A customer on Friday didn’t like it that one of our drivers arrived late and didn’t apologise. No fault of drivers, planner set an unrealistic time in which the Oxford city centre delivery was half hour late. Would you apologise if it wasn’t your fault? ■■■■ sure I wouldn’t I’d tell them it was office at fault for bad planning.
Muckaway:
A customer on Friday didn’t like it that one of our drivers arrived late and didn’t apologise. No fault of drivers, planner set an unrealistic time in which the Oxford city centre delivery was half hour late. Would you apologise if it wasn’t your fault? ■■■■ sure I wouldn’t I’d tell them it was office at fault for bad planning.
I usually apologise if i’m late,most of the time its not my fault but just shows a bit of courtesy as i am a representative of my company…most of the time they just say “dont worry about it drive” but i find that politeness goes a long way to diffusing potential problems with customers…however,if they are unjustifiably rude to me,they can expect to recieve my uncompromising wrath!! 
+1
If I was late and it was my fault, I would apologise to the customer and explain why.
If I was late and it was the planners fault, I would apologise to the customer on behalf of the company and explain why.
My thinking is, no matter what beef I have with the company, the customer isn’t interested. They were given a delivery time and thats what they expect.
Me slagging the planner/company off to the customer is unprofessional and not in either parties interests.
Yep, apologise no matter who’s fault it is as you are the only person they will see but tell them whos fault it is just to make your point. You have to eat a lot of ‘Humble Pie’ in the transport game, and being only half an hour late seems a little picky to me unless it was a timed delivery for traffic reasons?
Pete,
Would it hurt to apolagise regardless of fault its good manors surley
cieranc:
If I was late and it was my fault, I would apologise to the customer and explain why.
If I was late and it was the planners fault, I would apologise to the customer on behalf of the company and explain why.My thinking is, no matter what beef I have with the company, the customer isn’t interested. They were given a delivery time and thats what they expect.
Me slagging the planner/company off to the customer is unprofessional and not in either parties interests.
+1
My apology would have been, “I’m sorry I’m late, but the problem is, our work planner is a complete and utter ■■■■■■”. I find breaking the ice and having a bit of a laugh with people lightens the mood and if the apology gets relayed back the the idiot that created the problem, even better!
I accept, as above, that slagging off the company is maybe not the greatest idea, but why the hell should I take the blame for his mistakes and TBH, most companies have come across the same problem many times and pretty much know the score with planners giving unrealistic schedules. If anyone is getting the company a bad name, it’s them for repeatedly doing it.
I apologise on the firm’s behalf.
I always apologise regardless of who’s fault it is.
As another said, we’re the company rep…the only face they’ll see.
i would say sorry and remember if u have a good atittude 10 people will hear about it have a bad attitude 100 people will hear about it
I always blame the traffic.
Tut tut tut!! That driver is very unprofessional!! 
I would apologise for being late and explain the reason, if it was the planners fault I’d say so, if it was because I got held up in traffic I’d say so.
I’ve always found that an apology goes a long way and has in the past helped me to get tipped/loaded quicker
dessy:
Tut tut tut!! That driver is very unprofessional!!
yes any so called professional driver worth his salt would tell the customer he is late because he was thinking of the children
Bikemonkey:
Muckaway:
A customer on Friday didn’t like it that one of our drivers arrived late and didn’t apologise. No fault of drivers, planner set an unrealistic time in which the Oxford city centre delivery was half hour late. Would you apologise if it wasn’t your fault? ■■■■ sure I wouldn’t I’d tell them it was office at fault for bad planning.I usually apologise if i’m late,most of the time its not my fault but just shows a bit of courtesy as i am a representative of my company…most of the time they just say “dont worry about it drive” but i find that politeness goes a long way to diffusing potential problems with customers…however,if they are unjustifiably rude to me,they can expect to recieve my uncompromising wrath!!
+1
Hiya…one day i was in the traffic office…i herd the router say yes he’ll be with you a 8 am,
as he put down the phone he said thats for you bristol tommow(we was in Chester) i said why say
8am, it’ll be 12 .20 when i get there…all i got was, yah yah yah so they can wait…
I told him customers would perhaps come to meet me at 8 to collect products straight from my
lorry onto there’s…i picked up the phone told the chap who it was (he did know me well) and said i’d
be at there place at 12,30, thanks he said…I got there at 12,15 and told them i’d jumped a set
of lights, as it happened there was a lorry what had come from another depot to collect 4 pallets
as well as other bits and pieces…WHY tell people such rubbish he knew i could’nt start untill 6am,
you just can’nt do chester to bristol in 2 hours
John
Agreed that an apology goes a long way, but when you set off late (truck not ready when picked up after inspection) and the office bods tell customers that it’s because an agency driver is doing the run, and the regular driver turns up, you just have to apologise on behalf of the cretins.
Customer wants to have a word with him/herself, half an hour ffs, its transport, not a taxi service. Why didn’t he/she phone the transport company when the delivery wasn’t there at the cut off time. Friday afternoon I’d have refered him/her to the planners phone number or told em to FRO.
Small Heath has a voice HA HA. Holte Enders in the sky…