A weird call over the weekend left me wondering about telemarketing and other socio-gender issues. Let me elaborate.
We have a Tata Indicom landline. On Saturday, we receive a call. Hubby answers the phone. Someone from ICICI bank on the line. Generally, neither of us actually entertains these unsolicited calls from telemarketers. Probably because he doesn't have anything better to do or just for the heck of it, hubby decides to humour this lady on the other side. So, this is how the conversation goes (H - hubby and TM - the lady on the phone; obviously what TM said is based on what H said about the conversation to me later):
TM: Sir, we are calling from ICICI bank. We have selected a few Tata Indicom customers and are calling them up about a policy.
H: How is ICICI bank concerned with Tata Indicom?
(TM must have said something really unconvincing because within seconds I could hear H urging her to go on).
H: What is this policy about?
TM: Sir, we are offering an insurance policy to Tata Indicom subscribers. The policy is for Rs 1 lakh; you don't have to fill in any application, absolutely no paper work. Also, this is free; you don't have to pay any premium.
TM (continues): We have already made an appointment for you today between 3 and 4 pm. All you have to do is come to the bank (at so & so branch) and sign the papers. We would need the subscriber's details now: name, address, occupation etc.
H: This phone is on my wife's name.
TM: At this point of time, Sir, we are offering the policy only to the husbands (read men!). So, you can take the policy and add your wife on as your dependant.
That is when H finally lost it. He gave her a piece of his mind, and hung up on her. I couldn't believe what I heard when he narrated the conversation to me. At a time and age when there are women out there earning double the salary as their spouses, owning not just telephones and cars but even houses, you have a so-called premium bank coming out and saying this. If I had answered the phone, what would she have said to me? "Oh, I am sorry madam, but we have to speak to your husband, you see. And if you don't have a husband, or a father, or any other man in the house, you are actually not eligible for this policy at all."
Sometimes, I am not sure anymore if I am upset, angry or plain frustrated!
Other gender-related posts: here, here, here and here.
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3 comments:
Was it a medical insurance?
Because medical insurance costs differ for men and women!
[anonymous] No it wasn't. It was Life Insurance. Besides, I can understand the costs being different. How can you say that policy is only for "men"? And the underlying assumptions - that the phone has to be in a man's name; that a wife can only be a dependant! This is what irked me.
[unmana] I am not sure about she making a mistake. If that were the case I would have expected her to call back. But yes, we were pretty shocked. How can anyone believe women can't own anything - in this day and age!
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