RICHARD LITTLEJOHN on the frustrations of calling a telephone hotline Can there be anything more frustrating on earth than having to ring a telephone hotline? You just know you’re going to spend hours pressing buttons and listening to recorded messages before failing to get through to a human being. Hotlines are what organisations set up to prevent them ever having to come into contact with the paying public. Government call centres are infuriating enough, but private companies — especially in the so-called ‘service’ sector — are just as bad. They’ve all got one: the NHS, the Old Bill, the utility companies. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of them. A new hotline comes along every day. Yesterday it was the turn of the banks to unveil 555, the number you should ring in future to report suspected fraud. Only last week, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt suggested all patients should have … Continue reading →