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Merlin's General Poor Attitude - your experiences.

TheMan

TheMan

TS Member
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NemiLerVion
I sent a complaint off to Merlin, admittedly parts of it a bit ranty, but still eloquent and fair given the debacle that is this year thus far - and detailed personal experiences, and my wider experiences of the company attitudes in general filtering down into the parks.

No surprise then, that THREE EMAILS, and THREE WEEKS later - I still have no response at all from Merlin.

Not even cursory nonsense.
Merlin have this "untouchable" attitude at the moment, and they're getting worse by the day.

I am seriously considering starting to accumulate a list of complaints, so that I can get an idea of others experiences on a wider scale, of the present company and start applying some pressure.

Am I on my own, in having this what I call absolutely appalling level of service?

I would ALSO point out CRITICALLY HERE. That, having visited these parks for 30 YEARS, (since I was very, very tiny), I have complained TWICE in all that time (all be it, a not inconsiderable amount of those years, I couldn't have complained anyway ;D)! Once, last year, to Thorpe Park directly - and this time, the FIRST direct complaint to Merlin or any of it's previous incumbents.

I am NOT a serial complainer, in fact I PRIDE my self in sending letters of THANKS to companies/individuals for great service! However, I felt this year reached a point where the money I paid out, no where NEAR came to represent value, due to atrocious lack of service, or at some times even BASIC levels of DECENCY that the expense warrants.

UNFORTUNATELY, because they have a monopoly on most attractions I visit, I have little choice if I want to "enjoy" a day out, but to visit one of their attractions or deny my self one of my passions.

So... that puts them directly at odds with me. And once I have something in mind, I will not back down.

So over to you, what are your experiences of poor Merlin service? What do you perceive to be the lack of care, or good example, or even decency being passed down from on high to the individual parks?

Personally this company need a kick up the *arris* in my opinion. Substandard service? Ever increasing costs for less and less, in a tough economy? Plus much more - anyone else feel the same, feel free to let rip!

Just to clarify here though - this is NOT a staff specific thing, there are MANY, MANY wonderful members of staff, that go out of their way to make your day great or as best they can. I ALWAYS thank and praise these people in person. They are in no way, in my mind at least, culpable for ANY of my issues at all.

Over to you!
 
Never, ever had an issue with them. Their park staff face to face have always been the best customer service I've ever experienced in this country... very refreshing. Also the various creative directors I've met have been wonderful.

The Thorpe PR people were a bit rude, sadly (ironic to say the least)

Emails and letter is usually not the best way to register a complaint - you need to find a phone number and speak to someone that way.

What was the issue of which you were complaining?
 
Hi Nick,

Crikey, I respect you as a very knowledgeable member of the coaster community, so I'm going to try and put my serious hat on here!

It mainly centered around Thorpe Park, in terms of very specific issues. The first being, how a complaint was dealt with last year - I was compensated a little, eventually, however I had to get quite technical to get my point across, in a "please don't patronise me" fashion. This was towards the end of last season, then to find this season I had more unpleasant experiences at the park - staff being ignorant, being held in broken down ride queues with no information for almost an hour etc. Pointing out, that I did not wish to go through the faff of dealing with the park again, after last years experience.

Then there were wider issues, the ever increasing expense of the parks, the shorter/changing opening hours, the manner that certain marketing is making visits increasingly more unpleasant, for more and more money. Then the issues of fast track, particularly at Thorpe Park, on a moderately busy day means you either get little value, or you end up spending even MORE, for what is now beginning to feel like a less enjoyable day out.

That the general level of care, service, and attitude was deteriorating. There were other issues also, it was a blend of very specific incidents, and my wider feelings as a customer - both of which, I feel after so many years of supporting the company and parks, are valid.

Whilst I have my own areas of expertise, of which I have more inside contacts, these do most certainly colour ones perception of how a business operates and functions. In this case, bar for one or two exceptions in other parks, I have no affiliation or contact with Merlin and therefore it is entirely based upon my experience as a customer, and a former service industry manager.

There are many great staff, let that be said, particularly on park themselves - and no park, can have all fantastic staff, but to suggest you can email in a complaint - which I have, and then receive no response for 3 weeks with 2 reminders, only goes to prove a point.

If you aren't going to respond to email, which I sent for convenience with full intention to give them the time they allot, why advertise it prominently as a way of communicating.

This is very basic stuff, not even that is done right Nick.

Thanks for the response and advice though, regardless of my thoughts and what has/hasn't been done - any advice in dealing with the matter more efficiently, is welcome and appreciated.

And on a personal note, keep up the fantastic work mate!
 
Generally my experiences have been OK, although I did fail to get a reply once.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk
 
A couple of seasons ago, I was sending letters of thanks to both Thorpe and Alton for going that extra mile.

I also visited Chessie late last year, and as per usual, had a fantastic time - a few years ago, I stayed away as the service to a disabled relative was awful (AT). Then for about 3 seasons, every time I went to any park it was fantastic, but the last 12 months or so has been almost like a polar opposite.

I was on the phone or sending correspondence of thanks after every visit! I will complain if there is an issue, but I find far more pleasurable the experience of gratitude for great service, hopefully helping someone a little on their career path, or at least, their day!

So for me to get this irate, and complain to head office, you know I'm peeved!
 
I've sent my fair share of complaints to Merlin and their parks over the last few years on various issues and to be fair to them they have always got back to me. I always send a letter though rather than an email. Depending on the issue I will then address the letter to the most senior member of staff suitable, chances are they won't actually reply but it does mean that you're complaint will be dealt with someone in senior management who is able to give a good response.

So if I'm writing to Merlin directly I tend to address it to Nick Varney. I've never heard back from him personally but I have from his PA, and then the main response has come from someone who is more suitable to give a specific reply such as a divisional director at a park or Merlin's product performance director (I think that's what it is). Then last year at Towers we had a rather serious issue in the hotels so I wrote to the hotels director and got a fantastic response directly from him.

Hope that helps!

:)
 
That's fantastic advice Rob!

SOMEONE FETCH ME ONE OF THESE:

i244603634_47449_5.jpg


We're going Lo-Tek Snail Mail style!!

;D

Thanks for the responses guys, really appreciate it - and enjoying hearing your experiences of complaining... wow, that's a bit disturbing! :eek:
 
Hi Rob

Could you tells who the hotel director is and a way to contact them? I'm having some issues with the ATH at the moment (there's a separate thread for it)

Cheers
 
I've never had many issues at the parks if I'm honest. Whilst they cut budgets to high heaven, the on the day service they provide has been nothing but exemplary.
 
Never had any issues with Merlon's service. Operationally they have been cutting left, right and centre but the staff on the ground are usually fantastic.

However, I have only ever contacted Guest Services twice. Once with a complaint and once with a positive comment about a staff member. The complaint took a good few weeks to resolve and I didn't get a reply until I emailed Merlin directly whereas the positive email was responded to in under 24 hours.

Both responses though were good even if one was a little late. I got my faulty item replaced in one and got given some cheap return tickets and free fastrack for my positive comments on a member of staff.

All round, generally good service.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk.
 
What's with all the positive comments? ;D

Good to hear you got some nice freebies for doing your nice thing MrBrightSide. I have to say, I've sent multiple emails/forms of praise and have never once heard back. Certainly never got given any freebies LOL!!!

That obviously though, isn't why I did it, I was greatful to the staff. Also, again to be fair, indeed the majority of staff ARE decent and praiseworthy, and under increasingly difficult conditions.

Serious question here, how many of you, that are actually countering my absolute disdain for Merlin at present, (which is quite right too, our experiences are very personal to us) how many are Annual Pass Holders? I'm interested to know, does this perception alter? How many times are you getting on park for example?

Genuinely interested in why this difference is so big? I have been an Annual Pass holder in the past, circumstances dictated I could not renew, so I know the ins and outs of one.

There doesn't seem to be much middle ground at the moment, which really reflects also my own experience - I used to think they were awesome, now, this last year and a bit, the service has been atrocious!

Bar a good few seasons ago, when a member of staff was derogatory/awkward to a disabled relative, and we didn't go back for a couple seasons - the service was, as you say generally exemplary. That is why it is so frustrating to now be in receipt of such awful service now!
 
Since my visits to all of Merlin's parks since 2008 (the year they took over), I'll admit that I have had not one bad experience whilst being there. For me staff who work at theme parks are some of the friendliest to offer. Staff at Alton, Chessie and even Thorpe then to be really friendly to me when I visit and it puts a smile on my face. Sure Merlin make stupid decisions when running their parks, like cutting hours for example. But I think the staff at their parks are truly friendly and helpful.

:)
 
On the whole, when it comes to staff, I have to agree with you.

I would say though, that is a credit to the individual staff, because encounters of an opposite nature have occurred - and whilst that is unavoidable, putting it right, or dealing with things on a day out that are clearly management, or company policy related, actually make their jobs more difficult.

I agree wholeheartedly with what you say Eddie, there are a high number of individuals, who have a clear enthusiasm for the industry, and their clientele.

At no point, will you find me complaining at large about the public facing staff. I think many of them deserve great credit! It is however, I have found lately - when you move above that tier, when you DO encounter an issue, that the cracks begin to show.

In general though, I agree with sentiments regarding the majority of the customer facing staff. Though I must also add, that I have seen them far happier!

EDIT: (In a very childish way, I also love how in the "unread topics" column, it says "Merlin's General Poo...." - I know, I know!)
 
I have had at least 3 bad experiences with merlin, my first being in 2009 at Thorpe park as we went there almost all the rides were shut, we complained and got free priority passes for our next visit. Good yes? but noooo, we brought the paperwork and it was declined as they needed a "supervisor" to confirm this and it took 45mins- 1hrs to sort it out! ???
 
alee298 said:
I have had at least 3 bad experiences with merlin, my first being in 2009 at Thorpe park as we went there almost all the rides were shut, we complained and got free priority passes for our next visit. Good yes? but noooo, we brought the paperwork and it was declined as they needed a "supervisor" to confirm this and it took 45mins- 1hrs to sort it out! ???
Click to expand...

Staffing is such an individual thing, it is hard to get this right. Also, I accept that it can be difficult to administer such a large operational institution such as Merlin.

However, being given something as a result of a complaint - should be a straight forward issue, with clear guidelines from above, and strong management to put this into place.

Another members issues in regards to the hotel, was similar in effect that - there was something offered for their inconvenience, but that was totally unsuitable, and left you feeling - just what was the point of complaining, if it creates even MORE hassle for the money you have paid?

You had a bad day, they tried to put it right, but then messed up putting it right!

This is indicative of poor organisation, and a lack of clear management. Though one must add, I feel Thorpe has a little more of this, than perhaps other Merlin attractions.

There was no excuse for your experience. A form of compensation for poor service etc, should be very clear and next time make your visit better. It's really that simple. What is more, it is this kind of statement that should be clearly fed down from the top of the ladder.

I read more Nick Varney articles on his priorities the other day. I was not surprised to find, that no where in his list, was service.

Money, expansion, buying up other attractions, B2B deals of course Nick - excellent. Improving customer experience, based on service, not simply ramming more rides/hotels in! Of course, more attractions are fantastic, but even Paultons Park have an "attraction a year" policy! (And no, I'm not comparing the two, just pointing out the obvious business model there).

I mention him a lot I admit, and it is most certainly nothing personal that is for sure, but he is so clinical in many ways, and so obviously relies on his marketing/spin background that I think he has totally lost focus on what is important. The thing that without, there is no business.

Customers.
 
Merlin might own the parks and give out the separate budgets and what not, but they are not directly responsible for all things that happen on parks...

Indeed, you can see this with how the park's view guest experience, compare Chessie to Thorpe, Chessie staff openly chat to everyone (sometimes to the detrimentation of ride operations, but that's another story), but Thorpe's are just generally awful...

In regards to Thorpe, it had maintenance issues pre-Merlin, perhaps that is more directly the park's fault rather than the corporate entity that owns it, and indeed, Thorpe are generally the worst for customer service (indeed, it was a burden for the woman to sort out my free fastrack due to shocking reliability on a visit)... The other parks are generally good for it, and at least often give some options for dis-satisfied guests to compensate for issues they may have suffered...
 
That's generally a fair comment Benzin, but having tried to complain to Merlin via one of their publicised methods, I have found that I should have gone about it differently (from other kind members here).

Now, if you cannot even organise your own company wide complaints procedure, and operate within what they set themselves as very loose guidelines, how can you expect anyone further down that chain to operate differently?

The fact there are so many misunderstandings, and across multiple parks, shows there is no cohesion.

Are you Merlin, are you individual parks, are you both - who do you complain to, on what basis, when and how? Not exactly clearly defined is it?

And for a 2.2bn pound company (Varney's valuation, not mine) - that is simply not good enough.

I'm realising, when I have received great service, which I most certainly have - it is most likely in spite of the procedures set down by Merlin, rather than because of them. Those experiences are becoming fewer and farther between.

More so now than ever with this company, great service is because of a great member of staff, and their passion - in the face of increasingly difficult conditions and budget requirements. I've seen enough businesses to recognise this downward trend. The worse this gets though, the less staff of that quality you will attract, it is the un-cuttable business corner that always comes back to bite.

Tell me, who thinks this season is better? (and I'm not talking about rocking up with a big, all be it excellent, coaster).

Feel like the service is improving? Or noticing differences, perhaps less happy staff, less staff full stop, more budget cutting... it most certainly won't get better, unless there is a wholesale attitude change.
 
Just to add again though, I feel there are many excellent staff within the company. My issues are generally not as a result of them.
 
The bad staff I have experienced at Merlin parks were at Chessington in the Cantina. They were walking backwards and forwards trying to find something in the kitchen instead of at least one member of staff serving people, so the queue built-up pretty quickly.

It turned out that they were after more wraps and nobody had even wanted any so it came to order food again. We asked for what we wanted and the woman behind the till didn't understand that we required more than one meal for a family of four.

Good times! :p
 
I think this thread's become a classic example of the old 'blaming Merlin for a chip on the floor in one park restaurant'.

If you have dodgy service from a member of staff, complain to the park, on the day - it's a local issue, same as you wouldn't send a letter to the US Wallmart headquarters to complain about a member of staff in an ASDA in Croydon... :)
 
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