Malta has worked hard to enforce standards, particularly in areas of traffic legislation, yet we always seem to lag behind in certain areas – particularly customer care.

Let us take the issue of customer care. Many times in Malta, customers are treated with a take it or leave it attitude. This is not recommendable for the establishment owner, because consumers will simply take their business elsewhere, but at least the customer has the choice to go to another shop.

But what about areas where the customer has no other alternative? – for example after sales service. One cannot generalise of course, and there are many outlets that do offer excellent after sales services.

However, the attitude that one is a “pain” if they take a piece of merchandise back still persists. This attitude will not get businesses far.

One simply has to look at the disgusted expression on the face of counter staff, or hear the disdain and derision in their voice when informing a superior over the phone about the complaint to see that this type of attitude persists.

In this day and age, the Maltese consumer is wise. He has experienced good customer care, he has bought things over the internet from places such as the UK and still received excellent care and he has also shopped abroad, so he knows what good service is all about. But as we have said, the attitude persists.

Sometimes one can take in a faulty item and the shop owner will look back in disbelief at such a claim. We need to stamp this attitude out. We have already said that Maltese consumers will not put up with such attitudes any more – one simply wonders what a German or British tourist might think if he complains about, for example a meal or a faulty souvenir and gets the attitude. We keep hearing that we have to boost our competitiveness, and yes we do, it is imperative that we do so.

But that must embody a wholesale change in attitude towards the consumer. One only has to look at which businesses are doing well, and you can guarantee that they have good customer care and after sales services. In short, they are standards that the customer expects to be kept to.

Some of the recently privatised government entities seem to have been able to implement that shift – probably down to a clear out or re-education of their workforce.

Indeed a smile and simply actively listening to a complaint can work wonders. Consumers take it for granted that things go wrong – that in itself is not the major gripe. But consumers hate being taken for a ride after having spent money (sometimes hefty amounts).

The government of course is another area where drastic measures need to be taken to improve customer care. Again one cannot generalise.

There are many who take great pride in their work and go to great lengths to please a customer. But we still have a situation where the minority gives a bad name to the hard-working majority.

Being bounced around from one telephone to another or being barked at instead of being wished a good morning are issues simply solved. A trip to a police station is never a pleasure – and it is made even less so when a police officer barks “Xi Trid!” at you. Again one must stress that this is not always the case – in fact, there are many very polite officers indeed. But we just need to make sure that we value customers a bit more, all government services are there to do precisely that – serve people, that’s what taxes are paid for.

If it were not for their money, the economic wheels would not go round. But of course, being Maltese, we must watch ourselves – going into a shop, police station or ministry shouting and screaming is not acceptable either. We manage to be very friendly and jovial – yet work seems to be a different kettle of fish altogether.

But again, it is repeated – a smile and friendly greeting makes all that bit of difference and is sure to make the customer less irate – which would of course make life easier for even the surliest of workers.