I had the most atrocious encounter with an employee at this branch, and I will never be using their passport service again.
The staff member's name is Mary Ann. I made an appointment to meet with her to renew my passport, and I didn't know that it would be such a difficult and negative experience. She came into the room looking glum and annoyed, and shared only a few words with me. I am 20 years old, and she immediately said, "How old are you?" as she looked at my driver's license. I answered and she said, "You look more like 16, maybe we should have a parent present just in case." I respectfully said that I was confident that wouldn't be necessary.
During the process of our small talk, she insulted my approaching profession, my changing thoughts about my graduate school decisions, and compared me to her daughter in order to present to me how unprepared and apparently unintelligent I was. Not once was I rude, arrogant, or cold, so I believe this was uncalled for.
I had skipped the OPTIONAL portion of my passport application that asked for my parents' birth dates and places, just out of saving time and thinking it wasn't necessary. She brought this to my attention by saying, "What, do you not know your parents' birthdays at 20 years old?" I said that I do and explained I could fill it in if it was necessary. As I was filling it in, she then added, "I'm assuming you don't their birth places either." I filled that in confidently as I kept quiet.
Then, I had a concern because in order to apply for my passport, I was not aware that they had to keep my birth certificate to send in with the application. So I said, "Oh, I think I need my birth certificate back." And she said no, I could not have it back. All I replied was, "I thought you just needed a copy, I know my mom wasn't expecting it to be mailed with the application." This was in a calm, understanding manner, and I was not complaining about the process in any way. She snippily said, "Well don't have her come crying to me, you have my final answer. If you're not happy with it, I guess you shouldn't be getting a passport." I apologized and tried to explain my intent as she got up and started to leave the room.
The icing on the cake was hearing the final pricing. I had brought a check to pay the total of $135 that she had told me twice on the phone, and this was all I was prepared to pay. Then she throws in, "Well we'll need your credit card too, there are some extra fees that can't be paid with a check." So I had to pay an unexpected $40 out of pocket (which is a lot for a college student!) that paid for their processing and taking my picture. Mary Ann's words on the phone when scheduling our appointment were as follows: "So the total should be $135, and I can just take your picture for you real quick here." If I had known about the fee, I would've paid only $5 at Meijer to have it taken before I went. I also would have been prepared to pay the Post Office fee on a card, rather than being blind-sided and having to transfer money into my account. She again made a disparaging comment about how maybe I "should be more prepared to pay the fees."
Overall, I am appalled at the disrespect I received today from this branch. I walked out feeling attacked, belittled, and aggravated. I do not get upset easily, because I know they have tough jobs and she could've been having a rough day. But there was absolutely no reason for her to provide personal judgment on me or insult me in such a way. She also should have explained the real costs and steps of the procedure during our conversation on the phone. I will never be returning to that branch with my business again, my family has had a much better experience at the South Bend branch.
Mary Ann, thank you for inflicting your bad day onto me in the short period of time we were together. read more
