ServiceOntario: Wasting time and money
August 14th, 2007 by Bill
So I’m on the phone contacting ServiceOntario. I used their web site but it told me to call them. You see, I need a replacement birth certificate without which I can’t get Medicare in New Brunswick, I can’t get a passport and now, for a real estate thing, I need a birth certificate for the lawyers.
I only applied for this thing back in early December 2006. Here it is mid August 2007, I’m still waiting. Each time I send something in, they send back a request for something more. It has happened three times. They ask, I send … and wait. When they finally get back to me, they ask for something else. Of course, had all these things been requested originally, in one letter, that might have been efficient. But why do something in one month when you can take eight or more?
So now I’m on hold. I have been, at this point (still waiting), one hour and nineteen minutes. (Yes, that’s 79 minutes.) I keep hearing messages suggesting I go to the web site, serviceontario.ca, the same site that told me to phone.
Mind you, at the one hour five minute (65 minutes) mark the phone hummed and clicked and rang as if I was finally going to be able to speak to someone … but, no. No, my call was transferred somewhere where I was now “in sequence and could expect up to a ten minute wait,” which was what the message said about fifteen minutes ago.
Did I mention this was a long distance call? Oh yes. The 800 line is Ontario only. If you’re calling from outside of Ontario, it’s long distance. And yes, believe me, I will be sending the Ontario government an invoice for the call. I may also include charges for my time since I could be making money right now instead of waiting here with my thumb up my ass on what can only be described as an elaborate homage to inefficiency and wasted time and money.
Thank God I’m not a resident of Ontario any longer. If I thought my taxes were going to fund these bozos I’d go through the roof. I’m definitely not a right leaning, conservative type but when I encounter this level of incompetence and waste, I certainly understand where they are coming from.
And now I’ve been waiting one hour and thirty minutes. Yes, 90 minutes – an hour and a half. I do hope they answer this thing before the snow starts flying.
Update:
Just to make the whole experience complete, their system just transferred me to a busy signal and a message saying, “Please hang up and try your call again.” That’s after waiting one hour and thirty-seven minutes. That would be 97 minutes. That would be one pissed off blogger.
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