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Grandview At Las Vegas
[triennial - points]
My brother recently moved locally -- from this county to an adjoining county, to a nicer house with a shorter commute to work. He didn't have to change phone companies, because Verizon provides local service in both jurisdictions. For cable TV, he had to change companies because Cox has the franchise in this county but ComCast has it in the next county. Or, he could have stayed with Verizon for phone & Internet, plus TV service via "Fios" where that's available or via Direct-TV, which is marketed by Verizon where "Fios" is unavailable.
After mulling over features & rates, etc., my brother decided to go with Verizon for Internet & telephone & satellite TV. The order was placed. The telephone number was assigned. Then a Verizon representative called to say that, because my brother had not paid his final Verizon phone bill at his old address, he would have to pay a substantial up-front deposit before Verizon would hook him up to phone & Internet & satellite TV at his new address. The unpaid bill wasn't overdue, mind you, just not yet paid -- in fact, it had not yet been received in the mail.
In the face of that piece of customer-service doofusness, my brother did not even argue with Verizon or bother reminding Verizon that he had been a Verizon customer in good standing for years & years. He simply told Verizon adios & good riddance & went with ComCast for phone & Internet & cable TV -- not that ComCast's customer service & installation performance are all they should be, either. (But that's another story.) At least ComCast filled the order. The phone dials. The phone rings. The cable box brings in plenty of channels with crystal clarity. The Internet connection is quick.
Today my brother received an envelope from Verizon via USPS snail mail. Inside was a refund check owed to him because of overpayment on his former account at his old residence before he moved -- the account Verizon "customer service" thought was unpaid, leading Verizon to cancel a triple order & causing my brother to move the account to a competing company. Sheesh.
In the words of Lily Tomlin, "We don't care. We're the phone company. We don't have to."
After mulling over features & rates, etc., my brother decided to go with Verizon for Internet & telephone & satellite TV. The order was placed. The telephone number was assigned. Then a Verizon representative called to say that, because my brother had not paid his final Verizon phone bill at his old address, he would have to pay a substantial up-front deposit before Verizon would hook him up to phone & Internet & satellite TV at his new address. The unpaid bill wasn't overdue, mind you, just not yet paid -- in fact, it had not yet been received in the mail.
In the face of that piece of customer-service doofusness, my brother did not even argue with Verizon or bother reminding Verizon that he had been a Verizon customer in good standing for years & years. He simply told Verizon adios & good riddance & went with ComCast for phone & Internet & cable TV -- not that ComCast's customer service & installation performance are all they should be, either. (But that's another story.) At least ComCast filled the order. The phone dials. The phone rings. The cable box brings in plenty of channels with crystal clarity. The Internet connection is quick.
Today my brother received an envelope from Verizon via USPS snail mail. Inside was a refund check owed to him because of overpayment on his former account at his old residence before he moved -- the account Verizon "customer service" thought was unpaid, leading Verizon to cancel a triple order & causing my brother to move the account to a competing company. Sheesh.
In the words of Lily Tomlin, "We don't care. We're the phone company. We don't have to."
-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.
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