21 of the Best Customer Service Stories Ever

Think customer service is becoming a lost art? These companies prove that theory wrong in 21 big ways.

1. LEGO

LEGO pieces seem to go missing all of the time, and they usually reappear embedded in the soft soles of your feet when you least expect it. But when 7-year-old Luka Apps of Highworth, Wiltshire, England, lost his Jay ZX minifig during a shopping trip, he wrote LEGO to ask for a replacement:

“Hello. My name is Luka and I am seven years old. with all my money I got for Christmas I bought the Ninjago kit of the Ultrasonic Raider. The number is 9449. It is really good. My Daddy just took me to Sainsburys and told me to leave the people at home but I took them and I lost Jay ZX at the shop as it fell out of my coat. I am really upset I have lost him. Daddy said to send you a email to see if you will send me another one. I promise I won’t take him to the shop again if you can. Thank you.”

Spoiler alert: Richard from LEGO Consumer Services sent him the Jay ZX minifig—and a little something extra. Richard explained that his bosses wouldn’t let him replace the minifig for free, but he decided to go over their heads:

“Luka, I told Sensei Wu that losing your Jay minifigure was purely an accident and that you would never ever ever let it happen ever again. He told me to tell you, ‘Luka, your father seems like a very wise man. You must always protect your Ninjago minifigures like the dragons protect the Weapons of Spinjitzu!”

After getting the OK from “Sensei Wu,” Richard upgraded Luka: “You will actually have the only Jay minifigure that combines 3 different Jays into one! I am also going to send you a bad guy for him to fight! Just remember, what Sensei Wu said: keep your minifigures protected like the Weapons of Spinjitzu! And of course, always listen to your dad.”

2. DELTA AIR LINES

Mav, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0

In 2013, Jessie Frank was headed to Atlanta to pick her daughter up from diabetes summer camp. Unfortunately, a series of mechanical problems and weather delays caused Frank to miss her connecting flight. She found herself stuck on standby in Washington, D.C., with seven people ahead of her in line. Miraculously, the agent called her name, and an attendant—who wasn't in uniform—met her at the doorway, helped her get her carry-on stowed, and located her seat.

When the plane landed in Atlanta, the flight attendants made an announcement saying that they had the pleasure of serving a very special guest on the flight—the CEO of Delta. That’s when Frank realized the man who had helped her was CEO Richard Anderson. He had given up his seat, in favor of sitting on a jump seat in the cockpit, so Frank could get to her daughter on time.

3. RITZ-CARLTON, AMELIA ISLAND

If you’re a parent, or if you were once a young child with a strong attachment to a special stuffed animal yourself, then you understand how positively devastating it can be when that toy goes missing. In 2012, Chris Hurn’s family had just arrived home from a trip to the Ritz-Carlton in Amelia Island, Florida, when his young son realized that his stuffed giraffe, Joshie, was nowhere to be found. Trying to buy time, Hurn explained to his son that Joshie had just extended his vacation by a few days.

Luckily, when the Hurns called the hotel, they were informed that the giraffe had indeed been discovered in the hotel laundry. To back up his fib, Hurn asked the Loss Prevention team to snap a picture of the stuffed animal sitting by the pool. The team did that and more, posing Joshie all over the hotel—getting a massage at the spa, chatting with a parrot, and even driving a golf cart. Joshie, the pictures, and a bunch of Ritz-Carlton goodies arrived in the mail a few days after the phone call.

4. KROGER

Jonesdr77, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0

While waiting on a prescription at Kroger in Suwanee, Georgia, April Villada and her young daughter were chatting about the possibility of monsters under the bed in her new big-girl room—a great concern for many youngsters, of course. Villada was called to pick up the Rx and was surprised when the pharmacist handed her a spray bottle, in addition to the prescribed medication. It was a “custom potion,” complete with an official pharmacy label and directions, that would keep monsters away if sprayed once a day. In a Facebook post, Villada called the token "such a brilliant idea and so very thoughtful!"

5. MARRIOTT

You’ve heard of giving the shirt off of your back, but how about the pants off of your legs? That’s what happened several years ago when a customer in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, packed the wrong black pants for a business meeting. About 10 minutes before his meeting, the customer realized that the black pants he packed were actually his wife’s. Panicked, he ran down to the front desk to ask if there were any extra pants in the lost and found. There weren’t—but the associate working at the front desk just happened to be the customer’s exact size. The associate changed into the casual pants he had with him and let the customer borrow his uniform pants.

6. NETFLIX

Coolcaesar via WikimediaCommons //CC BY-SA 3.0

If you’ve ever been in a “click to chat” experience with a company, you’ll know it can often be painfully scripted. But Netflix seems to have given their customer service representatives quite a bit of leeway—and users have noticed. Here’s a screenshot of a conversation with “Cpt. Mike of the good ship Netflix,” who took a simple request to fix a stalled episode of Parks and Rec and transformed it into a fun interaction.

7. VIRGIN TRAINS

About a year ago, Adam Greenwood was traveling on Virgin Trains when nature called. He realized, too late, that there was no toilet paper in his bathroom stall. Naturally, he whipped his phone out and tweeted about his dilemma, presumably to be funny. Virgin Trains noticed, and a representative delivered toilet paper to him post haste.

8. NINTENDO

Not long after the Nintendo Wii first was released, a Redmond, Washington, resident broke her system. She called Nintendo, and when the employees realized that she was right in town—Nintendo's American headquarters is also in Redmond—they invited her to stop over with her machine. She did, and they fixed it, apologizing profusely for the 30-minute wait.

9. NEIMAN MARCUS

Kristi Gustafson Barlette got a great deal during an online sale at Neiman Marcus and ordered several items at more than 50 percent off retail price. Awesome—until they appeared at her door in a soaking wet cardboard box. The packing material was also drenched, to the point that it had dissolved into the fabric of some of the clothing. Barlette decided to call Neiman Marcus as opposed to FedEx, and she wasn’t disappointed.

The representative offered to replace the order for free and mail it overnight—but upon closer examination, they discovered that two of the four items ordered were now sold out. Instead, Neiman Marcus issued her a credit to pay for dry cleaning on the two pieces she decided to keep, and sent someone to Barlette’s office to pick up the two irreparably damaged dresses, which she also received credit for.

10. WARBY PARKER

Last year, Michael John Mathis accidentally left his Warby Parker reading glasses on the Acela, the Amtrak service that runs between Washington, D.C. and Boston. He was a bit bummed but replaced his beloved glasses the next day. Much to his surprise, a package arrived in the mail a few days later: Two pairs of the exact same reading glasses and a copy of On the Road, accompanied by a note:

“Hi Michael, This might be odd… but you sat across from me on the train ride from NYC to Boston a few weeks ago and left your glasses on the train! As luck would have it, I happen to be the GC of Warby Parker, and there is nothing I like more than a good mystery… I hope these find you in good health! (also, we noticed your lenses were scratched so we made you a fresh pair!) Sincerely, AK

That would be Warby Parker’s General Counsel, Anjali Kumar. Impressed by her detective work? Here’s how Mathis figured it went down: “I imagine it was not that tough—just very kind. Not that many pair of that style, in that exact prescription, sold to a guy in NYC, plus I ordered another pair the following day online. That plus a quick check of a photo on facebook or linkedin to be sure I had been the guy sitting across from her on the train."

11. MORTON'S STEAKHOUSE

Author and business consultant Peter Shankman was getting ready to board a flight that was the last leg of a long day of traveling. It just happened to occur over dinnertime, and he knew he would be starving when he deplaned and headed home. “Hey, @Mortons – can you meet me at newark airport with a porterhouse when I land in two hours? K, thanks. :)” Imagine his surprise when he got off the plane to find a tuxedoed gentleman holding a bag that contained a 24 ounce Morton’s porterhouse, shrimp, potatoes, bread, napkins and silverware. Shankman noted that the Tweet had to be noticed, someone had to get approval for the idea, a cook had to make his food, the food had to be driven 23.5 miles away from the nearest Morton’s, and someone had to track down his flight information and figure out where he was landing to meet him at the right location. All while his stomach was grumbling on a 2.5-hour flight. Pretty impressive.

12. SAINBURY'S

Sainsbury’s, a grocery store in the U.K., must have been pretty amused when they received a letter from a three-year-old girl named Lily. “Why is tiger bread called tiger bread?” she asked, referring to one of their bakery items. “It should be called giraffe bread.” Lily was just being observant—the pattern on the bread does resemble a giraffe more than a tiger. To everyone’s surprise, Chris King, a customer service manager at the chain, responded. “I think renaming tiger bread giraffe bread is a brilliant idea—it looks much more like the blotches on a giraffe than the stripes on a tiger, doesn’t it? It is called tiger bread because the first baker who made it a looong time ago thought it looked stripey like a tiger. Maybe they were a bit silly.” He enclosed a gift card, and the bread was renamed.

13. ZAPPOS

When one Zappos customer’s mother had some medical treatment that left her feet numb and sensitive to pressure—and also rendered most of her shoes totally useless—she ordered her mother six pairs of shoes from the online retailer, hoping that at least one of them would work. After receiving the shoes, her mother called Zappos to get instructions on how to return the shoes that didn’t work, explaining why she was returning so many shoes. Two days later, she received a large bouquet of flowers from Zappos, wishing her well and hoping that she recovered from her treatments soon. Two days later, the customer, her mother and her sister were all upgraded to “Zappos VIP Members,” which gives them all free expedited shipping on all orders.

Not impressed? Just Google “Zappos” and “customer service” and you’re bound to find something that astounds you.

14. TRADER JOE'S

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A Redditor’s 89-year-old grandfather got snowed in a couple years ago and didn’t have much in the house for meals. His daughter called several markets in the area to see if any of them had grocery delivery services, but the only one that said they did was Trader Joe’s. They don’t, actually, but were willing to help out this WWII vet. As the man’s daughter placed an order, the Trader Joe’s representative on the phone recommended other items that would be good for her dad’s low-sodium diet. An up-sell, you may be asking? Nope. They didn’t charge her a dime for the delivery or the groceries.

15. SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

While these other stories have been nice, this one might actually make you teary (it made me teary, and I’m a hard sell). A man was en route from a business trip in L.A. to his daughter’s home in Denver to see his 3-year-old grandson for the last time. The boy, beaten into a coma by his mother’s live-in boyfriend, was being taken off of life support at 9 p.m. that evening so his organs could be used to save other lives. The man’s wife called Southwest to arrange the last-minute flight and explained the emergency situation. Unfortunately, the man was held up by L.A. traffic and long lines at LAX and didn’t make it to the gate on time. When he finally made it there 12 minutes after the plane was scheduled to leave, he was shocked to find the pilot waiting for him. He thanked the pilot profusely, and the pilot said, “They can’t go anywhere without me, and I wasn’t going anywhere without you. Now relax. We’ll get you there. And again, I’m so sorry.”

16. AMAZON

If you order a PlayStation online and it gets snatched from your doorstep instead of being delivered safely to your living room, that’s your problem, right? Or maybe it’s the delivery service’s problem. Or it’s the problem of the neighbor who signed for your expensive gaming system but didn’t bother to bring it inside to protect it from sticky fingers. Wherever the blame lands, it’s definitely not the problem of the company who fulfilled their end of the bargain by shipping the system using a secure method. However, when this scenario happened to an Amazon customer a few years ago, he called them to beg—plead—to see if there was anything that could be done because his son was expecting a PlayStation from Santa. Much to the customer’s shock, they not only sent another, but they didn’t even charge him for shipping. It even made it there on time for Christmas.

17. RITZ-CARLTON, BALI

Because of their son’s food allergies, a family vacationing at the Ritz-Carlton, Bali, was always careful to bring their own supply of specialized eggs and milk. In this particular instance, however, the food was ruined en route. The Ritz-Carlton manager couldn’t find any of the special items in town, but his executive chef recalled that a store in Singapore sold them. The chef contacted his mother-in-law, who lived there, and had her purchase the items, then fly to Bali (about 2.5 hours) to deliver them.

18. NORDSTROM

The tales of Nordie’s customer service are so mind-boggling that some of them are considered urban legend, but here's one that’s definitely true. In 2011, a member of the security staff noticed a woman crawling around on her hands and knees on the sales floor. When he discovered that she was looking for a diamond that had fallen out of her wedding ring while she was trying on clothes, he got down and searched with her. He also recruited a small team of people to help comb the floors. Eventually, the crew painstakingly picked through the dirt and debris in the store vacuum cleaners before coming up with the woman’s diamond.

19. APPLE

This one may turn out to be apocryphal, but the story was all over the place after the launch of the iPad 2. Apparently a man bought an iPad online, then returned it to the company almost immediately, affixing a Post-It to the front of the device that simply read, “Wife said no.” Returns processors must have gotten a kick out of it, because the story eventually made its way to a couple of Apple VPs, who refunded the customer and returned the iPad with an attached Post-It that said, “Apple said yes.”

20. LEXUS

Most of us have experienced it at one time or another—the dreaded vehicle recall. It’s usually some minor part, but replacing it ends up being a huge inconvenience for the car owner, even when replacement parts are free. Lexus certainly knows how to take the sting out of that. Although previous recalls had been addressed by sending technicians to the affected customers’ homes to fix the problem on the spot, when the Lexus ES 350 sedan was recalled in 2006, the company decided to ask owners to come on into the dealership. Instead of sitting in a waiting room waiting for their cars to be worked on, customers were given a brand new Lexus instead, no questions asked.

21. GAYLORD OPRYLAND

A writer was in Nashville for a blogging conference in 2012 and adored the clock radio at her hotel, the Gaylord Opryland. It wasn’t just any clock radio, but a clock radio/noise machine with very specific spa-style music that relaxed this writer as if she were actually getting a deep-tissue massage every time it played. Wanting to experience the same serenity at home, the blogger took to Twitter to ask the folks at the hotel where she could purchase one. Their response, essentially, was, “Sorry, it's made just for us, but here’s a similar one at the Sharper Image.” Unfortunately, the one they recommended lacked the spa music feature that the blogger loved so much. She told them as much and thanked them for the effort anyway. When she returned to her room later, she found a second clock radio sitting next to the permanent one, along with a note saying, “We hope you enjoy these spa sounds at home.”