The proof firms CAN go out of their way to give good service

For years, Money Mail has exposed companies that care only about profits, not customers. But today — shock, horror! — we reveal . . .

TODAY, Money Mail pays tribute to the outstanding customer service efforts — made by companies large and small — that often go unrecognised.

We have never been afraid to expose the shoddy service routinely dished out to loyal customers by banks, insurers and utility giants.

But we also have a track record of giving credit to firms that set an example for rivals to follow.

And it appears the pressure is starting to have a lasting effect. At the end of last year, as part of our annual Wooden Spoon awards for poor customer service, we launched a new Service Star prize for the best example of a company going above and beyond the call of duty.

We had no idea what to expect — and we were bowled over by your feedback.

Compared with previous years, complaints about poor service were much diminished in number and severity.

Instead, many of you described small gestures or prompt actions that made all the difference to your daily lives — and cost the company behind them almost nothing.

In your best Service Star entries, staff showed the confidence and competence to take matters into their own hands. It made a refreshing change from the trend of call centres resorting to scripted responses to fob off legitimate complaints.

So today we publish the best four tales of customer service excellence, including that of our winner, Allen Adshead, who picked up a case of champagne for his letter about Three Mobile’s response when his wife was taken ill.

We hope it will show other companies how customer service should be done.

This is particularly the case for the firms who came out worst in our annual ballot (see box below).

Once again, the taxman picked up our Wooden Spoon Award for terrible service, accounting for three in ten votes. HM Revenue & Customs chief executive, Jon Thompson, refused to collect the award and the organisation even declined to send a senior boss to explain what went wrong.

It’s the third time the taxman has won the award in the ten years our competition has run.

WINNER THREE MOBILE BREAKS RULES TO HELP PENSIONERS

RETIRED postman Allen Adshead hardly ever uses his mobile phone. But when his wife of 44 years, Yvonne, was rushed to hospital after suffering a stroke just ten days before Christmas, it became his lifeline.

It meant he could keep in touch with family and friends while travelling to and from the hospital to visit Yvonne each day.

After a few days, he received a text message to say he had almost reached his monthly call limit of 200 minutes.

When Allen, 69, called his provider, Three Mobile, he was told he wasn’t able to buy extra minutes because he was on a monthly contract.

His only option was to upgrade to a more expensive deal, hiking his monthly payments.

But then the man on the end of the phone at Three Mobile did something very rare in this age of box-ticking call centre scripts.

He realised how distressed Allen was and threw the rulebook out the window.

He told Allen he would add an extra 200 minutes to his allowance at no extra cost and that he should call back if he needed more.

When Allen rang again just before New Year, a woman answered the phone.

He explained who he was and she said that she could see from looking at his file what had happened and instantly credited his account with more free minutes. She also gave him some extra data so he could continue using the internet.

It all sounds so simple. But at such a distressing time in Allen’s life, he couldn’t have been more relieved that someone had made the challenges just a little easier.

So often we hear from readers who are ill, bereaved or going through difficulties at work or at home and feel let down by firms that won’t help.

Allen, who played piano and cornet in the Royal Marines Band for 22 years and performed in front of the Royal Family, says: ‘I’ve been a Three Mobile customer for around ten years — ever since my daughters first forced me to buy a mobile phone. They have always been very good but this was such a marvellous gesture for someone who needed help at a very sad time. Yvonne has looked after me for 44 years so it’s hard to know how to cope without her at home now, with her still in hospital.

‘It’s the little things that give you a lift when you’re down.’

Sherin Neelamkavil, 27, who has worked at Three for two years and took the call, says: ‘I just did what anyone would do and helped out a customer who was in need.

‘I pride myself on always doing the right thing by our customers and was more than happy to help.’ Richard Astbury, customer care manager at Three, says: ‘It’s been