HP Axes Policy That Made People Wait 15 Minutes for All Customer Service Calls

HP has ended a policy that made people wait at least 15 minutes for every customer service call in the hopes that they would give up and turn to the company’s website or chatbot.

As The Register reports, an automated voice message told all callers: “We are experiencing longer waiting times and we apologize for the inconvenience. The next available representative will be with you in about 15 minutes”—regardless of whether call traffic was high or not.

The wait time affected callers in the UK, Ireland, France, and Italy, according to an internal document seen by the The Register. It was intended to “influence customers to increase their adoption of digital self‑solve.” Translation: use HP’s support page or its AI chatbot.

HP has now removed the mandatory wait times, according to an official statement shared with The Register, based on feedback. “We know the importance of speaking to live customer service agents in a timely fashion is paramount,” it added.

The company itself has acknowledged the frustration some of its customers feel when dealing with its products. Last year, HP announced the HP All-In Plan for printer rentals, which it developed after hearing from customers that owning a printer can be a “never-ending struggle.” The previous year, it also ran a “Made To Be Less Hated” advertising campaign in Europe, which showed a woman throwing her HP printer out of the window in anger.

HP is not the only company looking to divert callers away from call centers. Last year, Amazon rolled out a new set of AI features for its popular call center software Amazon Connect, which helps firms manage customer service teams. The update allowed users to create, edit, and manage conversational AI bots, potentially lowering the barrier to entry for companies that want to incorporate chatbots into their customer service strategies.

About Will McCurdy

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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.

I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.

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