Why is it so hard to get someone to pick up the phone?

Why don't companies who want our business put up a real person to talk to us?

Every obstacle possible seems to be put up to make sure we don't actually speak to someone in major organisations, like utility companies.

You know the pack drill....

"If you have an existing account, press 1, if you don't press 2, and then endless combinations at the next hurdle.....press 1 if your account number starts with an xxx or 2 if you come from Mars..."

Sometimes, you're unsure which of the numbers apply to you, so you press the wrong digit – and then it's back to Square One and you dial back in, running up phone charges and precious time.

And then, when you've navigated the numerical coding, you hear: "A customer service advisor will be with you in no more than 15 minutes."

That's 15 minutes of YOUR time!

In the meantime, it's all clocking up your phone bill – and how slowly it goes when you have to listen to inane attempts to keep you entertained with annoying music, butting in from time to time with annoyingly repetitive messages, mainly encouraging you to go to their website to do your business – anything to avoid talking to you.

So you look on the website and can't find the bit that applies to you or you email and get the response: "Your email will be answered within 10 working days."

Then there are websites where you have a needle-in-a-haystack hunt to find a number to ring to discuss your issue.

Excuse me, we want to talk to somebody – anybody who might help.

Are you listening, you organisations who hide behind the internet and endless combinations and codes?

The last couple of months, building up to moving house, I have had a bellyful of endless calls to utility company numbers to notify them to disconnect services or transfer them to my new address.

And on several occasions, even when I have finally got through to someone to speak to, they have taken down the wrong information which, in one case, ended in my service being cut off too soon, followed by an attempt to charge me a premium for allegedly failing to give 30 days' notice.

You might say: "We'll take our business elsewhere."

But then, you call that somewhere else, to hear the ominous words: "If you have an existing account, press 1....."

Find out what other Lou's Women think – and have your say – below.

Jacqui Edwards, from Stourbridge, says: "I work in a call centre where we are quite happy to talk to our customers! However we are actively encouraged to get our customers to self service their account via our online facility (we have to mention it on all of our calls). Whilst there are a lot of people who are happy and prepared to conduct their lives via online banking and various other methods I appreciate that the need to talk to a human remains a priority for some and I too get very frustrated when companies refuse to detail even a phone number on their 'Contact Us' page of their website. People are busy enough without companies expecting their customers to do their work for them. After all what do we pay these companies for?!?!"

Kidderminster midwife Ellie Wright says: "Yes I agree with you Lou, very very frustrating and they call it progress. Could it be that not only do they prefer to get business on the website but it is much cheaper for companies not to man the phone? It's also unfair to people, especially the elderly that are not computer literate, and have to use the phone all the time. It is also time consuming getting the right person you need to deal with the problem/situation, not to mention the expense of the phone call. It is so nice to just pick up the phone and get a human voice on the other end but this is a sign of the past, and a great shame."

Feisty Bilston mum Gail Millard says: "I hate calling utilities. Besides being held on the line for what seems like an hour and then you can't actually understand the assistant (mostly foreign) trying to assist you. And you can't rely on them taking down particulars – I've been Mrs Millid, Mrs Mallard, Mrs Mullar, and recently Mrs Milli. We are often asked to reduce paper use by not having a paper bill because you can look lon-line! Am I the only one who wants to spend my spare time just sitting looking up my bills online? Recently I had a text message to remind me my car insurance was due. It was actually six weeks before it was due so, seven weeks later, I'd forgotten. And because I hadn't checked my emails I completely forgot, so why can't they send you a letter? Not everyone is .com"

Wombourne conservationist Sheena Millard says: "It absolutely drives me mad. It's press this, press that, press the other and you don't get what you want anyway. It's very stressful. And if you get a bit upset because you're stressed out by your treatment on the phone, they'll sometimes say they won't speak to you and put the phone down. It's a total disgrace – customer service has gone by the board."