muliaga again!
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Topic: muliaga again!
Posted By: lizzle
Subject: muliaga again!
Date Posted: 01 July 2007 at 10:11pm
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I know that we talked about this previously, with some pretty strong views held on who should be accountable. I was of the view that the company, while not being particulary moral didn't have much responsibility, but that the family should have done a bit more.
Watched the news tonight to hear the report about how they DID ring the company and were basically told "tough! suck it up". am now thinking that perhaps charges should be laid against Mercury. Still think the contractor was not at fault. Yes, maybe should have shown a bit more compassion, but....who knows. But listening to the phone conversation between this obviously desperate man, and the electricity woman who was unable to help him at all - pretty heartbreaking. anyone else have a change of opinion? |
Replies:
Posted By: Paws
Date Posted: 01 July 2007 at 10:28pm
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No becuase I'm not sure we still know all the relevant background.
------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: Kels
Date Posted: 02 July 2007 at 8:01pm
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Im with you Lizzle. Im not sure what I saw the news item on (sunday or 20/20) but it showed the husband had rung and asked to work out payments but was told sorry its not under your name. It also said that her sons tried to go to the neighbours to ring the ambos but they werent home so when back to chk mum and try another neighbours. So yes I have changed my opinion on some of what I was thinking but like Paws said I still dont think we know the full story. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
Busy mum to Miss 15yrs, Miss 10yrs and Master 4yrs |
Posted By: newmum
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 8:15am
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It was heartbreaking to hear that poor man obviously struggling with his english trying to get the message across and then also a neighbour calling just after the power had been cut off. It sounds like they just couldn't make it clear how desperate thesituation was and a lot of it was due to lack of English skills.
------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 8:53am
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Which makes me (heartlessly, maybe) wonder why it is we allow people to settle here as residents with poor/little/no english skills. ------------- The Honest Un PC Parent of 2, usually stuck in the naughty corner! :P |
Posted By: Bombshell
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 8:55am
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aak yourselves this...whose name is your power, phone sky etc account in???? now - what would happen if that person got sick or was in an accident....have you planned for that???
Unfortunately mercury were doing what all such companies do and cannot release info due to privacy act - to anyone other than the account holder....they were correct in doing that theres a lesson in that...now go check out whose name your home accounts are in |
Posted By: nuttymama
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 9:26am
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We have some in my name and some in troy and yet again some in both, however for everything we have the other person has permission and has been authorized with the company to provide and change details etc.
It's a very valid point though Bombshell, I agree they are no different to any other company right or wrong no company allows you to change things if you are not listed. When you think about it even though he was only trying to make a payment agreement anyone can ring and say that person is in hospital. Not something most poeple think about I'm guessing. ------------- Abigail 06/01/2005 Jayden 21/11/2001 Micheal 03/04/1997 |
Posted By: lizzle
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 11:20am
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I remember my grandfather had his own business and some ludicriously expensive cell phone. anyway, he died and Nan rang to cancel it and they wouldn't let her! they said they had to speak to the account holder. nana said "well, he's dead", and they refused to cancel it and said she would be charged everyday until a death certificate was shown. she said, well if the account isn't in my name, and you won't let me cancel it, I suppose I don't have to pay it either..." they then made arrangements.
as for the not allowing people to settle with limited english skills - quite often it is the nervousness with dealing with authority, coupled with the phone (VERY hard to speak a foreign language on the phone - much harder than face-to-face) - so I think his english is probably adequate on a day-to-day basis and the circumstances made it hard to communicate. On the langugae note, being at a high school for six weeks, teaching English - the best girl in the class of kiwi kids was the Thai girl for whom English is a second languae - these kids can barely form full sentences and they were born in this country. will get off soap box now.... |
Posted By: emz
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 1:38pm
| I feel no compassion for the 'new' information brought to light - no company can, by LAW, release information or let someone act under another's instructions unless the person who's name the account is under has given prior permission. It's as simple as that. It is NOT the power company's fault that these people couldn't understand that. And he was told that was the reason for not being able to do it. It still comes back to the fact that if she was that sick that she couldn't make a simple phone call, then she shouldn't have been at home anyway. They should've taken her to hospital. |
Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 1:47pm
I'm with you there liz, I had actually written (but deleted ) that it's often bad enough trying to understand alot of people for whom english is a first language. ------------- The Honest Un PC Parent of 2, usually stuck in the naughty corner! :P |
lizzle wrote:Posted By: caraMel
Date Posted: 03 July 2007 at 3:15pm
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I actually saw a brief interview with Mr Muliaga while I was channel surfing a few nights ago and his english was fine. You could tell he was foreign and he missed out a few words but it wasn't hard to understand what he was saying. ------------- Mel, Mummy to E: 6, B: 4 and: 
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Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: 11 July 2007 at 10:48am
| Has anyone seen the new ads on TV with Jonah Lomu 'On behalf of the NZ electricity industry' ? |
Posted By: .Mel
Date Posted: 11 July 2007 at 11:33am
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Yes I have and hubbie and I just looked at each other and went WTF! ------------- Mr Mellow (16) Miss Attitude (8) Destructa Kid (3) 
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Posted By: MyBelly
Date Posted: 11 July 2007 at 12:14pm
i completely agree with you emz, i used to work in the call center for genesis and we CAN NOT give out any information to anyone else other than those listed on the account, for the privacy issue. we also had a system inplace where, if there was a medically dependant person at the home, we requested a med cert to show electricity was needed from a medical point of view, we would then go to extra measures to get in touch with them prior to disconnection. The family waited for three hours, during that time they could have called an ambulance, asked a neighbour if she could stay at their place to use her machine just until she could call mercury. i think the whole thing has been truely blown out of proportion, and i have to say i think all parties involved need to move on. |
Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 11 July 2007 at 1:20pm
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Yep, the family said they didn't call an ambulance because it didn't seem necessary at the time - so why should Mercury get the blame if there didn't seem to be a problem until 3 hours later? It's just not on! -------------  |