In the past month I've had to call Vanguard numerous times (related to IRA transfers and stuff like that). Every time I've called, they've had a 30+ minute wait time, regardless of the time of day. Their system allows a callback for when you're next in the queue, which would be great if it actually worked properly. Instead, I get the callback, and then I'm immediately put on hold. This is typically a minute or two, although I've had numerous issues including hangups or transfers. The transfers are ridiculous - I talk to a real person, who transfers me to another person, where I'm placed on hold for 10 minutes before giving up.
What's the deal? Has phone support been this way for a while, or is Vanguard just getting slammed for the holidays? How could they not expect this, when half the time I try to do something on their website it tells me to call their support number?