod Byrne
CC. MR JOHN COSTELLO MANAGER, FLEET AND SPECIAL MARKETS, NISSAN AUSTRALIA
MR BRUCE ANDERSON MINE MANAGER, NORMANDY MINING
MR IAN BIRD U/G MANAGER, NORMANDY MINING
MR DEAN HUGHES U/G MAINTENANCE ENGINEER, NORMANDY MINING
MS JAN EVANS SITE SECETARY, NORMANDY MINING
MR ROBERT WHITING PURCHASING OFFICER, NORMANDY MINING
MR ANDREW MOSES OWNER, HOLLETON EARTHMOVING
MR PETER CUE OWNER, WORKFORCE PLANT HIRE
MR HARVEY KING REGIONAL MANAGER, MONADELPHOUS
MR ALEX COOPER DIVISIONAL MANAGER, MONADELPHOUS
MR RAY MILLER TECH. SUPPORT SUPERVISOR, MONADELPHOUS
MR REX ANDREWS CHIEF PURCHASING OFFICER, MONODELPHOUS
MR EDDY LOK MECHANICAL SUPERVISOR , MONODELPHOUS
MR JOHN ECKHART FABRICATION SUPERVISOR, MONODELPHOUS
MR PATRICK McKENNA STATE CONTRACTS MANAGER, ATLAS COPCO
MR TED CORDINA PERTH SERVICE MANAGER, ATLAS COPCO
MR GERRY O'CONNOR CONTRACTS SUPERVISOR, ATLAS COPCO
MR ALEC TYRELL CONTRACTS SUPERVISOR, ATLAS COPCO
MR MICHAEL GANT WORKSHOP SUPERVISOR — PERTH, ATLAS COPCO
AND
EVERY PERSON I TALK TO BETWEEN NOW AND WHEN I GET SOME SATISFACTION
Underground Maintenance Planner
Bounty Gold Mine, Mt Holland
Forrestania, Western Australia
Tel (090) 394 527, Fax (090) 394 528
Nissan Motor Co (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
C/O 244 Welshpool Rd, Welshpool
W.A. 6106
ATTENTION: Mr Neville Green, General Manager — National Parts
Dear Sir,
I would like to bring to your attention some serious faults in Nissan Motor Co in regard to parts availability, lead times and pricing. Currently we have a Nissan W40 Civilian bus that we cannot use to transport staff to and from the mine. The reason this bus is not operational is not labour or condition related, it is because of a denial on the part of yourself and Nissan Motor Co to adequately supply your clientele with parts. I give you the example of the following items:
ITEM PART NUMBER QUANTITY BEGGED FOR
Nut NI-40208-00221 10
Washer NI-40208-82100 10
Seal-Oil NI-48252-32100 2
Wheel Rim NI-40800-99071 2
Drum Brake NI-40206-T8100 2
Hub Bolt NI-40222-J5625 10
Brake Shoes NI-43060-T9627 1
Nut NI-40224-J5610 10
Nut NI-48226-J5610 10
Of these items I tried to purchase, only 3 are available in W.A. It stretches the bounds of credulity that items such as wheel nuts (a consumable in most of the known world) are available with a lead time of 4 days-ex east. What resoundingly snaps the bounds of credulity clean in half is that items such as brake shoes are ex Japan (6 weeks). I cannot deny the effectiveness of these components, they not only slow the bus down, they have the ability to stop it stone ****ing dead for 6 weeks! I didn't even bother enquiring availability on such complicated parts such as washers etc. — the only washers in stock would be — Washer? Wind **** out of this customer and tell him it's ex east.
On the rare occasion we have been delivered parts within an acceptable time period, they have been entirely wrong. It is not that the wrong parts are ordered, it is that some of your parts interpreters are so green I couldn't set them on fire with petrol.
These are not isolated incidents, they occur every time we try to purchase parts, from $10.00 hoses, at $109.40 each, through to internal gearbox components that are second only to thermonuclear warheads in their capacity to annihlate all that surrounds them.
It is astounding that in this day of interstate air and road transport at least 6 times a day, you peanuts take 4 days to get a part across the country. May I suggest you stop freighting the parts with Nissan transport vehicles as the 3 week delay in Nissan's 24 hr roadside assist is becoming too much for us to bear.
I could elaborate on the complete frustration I feel from trying to keep the bus on the road safely. Suffice to say the bus driver now has a firm belief in the afterlife and we haven't ruled out danger money for the position.
Please don't get me wrong, I could handle the first 35 times of being ****ed around, (the apologetic kiss from customer support was always welcome). Now that you've turned it into a bizarre form of sado-masochism complete with scratching and biting, I feel I have to complain...
I look forward to discussing every single frustrating event of the past 8 months with you.
I SINCERELY HOPE YOU ****S NEVER BUILD PLANES
Yours in utter amazement,
Jarrod Byrne
CC. MR JOHN COSTELLO MANAGER, FLEET AND SPECIAL MARKETS, NISSAN AUSTRALIA
MR BRUCE ANDERSON MINE MANAGER, NORMANDY MINING
MR IAN BIRD U/G MANAGER, NORMANDY MINING
MR DEAN HUGHES U/G MAINTENANCE ENGINEER, NORMANDY MINING
MS JAN EVANS SITE SECETARY, NORMANDY MINING
MR ROBERT WHITING PURCHASING OFFICER, NORMANDY MINING
MR ANDREW MOSES OWNER, HOLLETON EARTHMOVING
MR PETER CUE OWNER, WORKFORCE PLANT HIRE
MR HARVEY KING REGIONAL MANAGER, MONADELPHOUS
MR ALEX COOPER DIVISIONAL MANAGER, MONADELPHOUS
MR RAY MILLER TECH. SUPPORT SUPERVISOR, MONADELPHOUS
MR REX ANDREWS CHIEF PURCHASING OFFICER, MONODELPHOUS
MR EDDY LOK MECHANICAL SUPERVISOR , MONODELPHOUS
MR JOHN ECKHART FABRICATION SUPERVISOR, MONODELPHOUS
MR PATRICK McKENNA STATE CONTRACTS MANAGER, ATLAS COPCO
MR TED CORDINA PERTH SERVICE MANAGER, ATLAS COPCO
MR GERRY O'CONNOR CONTRACTS SUPERVISOR, ATLAS COPCO
MR ALEC TYRELL CONTRACTS SUPERVISOR, ATLAS COPCO
MR MICHAEL GANT WORKSHOP SUPERVISOR — PERTH, ATLAS COPCO
AND
EVERY PERSON I TALK TO BETWEEN NOW AND WHEN I GET SOME SATISFACTION
Jul 4th 2005, 11:44 pm
#4
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,277
Re: I thought NTL were pants
My favourite...if only it were true.
http://www.snopes.com/military/lighthse.htm
http://www.snopes.com/military/lighthse.htm
ACTUAL transcript of a US naval ship with Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland in October, 1995. This radio conversation was released by the Chief of Naval Operations on 10-10-95.
Americans: "Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision."
Canadians: "Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision."
Americans: "This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course."
Canadians: "No, I say again, you divert YOUR course."
Americans: "THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, THE SECOND LARGEST SHIP IN THE UNITED STATES' ATLANTIC FLEET. WE ARE ACCOMPANIED BY THREE DESTROYERS, THREE CRUISERS AND NUMEROUS SUPPORT VESSELS. I DEMAND THAT YOU CHANGE YOUR COURSE 15 DEGREES NORTH. THAT'S ONE-FIVE DEGREES NORTH, OR COUNTER MEASURES WILL BE UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THIS SHIP."
Canadians: "This is a lighthouse. Your call."
Americans: "Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision."
Canadians: "Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision."
Americans: "This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course."
Canadians: "No, I say again, you divert YOUR course."
Americans: "THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, THE SECOND LARGEST SHIP IN THE UNITED STATES' ATLANTIC FLEET. WE ARE ACCOMPANIED BY THREE DESTROYERS, THREE CRUISERS AND NUMEROUS SUPPORT VESSELS. I DEMAND THAT YOU CHANGE YOUR COURSE 15 DEGREES NORTH. THAT'S ONE-FIVE DEGREES NORTH, OR COUNTER MEASURES WILL BE UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THIS SHIP."
Canadians: "This is a lighthouse. Your call."
Jul 5th 2005, 12:33 am
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by kirsty&al
According to that link, it first happened in Boston Massachusetts in 1992,
then in Australia in 1999.
But the original story, "Winning a battle with a computer system", about a cheque for $0, came out of a 1970 joke book
Jul 5th 2005, 12:59 am
#6
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
Joined: May 2004
Location: Umina, NSW
Posts: 2,453
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by ABCDiamond
Either that or some mysterious co-incidences abound
According to that link, it first happened in Boston Massachusetts in 1992,
then in Australia in 1999.
But the original story, "Winning a battle with a computer system", about a cheque for $0, came out of a 1970 joke book
According to that link, it first happened in Boston Massachusetts in 1992,
then in Australia in 1999.
But the original story, "Winning a battle with a computer system", about a cheque for $0, came out of a 1970 joke book
Jul 5th 2005, 1:03 am
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by joho
I thought it was true, just call me 'gulible'
Jul 5th 2005, 10:30 pm
#8
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 322
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Subject: Rocket Scientist
Sometimes it DOES take a Rocket Scientist!! (true story)
Scientists at Roll Royce built a gun specifically to launch dead
chickens at the windshields of airliners, and military jets , all
travelling at maximum velocity. The idea is to simulate the frequent
incidents of collisions with airborne fowl to test the strength of the
windshields. American engineers heard about the gun and were eager to
test it on the windshields of their new high speed trains. Arrangements
were made, and a gun was sent to the American engineers. When the gun
was fired, the engineers stood shocked as the chicken hurled out of the
barrel, crashed into the shatterproof shield, smashed it to smithereens,
blasted through the control console, snapped the engineer's back-rest in
two and embedded itself in the back wall of the cabin, like an arrow
shot from a bow. The horrified Yanks sent Rolls Royce the disastrous
results of the experiment, along with the designs of the windshield and
begged the British scientists for suggestions.
You're going to love this......
Rolls Royce responded with a one-line memo :
"Defrost the chicken "
Sometimes it DOES take a Rocket Scientist!! (true story)
Scientists at Roll Royce built a gun specifically to launch dead
chickens at the windshields of airliners, and military jets , all
travelling at maximum velocity. The idea is to simulate the frequent
incidents of collisions with airborne fowl to test the strength of the
windshields. American engineers heard about the gun and were eager to
test it on the windshields of their new high speed trains. Arrangements
were made, and a gun was sent to the American engineers. When the gun
was fired, the engineers stood shocked as the chicken hurled out of the
barrel, crashed into the shatterproof shield, smashed it to smithereens,
blasted through the control console, snapped the engineer's back-rest in
two and embedded itself in the back wall of the cabin, like an arrow
shot from a bow. The horrified Yanks sent Rolls Royce the disastrous
results of the experiment, along with the designs of the windshield and
begged the British scientists for suggestions.
You're going to love this......
Rolls Royce responded with a one-line memo :
"Defrost the chicken "
Jul 5th 2005, 10:56 pm
#9
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,277
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by joho
I thought it was true, just call me 'gulible'
A.
Last edited by kirsty&al; Jul 5th 2005 at 11:48 pm.
Jul 6th 2005, 4:45 am
#10
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
Joined: May 2004
Location: Umina, NSW
Posts: 2,453
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by kirsty&al
I think "innocent" sounds better.
A.
A.
Jo
Jul 6th 2005, 5:05 am
#11
Banned
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Santa Monica,CA from Birmingham, UK
Posts: 18,402
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by joho
A lovely tale about the costs of technology
What a world? (country NSW)... On Thursday, 24 January 2002, Derek
Guille broadcast this story on his afternoon program on ABC radio.
In March, 1999, a man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW received a
bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00. He
ignored it and threw it away. In April he received another bill and
threw that one away too.
The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating
they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by
return mail. He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a
computer error and they would take care of it.
The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried out
the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the account
it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament. However, when he
went to use the gas, it had been cut off.
He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once
again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a
bill for $0.00 stating that payment was now overdue. Assuming that
having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was yet another
mistake, so he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as good as
their word and sort the problem out.
The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he
had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps
to recover the debt. Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the
company at their own game and mailed them a cheque [check] for $0.00.
The computer duly processed his account and returned a statement to the
effect that he now owed the gas company nothing at all.
A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking
Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing
writing cheque for $0.00. After a lengthy explanation the bank manager
replied that the $0.00 cheque had caused their cheque processing
software to fail. The bank could therefore not process ANY cheques they
had received from ANY of their customers that day because the cheque for
$0.00 had caused the computer to crash.
The following month the man received a letter from the gas company
claiming that his cheque has bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 and
unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate steps
to recover the debt.
At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against
the gas company. It took him nearly 2 hours to convince the clerks at
the local courthouse that he was not joking. They subsequently assisted
him in the drafting of statements which were considered substantive
evidence of the aggravation and difficulties he had been forced to
endure during this debacle.
The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome
was this:
The gas company was ordered to:
[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or show
cause, within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher
court for consideration under Company Law.
[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.
[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients
whose cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been.
[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and
[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period
March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had
caused their client to suffer.
And all this over $0.00.
This story can also be viewed on the ABC website.
Who employed these idiots??
What a world? (country NSW)... On Thursday, 24 January 2002, Derek
Guille broadcast this story on his afternoon program on ABC radio.
In March, 1999, a man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW received a
bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00. He
ignored it and threw it away. In April he received another bill and
threw that one away too.
The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating
they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by
return mail. He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a
computer error and they would take care of it.
The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried out
the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the account
it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament. However, when he
went to use the gas, it had been cut off.
He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once
again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a
bill for $0.00 stating that payment was now overdue. Assuming that
having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was yet another
mistake, so he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as good as
their word and sort the problem out.
The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he
had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps
to recover the debt. Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the
company at their own game and mailed them a cheque [check] for $0.00.
The computer duly processed his account and returned a statement to the
effect that he now owed the gas company nothing at all.
A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking
Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing
writing cheque for $0.00. After a lengthy explanation the bank manager
replied that the $0.00 cheque had caused their cheque processing
software to fail. The bank could therefore not process ANY cheques they
had received from ANY of their customers that day because the cheque for
$0.00 had caused the computer to crash.
The following month the man received a letter from the gas company
claiming that his cheque has bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 and
unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate steps
to recover the debt.
At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against
the gas company. It took him nearly 2 hours to convince the clerks at
the local courthouse that he was not joking. They subsequently assisted
him in the drafting of statements which were considered substantive
evidence of the aggravation and difficulties he had been forced to
endure during this debacle.
The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome
was this:
The gas company was ordered to:
[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or show
cause, within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher
court for consideration under Company Law.
[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.
[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients
whose cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been.
[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and
[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period
March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had
caused their client to suffer.
And all this over $0.00.
This story can also be viewed on the ABC website.
Who employed these idiots??
Jul 6th 2005, 8:48 am
#12
A former regular of BE
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Carramar, Perth
Posts: 6,241
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by Paylia
Subject: Rocket Scientist
Sometimes it DOES take a Rocket Scientist!! (true story)
Scientists at Roll Royce built a gun specifically to launch dead
chickens at the windshields of airliners, and military jets , all
travelling at maximum velocity. The idea is to simulate the frequent
incidents of collisions with airborne fowl to test the strength of the
windshields. American engineers heard about the gun and were eager to
test it on the windshields of their new high speed trains. Arrangements
were made, and a gun was sent to the American engineers. When the gun
was fired, the engineers stood shocked as the chicken hurled out of the
barrel, crashed into the shatterproof shield, smashed it to smithereens,
blasted through the control console, snapped the engineer's back-rest in
two and embedded itself in the back wall of the cabin, like an arrow
shot from a bow. The horrified Yanks sent Rolls Royce the disastrous
results of the experiment, along with the designs of the windshield and
begged the British scientists for suggestions.
You're going to love this......
Rolls Royce responded with a one-line memo :
"Defrost the chicken "
Sometimes it DOES take a Rocket Scientist!! (true story)
Scientists at Roll Royce built a gun specifically to launch dead
chickens at the windshields of airliners, and military jets , all
travelling at maximum velocity. The idea is to simulate the frequent
incidents of collisions with airborne fowl to test the strength of the
windshields. American engineers heard about the gun and were eager to
test it on the windshields of their new high speed trains. Arrangements
were made, and a gun was sent to the American engineers. When the gun
was fired, the engineers stood shocked as the chicken hurled out of the
barrel, crashed into the shatterproof shield, smashed it to smithereens,
blasted through the control console, snapped the engineer's back-rest in
two and embedded itself in the back wall of the cabin, like an arrow
shot from a bow. The horrified Yanks sent Rolls Royce the disastrous
results of the experiment, along with the designs of the windshield and
begged the British scientists for suggestions.
You're going to love this......
Rolls Royce responded with a one-line memo :
"Defrost the chicken "
What really happened is they built a test house in the 60's in Coventry in which they put Olympus engines destined for Concorde. Then they fired (deliberately) frozen chickens at the engines to simulate the effects of hitting a bird at full throttle. I was actually involved in decisions of whether to tear down that test house in the 90's in order to save a few grand a year in Business Rates. (They didn't but not for posterity, they tested other engines there after a re-fit)
So I see where your story comes from but another urban myth I am afraid.
Jul 6th 2005, 9:43 am
#13
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 322
Re: I thought NTL were pants
Originally Posted by worzel
I am sorry to disappoint you but I think that story has become exaggerated. I actually used to work for Rolls-Royce on the site they did this testing.
What really happened is they built a test house in the 60's in Coventry in which they put Olympus engines destined for Concorde. Then they fired (deliberately) frozen chickens at the engines to simulate the effects of hitting a bird at full throttle. I was actually involved in decisions of whether to tear down that test house in the 90's in order to save a few grand a year in Business Rates. (They didn't but not for posterity, they tested other engines there after a re-fit)
So I see where your story comes from but another urban myth I am afraid.
What really happened is they built a test house in the 60's in Coventry in which they put Olympus engines destined for Concorde. Then they fired (deliberately) frozen chickens at the engines to simulate the effects of hitting a bird at full throttle. I was actually involved in decisions of whether to tear down that test house in the 90's in order to save a few grand a year in Business Rates. (They didn't but not for posterity, they tested other engines there after a re-fit)
So I see where your story comes from but another urban myth I am afraid.
Urban Hit or Myth - I enjoyed reading it when I first found it - appeals to my sense of incredulousness when dealing with our north american cousins
