Companies Using "Because of COVID" As An Excuse For Poor Service

[greyman42]

I know this isn't a company, but I noticed today that the public toilets in my hometown have finally reopened after being closed since March 2020 'due to Covid'. It's taken nearly 28 months to finally decide that it's safe for them to be reopened.

Ridiculous. Why did they think public toilets were a risk in the first place?

 

[pdeaves]

Ridiculous. Why did they think public toilets were a risk in the first place?

“Cos Covid”, I suppose

 

[bramling]

Land Registry

I’m a trustee of a small charity that owns a property. We recently moved to a new structure with all assets and liabilities transferred. Except it’s taken the LR a year and counting to transfer the property. We are therefore having to keep the old charity open, prepare accounts, get them inspected and so on…

WTF is wrong with these people? It’s easy to throw rocks at the public sector, but I can’t help but think that any private sector organisation that behaved like this would be out of business and rightly so

I’ve heard a few people recounting similar issues with the LR. As you say, simple stuff.

I thought working from home was supposed to be *more* productive…

 

[Falcon1200]

Ridiculous. Why did they think public toilets were a risk in the first place?

Closing public toilets (as my local health centre did too) was utterly ludicrous, given that we were all being exhorted to wash our hands more often !

 

[duncanp]

Closing public toilets (as my local health centre did too) was utterly ludicrous, given that we were all being exhorted to wash our hands more often !

My local swimming pool has two sets of toilets, one in the changing rooms and one in the lobby.

Before 19th July last year, one set of toilets was closed in order to.....

wait for it

"...aid social distancing..."

So, let me get this right.

You close one set of toilets, which means that everyone has to use the one set that remain open, which means that those toilets are more likely to be crowded, which is supposed to aid social distancing.

Anyone care to explain the logic of that to me?

 

[Baxenden Bank]

My local swimming pool has two sets of toilets, one in the changing rooms and one in the lobby.

Before 19th July last year, one set of toilets was closed in order to.....

wait for it

"...aid social distancing..."

So, let me get this right.

You close one set of toilets, which means that everyone has to use the one set that remain open, which means that those toilets are more likely to be crowded, which is supposed to aid social distancing.

Anyone care to explain the logic of that to me?

No logic at all from a Covid point of view, but probably saved them some money on only having to clean one set. Most things done, or more accurately not done, by the council is based on cost not level of service provided.

 

[duncanp]

No logic at all from a Covid point of view, but probably saved them some money on only having to clean one set. Most things done, or more accurately not done, by the council is based on cost not level of service provided.

They might have to only clean one set of toilets, but if twice as many people are using the toilets, they will probably have to clean them more often than would otherwise be the case.

Still, as long as it makes sense to someone.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

They might have to only clean one set of toilets, but if twice as many people are using the toilets, they will probably have to clean them more often than would otherwise be the case.

Still, as long as it makes sense to someone.

Equally if demand is half what it was pre-covid, having both sets of toilets open will require them both to be cleaned, most likely at the pre-covid frequency regardless of lower levels of use per set (cleaned once daily after closing time?).

Conversely, if a long-term out-sourcing contract is in place it may well be that someone is still being paid to clean both sets of toilets despite only one being open!

 

[py_megapixel]

Equally if demand is half what it was pre-covid, having both sets of toilets open will require them both to be cleaned, most likely at the pre-covid frequency regardless of lower levels of use per set (cleaned once daily after closing time?).

Conversely, if a long-term out-sourcing contract is in place it may well be that someone is still being paid to clean both sets of toilets despite only one being open!

Perhaps the idea is that spending twice as long cleaning one set of toilets is a better option than cleaning both.

If the cleaners were overworked (which seems likely, given how appallingly this country has decided to treat people in that sort of job), meaning that there wasn't actually enough time for both to be cleaned thoroughly, then this would especially be the case.

 

[Bikeman78]

My local swimming pool has two sets of toilets, one in the changing rooms and one in the lobby.

Before 19th July last year, one set of toilets was closed in order to.....

wait for it

"...aid social distancing..."

So, let me get this right.

You close one set of toilets, which means that everyone has to use the one set that remain open, which means that those toilets are more likely to be crowded, which is supposed to aid social distancing.

Anyone care to explain the logic of that to me?

About as sensible as closing one entrance to a school causing overcrowding at the other entrance. None of it makes any sense.

 

[Falcon1200]

About as sensible as closing one entrance to a school causing overcrowding at the other entrance. None of it makes any sense.

And the Marks & Spencers I use in central Oxford has a rear exit next to the food section checkouts, which was of course closed during Covid forcing customers who could otherwise have exited there (eg me) to walk back through the entire ground floor (the ladies clothing section !) instead. Utterly daft.

 

[Bikeman78]

And the Marks & Spencers I use in central Oxford has a rear exit next to the food section checkouts, which was of course closed during Covid forcing customers who could otherwise have exited there (eg me) to walk back through the entire ground floor (the ladies clothing section !) instead. Utterly daft.

The question is, who are the people that come up with these daft ideas and think "that's a good idea?" It genuinely baffles me how people that are completely lacking in common sense get in to positions of authority.

 

[Jimini]

And the Marks & Spencers I use in central Oxford has a rear exit next to the food section checkouts, which was of course closed during Covid forcing customers who could otherwise have exited there (eg me) to walk back through the entire ground floor (the ladies clothing section !) instead. Utterly daft.

A bit like this ?

 

[WelshBluebird]

I know this isn't a company, but I noticed today that the public toilets in my hometown have finally reopened after being closed since March 2020 'due to Covid'. It's taken nearly 28 months to finally decide that it's safe for them to be reopened.

Be glad they have reopened! Bristol council got rid of ours a few years ago!
Worth saying that I think that sums up a lot of this thread actually. A lot of these issues actually existed in some way before COVID (a lack of public toilets, poor customer experience when trying to contact a customer support team, difficulty getting a dentist or GP appointment etc etc).

 

[Broucek]

.... A lot of these issues actually existed in some way before COVID (a lack of public toilets, poor customer experience when trying to contact a customer support team, difficulty getting a dentist or GP appointment etc etc).

Yes, COVID has perhaps intensified existing dysfunction. The newspapers seem obsessed with "working at home" as the cause of such problems but that's not the issue for most office jobs. The real issue is culture - does the workforce instinctively want to do its best for customers/patients/taxpayers etc.? And if not, why is that?

 

[Falcon1200]

A bit like this ?

I did manage to steer clear of the ladies undergarment section ! (How I knew exactly where it was is another thing.......)

 

[pdeaves]

The question is, who are the people that come up with these daft ideas and think "that's a good idea?" It genuinely baffles me how people that are completely lacking in common sense get in to positions of authority.

Nothing to do with 'companies using covid as an excuse', but a further example of a stupid 'good idea'. I am involved with a small brass band. At a companion band, musicians were instructed to wear face coverings, but to cut holes to allow them to play their instruments. I wish I made that up...

 

[greyman42]

The question is, who are the people that come up with these daft ideas and think "that's a good idea?" It genuinely baffles me how people that are completely lacking in common sense get in to positions of authority.

People who want to "get on" coming up with answers to problems that don't exist.

Nothing to do with 'companies using covid as an excuse', but a further example of a stupid 'good idea'. I am involved with a small brass band. At a companion band, musicians were instructed to wear face coverings, but to cut holes to allow them to play their instruments. I wish I made that up...

I hope you told them where to go.

 

[pdeaves]

People who want to "get on" coming up with answers to problems that don't exist.


I hope you told them where to go.

I would have done if I were playing in that band. As it is, a little friendly teasing is the order of the day!

 

[Tracked]

I know this isn't a company, but I noticed today that the public toilets in my hometown have finally reopened after being closed since March 2020 'due to Covid'. It's taken nearly 28 months to finally decide that it's safe for them to be reopened.

During the pandemic the toilets in the shopping centre here remained open, albeit on reduced hours, but some of the urinals, hand-dryers (there's two pairs of them in two different locations in the toilets) and sinks were out of use to encourage social distancing.

They've dropped the restrictions and the signage has long gone, but I haven't seen the hand-dryers that were taped off working since

 

[Silver Cobra]

During the pandemic the toilets in the shopping centre here remained open, albeit on reduced hours, but some of the urinals, hand-dryers (there's two pairs of them in two different locations in the toilets) and sinks were out of use to encourage social distancing.

They've dropped the restrictions and the signage has long gone, but I haven't seen the hand-dryers that were taped off working since

It wouldn't surprise me if they used this as an opportunity to not get them back into usage, saving on their energy consumption, after not having them running for the last two years.

I'd like to ask if anyone who has been to ZSL London Zoo in the last few months, what is their general attitude towards face masks/coverings? I've booked a visit there for myself and my mum for this Friday, and looking at their website it makes quite a heavy emphasis on an expectation to wear masks/coverings in indoor areas of the zoo (far more than most other attractions' websites I've seen recently). I'm hoping this is just that the page hasn't been updated since last year, but I thought it would be best to ask in case they really do have this level of expectation for people to wear masks/coverings while at the zoo.

 

[davews]

Not ZSL, but on Friday visited Bentley Priory Museum, RAF Strike Command, near Stanmore. Their website still suggested that masks should be worn. When I arrived the chap selling the tickets and the chap welcoming you and guiding you (ex RAF chaps it seems) both proudly wore blue masks - but was unhooked when he spoke to me as he could see I had hearing aids. But nobody else did, none of the (relatively few) visitors or any of the cafe staff and not a word was mentioned about them. It seemed totally for show, to be seen doing what 'they' considered their 'duty'.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

It wouldn't surprise me if they used this as an opportunity to not get them back into usage, saving on their energy consumption, after not having them running for the last two years.

I'd like to ask if anyone who has been to ZSL London Zoo in the last few months, what is their general attitude towards face masks/coverings? I've booked a visit there for myself and my mum for this Friday, and looking at their website it makes quite a heavy emphasis on an expectation to wear masks/coverings in indoor areas of the zoo (far more than most other attractions' websites I've seen recently). I'm hoping this is just that the page hasn't been updated since last year, but I thought it would be best to ask in case they really do have this level of expectation for people to wear masks/coverings while at the zoo.

Again not ZSL but Dudley Zoo. I was looking at their website and there is reference to masks, distancing, 'first come, first served' capacity in their cafe, contactless payments and so on plus face coverings had to be worn in one of the animal buildings - probably the primates. But as I was actually looking for something else rather than the exact details for the zoo I can't recall precisely.

 

[bramling]

Again not ZSL but Dudley Zoo. I was looking at their website and there is reference to masks, distancing, 'first come, first served' capacity in their cafe, contactless payments and so on plus face coverings had to be worn in one of the animal buildings - probably the primates. But as I was actually looking for something else rather than the exact details for the zoo I can't recall precisely.

Dudley Zoo were pretty hot on Covid measures when we visited last year. As an aside, I can’t claim to be impressed with the place, seemed to be the worst kind of zoo from the position of animal wellbeing, the sort of place which to be honest I’d sooner be without.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Dudley Zoo were pretty hot on Covid measures when we visited last year. As an aside, I can’t claim to be impressed with the place, seemed to be the worst kind of zoo from the position of animal wellbeing, the sort of place which to be honest I’d sooner be without.

But they have Tectons*!

The structures have stood the test of time and eight decades on Dudley Zoo has the world's largest single collection of Tectons, which in 2009 received World Monument Status.

* modernist concrete structures

 

[Ascotroyal]

It wouldn't surprise me if they used this as an opportunity to not get them back into usage, saving on their energy consumption, after not having them running for the last two years.

I'd like to ask if anyone who has been to ZSL London Zoo in the last few months, what is their general attitude towards face masks/coverings? I've booked a visit there for myself and my mum for this Friday, and looking at their website it makes quite a heavy emphasis on an expectation to wear masks/coverings in indoor areas of the zoo (far more than most other attractions' websites I've seen recently). I'm hoping this is just that the page hasn't been updated since last year, but I thought it would be best to ask in case they really do have this level of expectation for people to wear masks/coverings while at the zoo.

I went to London Zoo back in April and there was no requirement to wear a mask in any part of the zoo including the indoor attractions.

 

[QSK19]

At a local estate agents that I do business with, several weeks ago I had to: wear a mask; have my temperature taken; fill out one of their “contract tracing” forms; sanitise my hands; maintain 2 metres’ distance from one of the desks; take the pen I had used with me; and to cap it all off, was given an NHS leaflet on self-isolating if I had Covid symptoms! They probably still go outside their home each Thursday evening to clap for the NHS, bless them.

It really did feel like July 2020 after we’d just emerged from the first lockdown, not 2022! Were it not for the fact that they’re the best branch I’ve ever dealt with and are very reasonable with their management fees, I’d have given up on them!

 

[Silver Cobra]

I went to London Zoo back in April and there was no requirement to wear a mask in any part of the zoo including the indoor attractions.

Glad to know, thanks for sharing your experience. I suspected the website was likely just outdated, but felt it was best to double-check.

 

[greyman42]

At a local estate agents that I do business with, several weeks ago I had to: wear a mask; have my temperature taken; fill out one of their “contract tracing” forms; sanitise my hands; maintain 2 metres’ distance from one of the desks; take the pen I had used with me; and to cap it all off, was given an NHS leaflet on self-isolating if I had Covid symptoms! They probably still go outside their home each Thursday evening to clap for the NHS, bless them.

It really did feel like July 2020 after we’d just emerged from the first lockdown, not 2022! Were it not for the fact that they’re the best branch I’ve ever dealt with and are very reasonable with their management fees, I’d have given up on them!

Just claim an exemption.

 

[danm14]

At a local estate agents that I do business with, several weeks ago I had to: wear a mask; have my temperature taken; fill out one of their “contract tracing” forms; sanitise my hands; maintain 2 metres’ distance from one of the desks; take the pen I had used with me; and to cap it all off, was given an NHS leaflet on self-isolating if I had Covid symptoms! They probably still go outside their home each Thursday evening to clap for the NHS, bless them.

It really did feel like July 2020 after we’d just emerged from the first lockdown, not 2022! Were it not for the fact that they’re the best branch I’ve ever dealt with and are very reasonable with their management fees, I’d have given up on them!

Have you told them that you feel this is ridiculous?

I am genuinely wondering if it's all a big misunderstanding and they realise it's ridiculous, but keep it up out of a mistaken belief that their customers want it, because the customers won't say anything because they provide such a good service and are afraid of being told to take their business elsewhere.