There's an interesting article over on ISP Review about Carphone Warehouse wanting customers over 70 having a relative with them at the point of sign up.
The Daily Mail newspaper reports that the Carphone Warehouse has introduced a rather bizarre new clause into its TalkTalk broadband package. People over the age of 70 must be accompanied by a child to explain the small print!: Shirley Greening-Jackson thought signing up for a new internet service would be a doddle. But the young man behind the counter had other ideas. He said she was barred - because she was too old. The 75-year-old would only be allowed to sign the forms for the Carphone Warehouse's TalkTalk phone and broadband package if she was accompanied by a younger member of her family who could explain the small print to her. Carphone Warehouse admitted it had adopted an over-70 rule. But the firm insisted it was not a blanket policy and claimed the guidance was to protect the elderly. A spokeswoman said: "It is not our policy to refuse business from adult customers of any age group. However, we do ask our agents to use their discretion when dealing with older customers." This is quite possibly one of the most ridiculous things we've ever read and no doubt deeply insulting to anybody over the age of 70, the majority of which are probably more intelligent than most. Surely it wouldn't be too difficult for Carphone to simply train their staff to handle such individuals, rather than effectively barring them. After all, kids have a tendency to grow into adults and then.. funnily enough, elderly people. Shocking I know!
Now, considering that there are a number of ISPs, ourselves included, offering low level PAYG offering, you would expect a number of these to be from the elder generation, as it is more suited to their needs, rather than teenage-mid 20's who are more likely to want to use their internet connectivity for downloading, more than for checking the odd webpage and downloading email. Alienating the elder generation would appear to be a PR nightmare...
