One of the perks of working for a large international firm was having a corporate taxi account.
Need a taxi?
No problem.
Book it.
Charge it to the account.
Job done.
Or so I thought.
One morning, a senior executive required transport from home to the office.
I arranged the booking as requested and carried on with my day.
Some time later, he arrived at my desk looking considerably less impressed than usual.
It transpired that the vehicle which had appeared outside his house was not the standard taxi he had expected.
Instead, a wheelchair-accessible vehicle had arrived.
The kind with the elevated rear compartment designed to accommodate a passenger seated upright in a wheelchair.
A photograph was produced.
Evidence was presented.
A complaint was lodged.
I listened carefully before asking what I considered to be the obvious question.
"Why didn't you just order another taxi?"
Silence.
Then came the revelation.
He had, in fact, climbed into the vehicle and completed the entire journey to the office.
At that point, I may have belly laughed.
To this day, I remain convinced that making a quick telephone call on the mobile would have been the easier option.
But then I wouldn't have had the story.
If you know, you know.
Related Observations:
Acceptable Outcome.
Policy Note:
Three related observations may travel together.