Customer Service - Am I unreasonable?

[UncleMeat]

So when TWC had their "All the Best" sale about a month ago, I caved and went back to them (had no TV service at the time).

Here's what happened:
- Went to Mayfair, said I had Tivo, needed two Cable CARDs.  Sales guy there said the only installation costs would be $20 to port my phone number.

- Took off the morning at work for the installer, he came with one ONE Cable CARD.  The sales guy only put me down for one.  Installer had no idea how to install/activate the card (install took 4-5 hours I think and half of that was him rebooting my TiVo over and over and hoping for something different to happen).  

- I was ****ed about only having one Cable CARD, but the installer said I could pick a 2nd one up at any of the retail locations.

- I didn't believe him, so I called customer service, they specifically said I could get a Cable CARD from Mayfair at any time.

- Got to Mayfair after work, they said they do not stock Cable CARDs and you cannot self-install them (which I knew, but went anyway at the direction of two TWC employees).  They said I would need to pay $20 for a technician visit and make an appointment for a week later (earliest opening).

- Immediately called the cust. service number and explained what happened.  They apologized and said they would note on my account that I would not be charged for the install of the 2nd cable card.

- New installer came, again did not know anything about Cable CARDs.  They got me up and running, but somehow the activation on the initial Cable CARD went away, so I had two physical cards but only service on one.

- Thanks to some help from this place, I got in touch with folks at TWC who could get both my cards activated, took a little over a week from the initial appointment to get everything working.  Frustrating, but I'm fine at this point.

- Get my first bill, $19.95 fee for the 2nd installation appointment!!!!

- Talk to customer service, they say that they charge $19.95 per Cable CARD install regardless of whether they occur at the same time or not (so according to them, I should have been charged $40 for two Cable CARD installs and $20 for the phone # port).

- Awaiting a return contact from customer service manager or something, because per my first line there was no charge for Cable CARD installs and I was told I would have that 2nd installation refunded.

So way I see it, i was lied to by the sales guy, first tech, cust service person who said I could get a card at Mayfair and the cust service person who said they would credit me for the install.  That's 4 people in my first month of service.

I'm frustrated and already looking for a new service provider.  Is that unreasonable?  I have a bad history with TWC and it's partly my fault for going back to them, but all I ask for is a fairly uneventful experience as a customer.  I don't expect everything to work perfectly 100% of the time, nor do I expect fantastic customer service (although it SHOULD be provided).

However, I work in the retail industry and I'm a marketing guy, so customer service is a HUGE part of my life.  When a customer has been mistreated and an employee does something within their power to make the customer happy, you don't override that employee and tell the customer they are wrong!  I think that is absolutely absurd.  

Am I silly for thinking this way?  Or am I just going to get the same treatment from one of the satellite guys?

[SRW1000]

Am I silly for thinking this way?  Or am I just going to get the same treatment from one of the satellite guys?

Sad to say, but I think your experience is typical for what you're going to get, and Dish Network is no better.  I've had numerous problems with them over what should be straightforward problems, both equipment and billing related.  Plus, you will often end up speaking someone who's primary language is not English, making it even harder to communicate what the issues are.

The employees are not well-trained, whether they're install guys or CSRs.  They will usually follow the path of least resistance, and usually fall back on some policy without actually trying to think or reason things through.

All I can recommend is to keep calling back.  Eventually you should be able to reach someone who knows or cares enough to help you.  Take notes along with employee names and dates, as that really does help your case.

As a last resort, you could ask to speak with a retention specialist.  I don't know if it works the same for cable, but they will often have the authority to issue credits or other perks, depending on circumstances.

Good luck,

Scott

[Tom Snyder]

It's sad, but you almost have to assume that, for just about anything that involves technology, CSRs and tech support people:

• just about everything that can go wrong WILL go wrong,
• will never be as good as you hoped,
• will cost more than promised,
• will have you spending more time on hold and navigating death by menu than you ever imagined and
• will take longer than you thought to get it resolved.

Make those basic assumptions and your only surprises will always be good ones.

[UncleMeat]

It's sad, but you almost have to assume that, for just about anything that involves technology, CSRs and tech support people:

• just about everything that can go wrong WILL go wrong,
• will never be as good as you hoped,
• will cost more than promised,
• will have you spending more time on hold and navigating death by menu than you ever imagined and
• will take longer than you thought to get it resolved.

Make those basic assumptions and your only surprises will always be good ones.

Ha, I've been making those assumptions for years and I'm still surprised... in bad ways.  

Customer dis-service (as Clark Howard always puts it) always fail to meet even the lowest of expectations.  Never ceases to amaze me.   :huh?:

[tywest]

I had major problems with D* when we moved. It took a few months to get the bills correct. I posted on this a while back ago. It seems that these problems will happen no matter where you go. Some just more than others maybe.
I would write a letter and snail male it to them. I ended up doing that with D* and they called me offering 10.00 off for the next year. It never hurts to try.