Chris is a student who bought Windows 7 through his university, then tried to install it to a new computer after his old one broke, but ran into problems. He called Microsoft customer service and ended up talking to Oreck Vacuums.

He writes:

After hours of failed attempts at activating Windows 7, I finally got connected to an actual person. He asked for my installation ID, which I gave him. He told me that the ID was invalid, which both my computer and the robot woman had said multiple times, so I began to explain my problem. Halfway through, I heard the standard “hold” music and assumed he was transferring me to another customer service rep. The person who picked up? Bonnie with Oreck Vacuums. I said I was transferred to her from Microsoft, and she was very surprised. She was amused, though she said it had never happened before. Also that if I needed my computer cleaned up, she had the perfect canister of compressed air for my problems.

It’s possible he typed in a wrong number and connected me to her. But an entirely different company on the other side of the world (the man had a fairly thick Indian accent, and the woman a noticeable Southern drawl) seems farfetched. Have you or anyone else been intentionally mis-transferred?

Distressingly, the Microsoft CSR was no more helpful than the vacuum person. Have you ever been transferred to a completely different company on accident? Or better yet, have you worked at a call center and transferred a caller out of your system out of spite?

(Photo: Paxton Holley)

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