Customer (Dis)service

Recent readers' letters in The Jakarta Post prompted me to write this letter. You can add me to the surely long list of unhappy souls who naively expect good customer service when dealing with large, high-profile companies here in Indonesia.

In 1994, I bought a new Kijang from Astra 2000 in Kalimalang. Everything seemed so well-organized. We chose the car at the showroom, the salesman called in the credit staff from Astra Credit to discuss financing, and we paid three years insurance with Astra Insurance to cover the period of the loan. So far, so good.

Four and half months later our car was stolen from outside church. The nightmare started.

I called the Astra showroom to ask what to do. Tell the dealer, they said. I did. "My car has been stolen," I said. "Oh, your radio?" he answered. "No, my whole car." "Oh, well, go to Astra Credit down the road," he answered. Thanks for the sympathy; all smiles and charm when selling, but no interest at all outside that sphere.

I went down the road to Astra Credit. There, I met with a similar lack of respect, interest and attention. "Go to Astra Insurance," was the only comment. I asked if I needed to take any paperwork, but they didn't care and only wanted to get on with their conversations.

As Astra Insurance is far away in South Jakarta, I was fortunate to have an Indonesian friend taking me around. We duly struggled through the traffic jams, and waited to be seen at Astra Insurance. Again I was met with supreme indifference and a total lack of respect.

It turned out that Astra Credit hadn't given me the paperwork Astra Insurance needed. "Go and get it," I was told. Only the original was good enough, a fax wouldn't do. "How am I supposed to go chasing all over Jakarta for you when my car has been stolen?" I asked, tired of all the problems. Use your husband's car was the answer.

Talk about supreme indifference. We only had one car and that was gone. Had I not been in shock from the theft, the treatment from the police and the incredible lack of concern and coordination from Astra (they are only coordinated taking your money), I may have committed murder at this point.

To cut a long story short, eventually I found all the paperwork. Friends with friends in high places got the signed paperwork out of the police station, and three months later Astra had finished all the paperwork to process my claim.

I was so disgusted with the Astra group that I wanted to sever our relationship totally. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible. I planned to pay off the loan and start fresh somewhere else, only to find that I would have to pay the majority of the interest for the remaining two and a half years of the original loan, even though I was paying it off early.

That would not leave enough money for a down payment for another car. If I wanted to be mobile again I would have to stick out the loan and replace the car. OK, it could be worse ...

I went to Astra Insurance to give them the details of the replacement car. "Now you must insure it," they said. I had already paid three years insurance when I took out my loan, what was this for? "The car you insured no longer exists, so you have to buy more insurance -- and you can't have a rebate on the old one, we paid to replace your car."

So, not only was I trapped into the relationship with Astra Credit, I could not replace this rude, incompetent and lazy insurance company either.

AMANDA AMOY

Jakarta