BHIM UPI – Where is the Digital Customer Support in Digital India?

BHIM UPI has seen an impressive growth in the number of transactions in the last three months. The number of transactions has gone up from 16.80 million in August 2017 to 76.96 million in October according to official figures. This amounts to a 358% growth in transactions as compared to a 61% growth in the June to August period. As India embraces a digital future, is the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) geared up to handle the customer service issues? Alt News reviews the recent posts of NPCI_BHIM and finds that the Twitter handle is slipping up in the way that it responds to customers.

Inordinate delay in response

It was on October 13^th that Twitter user Vikash Sharma wrote to @NPCI_BHIM for help. Three weeks later, on November 3^rd, he was asked to send a direct message and confirm if he is still facing any issues.

Hi, regret the delay, kindly DM/inbox and let us know if you are still facing any issues. Thanks! https://t.co/e3AHQ90Coe

— BHIM (@NPCI_BHIM) November 3, 2017

This is not a standalone case. In the first few days of November it seems that NPCI_BHIM cleared its weeks-long backlog and many of those who had written to them in early to mid-October finally got a response. The timeline is full of many more examples.

Hi Parav, kindly DM us your transaction details so that we can assist you better. You can also reach out to us at: https://t.co/FMHn1OxLc8

— BHIM (@NPCI_BHIM) November 3, 2017

Frustration with the helpline

In many instances, the customers have complained about the helpline. One person who reported about the helpline not being reachable on October 5^th got a response on November 3^rd. The response asked him to send a Direct Message if he was still facing issues.

Please use the in-app complaint mechanism to register your UPI transaction related grievance.

— State Bank of India (@TheOfficialSBI) October 13, 2017

Hi, regret the delay, kindly DM/inbox and let us know if you are still facing any issues. Thanks! https://t.co/e3AHQ8J1wG

— BHIM (@NPCI_BHIM) November 3, 2017

Hi, regret the delay, kindly DM/inbox and let us know if you are still facing any issues. Thanks! https://t.co/e3AHQ90Coe

— BHIM (@NPCI_BHIM) November 3, 2017

“Send DM”, but does everyone understand?

To ensure the privacy of transaction details, customers are advised to send a DM. It is a standard response to all those who contact NPCI_BHIM with a problem on Twitter. Imagine the frustration of someone who was asked to send a DM on Oct 11^th and when he asked what is meant by DM, he got a response on November 3^rd.

There are many who may be new to Twitter terminology and may not understand what is meant by a DM. It is easy to blame the customers but if people are repeatedly asking what is meant by DM, then there should be some way of educating/informing them. Maybe a pinned tweet could be used to inform people about the process so that they send a Direct Message to begin with rather than get a response two weeks later to send a DM.

Sent a DM, now what?

Those who sent a DM were asked three weeks later to again send a DM.

There are cases where people have complained after sending multiple DMs only to be told to send another DM.

To top it all, a public rebuke

A BHIM user discovered much to his shock that he was pulled up publicly and accused of being irresponsible, making a wrong transaction and blaming it on the organization.

Even if it was the user’s fault in this case, this was no way to respond to a customer complaint. After the case was highlighted by many on social media, NPCI_BHIM deleted the tweet. So far we have not seen any public apology to the user.

BHIM may be a good product but even the best of products must be matched with a responsive customer service to maintain their relevance. Digital transactions are only going to grow in the future. Whether the examples cited in the article are a result of a shortage of staff or inadequate customer service training or weak processes, we hope these are just teething troubles that will soon be resolved by NPCI_BHIM.