| Keep trying to subscribe to U-Verse I posted the following in the AT&T Direct forum but haven't received a response yet. Just wondering if this is typical of AT&T U-Verse and whether it's worth the trouble.
I live in San Diego, CA and have twice ordered U-Verse and had both orders cancelled by AT&T. Now I'm totally frustrated and wondering whether U-Verse service is worth all trouble. The trouble has been caused by U-Verse sales not providing accurate information.
First Time
In May I called to subscribe to U-Verse TV. I have DSL through DSL Extreme (fantastic company) and wanted to keep the DSL but add U-Verse TV. The person who took my order said that wouldn't be a problem and that their installers would be able to accommodate me. The U-Verse installation time came and went with no sign of AT&T. I called to check on the installer and was told that the order had been cancelled because U-Verse TV couldn't share a line with DSL. Odd, not what I had been told and a phone call would have been nice.
I went on-line as was able to verify that others had this problem as well and it seemed to be true that DSL Extreme couldn't co-exist with U-Verse on the same line. Poor customer service training I guess. OK, it happens.
So I figured I would wait for a while because I am under contract with DSL Extreme and would face a cancellation penalty if I drop service. I'll just stick with my present TV provider for now.
Second Time
A couple of days ago I decided that I was ready to make the move from my current TV provider and would go ahead and cancel my DSL service and pay the penalty.
I called DSL Extreme and arranged for disconnection on July 3. I then called U-Verse and ordered U200 TV and Elite Internet and explained that I had a July 3 disconnect on DSL. The person who took my order gave me a U-Verse install date of July 8 and kindly recommended that I contact DSL Extreme and request a change in the disconnect date to July 7 so I would only be without Internet for a short time. I called DSL Extreme and they accommodated me.
Fast forward 2 days..I received a voice mail message from AT&T telling me there was a problem with my order. I called the provided phone number and was told that my order had been cancelled because I have DSL service on the line. I informed the customer service person that it wouldn't be a problem because DSL would be disconnected the day before the U-Verse installation, just as instructed by AT&T. Her coarse response was that I need to have my DSL disconnected for 7 days before AT&T can install U-Verse. Must be caused by all those stray bits clogging the line or something I thought.
I asked and was put through to a supervisor. This person also told me about the 7 days and that my order had been cancelled by "the system" so I would have to place my order again and get assigned a new installation date. Then some nonsense about the fact that people entering orders don't see the flag on the account not allowing installation. The order has to pass through 12 steps before they realize that there is a problem. Somehow "the system" had become my problem. I thought I could just place an order and follow AT&T's instructions without having to learn about AT&T's systems.
Apparently the reason for the 7 day wait is to make sure that DSL Extreme has actually disconnected the line. I'm pretty sure that they will disconnect when they say they will. Did I mention that they're a good company?
Help!
In any case, what I need is someone to figure out how AT&T can how to take responsibility for their mistakes (twice) and install my service on July 8th as promised. If you're worried about DSL Extreme not disconnecting on time, can't somebody contact them to verify that it will happen? Can't somebody check on the 7th to make sure it is disconnected before sending somebody out to install U-Verse on the 8th?
My family has been without TV for a week already as the prior service is gone. It doesn't bother me much but it does bother them so I don't want to have to wait until sometime in the middle of the month when this seems to be easily rectified, without "systems" and "policies" getting in the way of customer satisfaction.
Any ideas? |
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| Uverse cannot be on a line which has DSL service on it. If you have AT&T DSL, that isn't a problem as AT&T can handle all aspects of the service.
Since you have a 3rd party DSL provider, AT&T cannot place Uverse on the line until DSL Extreme releases the line. AT&T can't just bump DSL Extreme off the line as that is illegal. DSL Extreme has to tell AT&T "OK, we've released the line. You can go ahead." |
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| reply to Shadow925
Yes from the first attempt at subscribing I learned that I had to disconnect my dsl service. I scheduled the disconnect according to U-verse instructions then they cancelled me again and told me about the 7-day policy.
I think the 7-day time frame is arbitrary at best, but if it is a policy why would the person I talked to when ordering tell me to extend my dsl disconnect date? |
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1 edit | reply to Shadow925
Take a look at he following thread:
»Switch to U-verse - CLEC or ISP - Importance in Switch
Unless you already have AT&T DSL, your DSL with a third party company must be disconnected BEFORE AT&T can accept an order to install U-verse. If they check your phone line and detect the presence of non-AT&T DSL, the order will be cancelled as it was twice in your case. If you had AT&T DSL, you can leave the service connected, and the service would be disconnected on the install date when the tech arrives.
Also, as far as TV service is concerned, you probably should not disconnect the service with your current TV provider until AFTER the U-verse install. Verification that you can actually get the U-verse service will not occur until the install date when the tech arrives at the premises and checks the strength of the signal from the VRAD to your home. |
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| reply to Shadow925
said by Shadow925:Yes from the first attempt at subscribing I learned that I had to disconnect my dsl service. I scheduled the disconnect according to U-verse instructions then they cancelled me again and told me about the 7-day policy. I think the 7-day time frame is arbitrary at best, but if it is a policy why would the person I talked to when ordering tell me to extend my dsl disconnect date? There are misinformed employees at AT&T as there are at other companies. I have actually founded that the user forums can be more informative that calling AT&T customer service. |
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| reply to Shadow925
said by Shadow925:I think the 7-day time frame is arbitrary at best, but if it is a policy why would the person I talked to when ordering tell me to extend my dsl disconnect date? Because the csr has no clue. They thought they were doing you a favor by getting you to extend your disconnect date and it ended up not helping. When the Uverse order travels through the labyrinth and your line has not been released by your old provider, the system cancels the install. You will have to call again if your latest request was canceled.
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GUN CONTROL:
using both hands |
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zaphon
join:2009-07-02
Pasadena, CA | I'm in a similar boat, but instead of another providers DSL, I have a Business T1 from Covad. I still have AT&T Telephone on my primarily line, and a second line from Covad. But due to this, I am going round and round with AT&T on it. My problem is I simply can't disconnect the T1 and than wait. I work from my home, and can't afford to be down for more than few hours maximum. Seems like there has to be a way to solve this (and trust me, I've spoken with 2 people at AT&T now who said this wasn't an issue, and than the order gets to back office and gets cancelled), but so far I'm grasping at straws. I'm not giving up just yet, so I will keep people aprised as my battle goes on. |
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| reply to Shadow925
Now here is where the plot thickens. First of all I never received the callback from the supervisor that the CSR promised would happen within 24 hours. Not surprised there.
I received an automated phone call from AT&T yesterday afternoon confirming my U-verse installation date and time. Hmm they told me the order was cancelled. This must be another of those "system" irregularities that seem to occur frequently with AT&T. Based on that I ignored the call.
About 1/2 an hour later I received another automated call from AT&T telling me that there was a problem with my order and by pressing 0 I could talk to a representative. Why not. I got the rep on the line and explained the whole story to her.
After patiently listening she told me that I could keep the July 8 install date and the pre-installer would check on the 7th to make sure the dsl line is completely clear. If it is they will go ahead with the install, if not they will reschedule.
I'm going to call DSL Extreme and make sure that my line will be "completely" disconnected and see what happen on the 8th. |
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