BMT22033
join:2002-07-03
Fairfax, VA
1 edit | (Another) FIOS billing nightmare! I had 30/5 FIOS installed in May 2006 and I can't say enough good things about it (the speed and quality of the service, that is). I live in Northern Virginia and when I signed up for FIOS, the monthly rate for 30/5 was $54.95/month with a one year contract. In late Summer 2007, I received a letter from Verizon stating that FIOS rates were going to increase no earlier than October 2007. Said letter ended up getting lost and I neglected to call Verizon until the middle of October. The CSR that I spoke with confirmed that the price for 30/5 had increased to $59.95/month on October 1 and since I no longer had a contract with them, that would be my new monthly rate. It was my own fault for not calling before the price increase and I was actually thankful that the increase was *only* $5/month. The CSR went on to suggest that if I was happy with the service that I might want to sign up for another one year contract to avoid any additional price increases during that time period. I inquired about a two year contract but was told that they don't offer two year contracts on the 30/5 tier so I agreed to a new one year contract.
The next bill I received in late October reflected the new $59.95/month rate.....as well as a $69.00 VERIZON FIOS EARLY TERMINATION FEE! Needless to say, I called Verizon the next day to inquire about this (we use direct debit to pay our bill so I wanted to get this taken care of immediately before they debited it from our bank account). The CSR that I spoke with said that it was obviously a mistake and she would make sure that it was removed from the bill before the debit date. I checked with my bank the day after the debit occured and the problem had been fixed...or so I thought.
The next bill I received in late November now listed $69.99 as being past due. I called again and spoke to another CSR who assured me that it had been flagged for removal from my account and that it "could take up to two billing cycles for the charge to disappear from the bill". This CSR went on to assure me that it had been taken care of "in the system" as evidenced by the correct amount being debited for my last bill. When I asked why the November bill stated that $69.99 was past due when the original "early termination fee" was only $69.00, I was told that "it was probably just a data entry error by the original CSR who requested the credit/removal". This was my first hint that the horror stories I'd heard about Verizon's billing department might actually be true. Again, I waited until the day after the debit occured and then checked with my bank who confirmed that correct amount had been debited.
Then my bill for December arrived...and $69.99 is STILL listed as past due! Now I'm starting to reach the end of my rope (or so I thought). I called again and this time I had the great misfortune of speaking with a particularly beligerent CSR who refused to identify herself. After being put on hold for almost 15 minutes so she could "review my account", I was told that:
- "We can't remove early termination fees so I'm not sure why you were told that it would be removed from your bill. Your account has had $69.99 past due for 60 days now so your next bill will include additional late fees."
- "You were charged the termination fee because you didn't have a contract with us. In order to avoid the termination fee you should have called us to sign up for a new contract before your first contract ended."
Having tried to use logic and reason with this individual and failing miserably, I then asked to speak with a supervisor and was promptly told, "There's no one available." I said that I'd wait on hold for as long as it took for someone to become available to which she replied "You can't do that. If you really feel that it's necessary, I can take your name and number and have a supervisor call you but it's not going to change your bill." At this point I already knew I was going to have to call back and speak with someone else, but I told her that I *would* like a supervisor to call me. After asking for my name (which is on the account that she's spent the past 15 minutes "reviewing"), she asks for my phone number. I said, "When can I expect someone to call? If it's during normal business hours, they should call my work number. If it's going to be outside of those hours, use my home number on the account". Her parting shot to me was "Well, I don't know when someone will call you but it could take 5 - 7 business days!" At this point, I would have choked this woman to death if it were physically possible.
So now I place my fourth call to Verizon hoping to find someone....ANYONE...who's willing and able to resolve this problem with my bill. The CSR I reached this time was, at least, very professional and appropriately apologetic regarding the matter. Again, I waited on hold while he investigated the problem. He did come back several times to apologize for the inconvenience and keep me informed about what he'd found out. In the end, all he could really say was "You shouldn't have had to go through this. The credit was requested and approved back in October when you first called but for some reason it's not being applied to your bill." He said that he'd spoken with a supervisor who had "fixed the problem once and for all". Unfortunately, only time will tell. The debit is set to occur against my bank account on Monday so we'll see what happens.
I love FIOS as a service but in stark constrast to how great the service itself is, Verizon's "customer service" is anything but. |
