I called you... but you weren't there...

I've had some pretty appalling waits for customer service departments in the past, but Linden Labs - you just outdid them all:

My Skype log for today, at the time of writing, has 6 entries for the Linden Labs number. The first four I tried to get through to the general enquiries department. I was told "The average wait today is five to six minutes." After 14 minutes on hold EACH time I was asked to create voice ticket, the automated version of "You can rant here but we just erase the tapes every day so don't hold your breath for a call back."

I decided to put my priority up, by instead selecting billing services (indicating that I was a paying customer) - Strangely enough, the average wait time there was "five to six minutes", although the music on hold was better and interspersed with "Thank you for holding, your call is important to us, we'll be with you shortly." messages.

20 minutes later, with still no answer, the system transferred me back to the queue for the general enquiries (with it's absolutely AWFUL music - if you can call it that - on hold, interspersed with random Linden wisdom all about how to spend money and view forums and stuff like that.) As if a 20 minute wait on hold wasn't bad enough, it then left me on hold a further 14 minutes for the general department - and then, guess what?

I was asked to create voice ticket, the automated version of "You can rant here but we just erase the tapes every day so don't hold your breath for a call back."

So let me see, that's ONE AND A HALF HOURS waiting on hold and still I never got to speak to anyone. Remember, this is also at a toll free number, so once the call was answered, Linden Labs were being billed (thank goodness) for each minute I was on hold. If I'd had to pay for the one and a half hours on hold as well, I'd NOT have been a happy customer. How much, I wonder, did my unanswered calls cost Linden Labs, and how many other people cost them that much, given that I obviously didn't speak to anyone because the lines were to busy?

While I appreciate that some technical support lines might feel a bit like the three dead trolls in a baggie internet helpdesk sketch there can be no excuse for making paying customers wait 90 minutes on hold and STILL not have anyone answer the phone.

Come on, Linden Labs, lets have some service around here!