De-escalating Renter Issues

Interacting with a disgruntled customer can be very challenging. It can help to break up the conversation in your mind into three sections, Listening, Responding with Empathy, and Offer a Solution or Closure. Read more below on what each section entails and find some helpful phrases that should help calm a renter.

Listen

As the renter is describing their issue, give them as much room/time as they need to talk without interruption. Offer signs of understanding and active listening while they do to assure them you are paying attention. This may take a while, and some people tend to talk in circles and repeat themselves.

Ask them for the details of their reservation, if you don't have them already, so you can research them a little. You can always say, "Would you mind holding for a brief moment while I look into this?"

After researching the issue, come back to them with, "Thank you so much for holding, I was able to look into the issue with your reservation and ...."

At this point, it's important to demonstrate your knowledge of the situation. "I see your transactions for rental XXX were .....", "I see on your reservation, your return time is listed as XX." The renter wants to know that you have access to information and are briefed on the details.

Respond with Empathy

Relate to a customer's concerns by putting yourself in their position. Would this frustrate you as well if you were in their shoes? When was the last time you were upset with a service or something you purchased? Understanding their concern is the next step in making sure the customer feels they are being heard and their complaint is being handled responsibly. This doesn't necessarily mean they are right or will get what they ask for but it's important to understand why they are frustrated or upset.

It is helpful to repeat the renter's concerns back to them, "You're right, a flat tire is a very big inconvenience, I do apologize for that."

Phrases to use:

• I can totally understand why you decided to call

• That does sound horrible

• Thank you for alerting us to the situation

• I completely understand your frustration (note here, it's important to not label a customer's feelings unless they themselves have said "I'm very frustrated" or something similar)

It's important that you don't make any promises you cannot keep. If you say something like, "I'll report this to the vehicle owner", you should always follow through.

Offer a Solution

This is what the customer is waiting for but it's important to remember, we can't always give a customer exactly what they want.

• Is a refund warranted?

• Should we apply a coupon? (An extra step you can take in order to make customers feel special is to present the de-escalation solution as a favor. Instead of “I’m authorized to do this for you”, try “well since you’ve been with us for a while, I can certainly make an exception for you this time.”)

• Should we submit this to billing?

In each scenario let the customer know you understand their issue and want to help bring them a resolution. It is very possible though, that you can't solve their problem in real-time. In that case, let the customer know you will submit the issue to billing/management and will make notes on the incident of your conversation with them. Customers want to be heard so it's important to demonstrate that you hear them and will continue to work towards that resolution.

Do not, under any circumstances, ask a customer to calm down directly.