Andrew Niven: Do you work with customers? Here’s some tips for dealing with deaf people

Yesterday I added a post to Facebook about customer service tips, sparked by my friend’s visit to Currys/PC world when he went to pick up a new tablet and paid £20 extra for them to set it up.

Approaching the desk, he informed the sales person that he was deaf using sign language.

“But I don’t know any sign language!” the sales person replied, flapping his arms in the air.

When he was going through the set up process for the new tablet, my friend pointed to a pen and paper and visually asked him to write it down, but the sales person got frustrated, picked up the paper and started writing and talking at the same down, not paying attention to my friend.

Which is why I wrote down these tips on Facebook for people dealing with deaf customers:

– Please look at the person you are speaking to
– Don’t look down and start babbling away
– Show the customer the computer monitor with their information on it 
– if you are unable to communicate with the customer, use pen and paper, use text messaging or speak slowly and face the person!
– if all above fails, the problem is probably you, fetch another member of staff

But there’s also more people can do before a deaf customer even arrives. Go to a deaf awareness course, and learn a few basic signs, would make a big difference.

I thought I’d also add here two other experiences I have had with customer service:

I wrote about travelling around the world for Limping Chicken a few months ago.

I remember when I landed at Melbourne airport after a long flight and upon going through passport control, the officer in the booth didn’t look at me when speaking to me.

I thought that was odd since they should be checking passengers faces match the passports?!

So I knocked on the booth and said quite loudly  “please look at me when you’re talking to me.” When that didn’t work, I said: “It’s very important you look at me as I need to read your lips!”

The officer looked up and probably clocked that I was deaf by seeing my hearing aids and apologized to me. I was quivering inside thinking I might get into trouble for telling him off.  I got in the country OK!

Hearing assessment centre

I dread going to this place, I detest it but it has improved over the years. Now we have an automatic flashing board with your name so you’re not sitting on edge trying to lip read the staff when they come out to call your name.

There was this young lady at reception and she had no idea of how to deal with HOH/deaf patients. Her attitude was quite brash and seemed to think it was funny when patient don’t hear the first time and looked cross when she had to repeat herself.

I was waiting for ages and saw this young receptionist continue with her behaviour, so I got so annoyed with it and I approached her and asked to see the manager.

I haven’t seen that young receptionist there anymore. It turned out that other patients had complained about her.

When I did customer service as part of my course at college years ago, I was taught to look at the person you are dealing with (that won’t be hard for me as I rely on lip reading).

Andrew Niven is 35 years old, and currently work as a BSL PA with his local council for an agency. He also volunteers at Nottingham Deaf Society. He was born profoundly deaf, and went to mainstream school from the age of 6 years old. He learned to sign when he was 28, passing BSL level 3 in August 2017. He is now hoping to take his Level 6 next year.