how long do you stay "on hold" before hanging up?

Question

i just tried to call the dr's office to cancel an appt....
the girl answered and i said i needed to cancel an appt....
then she put me on hold....after about a minute and ahalf i hung up...i'm just calling as a courtesy to them, so i'm not about to sit on hold forever just to help them out

Answer 1

Some receptionists (not all) are a bit ditzy. I've had many horror stories with them. I usually will hold on longer if the call is more urgent. If your very sick, obviously you need to see the doctor and have to wait. If they haven't reached you after a minute though, hang up and call back in 5. If you have issues with one receptionist ask to speak to another.

Answer 2

Actually that is more than a courtesy call because if they do not get word that you have canceled your appointment, you may be liable for the payment for the missed appointment...it is more than likely that it would be ok but they do reserve the right to charge you.
Sometimes you may have to hold longer than a minute and a half...there are times when I have been on hold (not with my Dr's office) for 15 or more minutes. That usually happens when I am having problems with my phone or internet service...something of that nature or when I need to call somewhere for work. A minute and a half is really not that long. If she had kept you waiting over 5 mins then I would have hung up. It just depends on how important you think the call is.

Answer 3

It depends on what i am holding for. If a friend puts me on hold i will hang up after about a min or two but if i call a business and really need to get an answer i would hold for much longer.

Answer 4

It all depends on the reason. Doctor's office? Maybe 3 minutes. A very large retail store maybe 5. Sometimes it takes them a minute to walk to the area where ur looking for something.

Answer 5

at work only about 30 sec, after that, they can call back

with friends usually 2 min, they know to call me back when they're off the phone

with doctors' offices, that's a different story. I'll hold 10 or 15 min

Answer 6

yup, I would hang up as well. The other thing I can't stand is call waiting. It drives me crazy when I'm talking to someone and they interupt me and get their other line and I sit there on hold while they attend their ever growing social life. Which is why I personally do not have call waiting. Have a lovely day.

Answer 7

I would definately get ahold of them again- they may charge you.

Generally I stay on hold for 10 -15 minutes and continue if I have time. If I don't have time, I call later.

Answer 8

I think that depends on your level of patience. I would only stay on hold for up to a minute for something not too important and then only 2 minutes for something important. Our lives are important to us as well and we have better things to do then wait for someone who is incompetent or just ignoring us.

Answer 9

It extremely relies upon, if its a personal call then perhaps about 30-40 5 seconds i'm extremely impatient lol if it something like customer service i am going to attend about 10 minutes carry up then call decrease back even as its not so busy. carry in there you may do it! lol

Answer 10

i try to avoid being put on hold by not ever calling. the last time i was nailed of course was to have my internet cable turned back on. i was at a pay phone. buzzards were circling. hideous hip hop muzak mixed with 'did you know you could pay your bill online' over and over for 30 minutes..... that was a black day it's never going to happen again.