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cchhat01
Dr. Zoidberg
join:2001-05-01
Elmhurst, NY

1 recommendation

cchhat01

Member

WTF!!! Verizon cut me off!!!

I signed up for Fios triple play on Dec 3rd 2012.
At exactly midnight jan 3rd 2012 my internet died.
I thought my router got busted becauze i release and renewed my ip address and i was able to see it change but internet was borked... Couldnt connect to any sites.
Then i checked my tv and phone. both worked.
I called fios techsupoort.
They go through the run of the mill troublshooting. And then the finally tell me that there was a cancellation order generated ON JAN3 2013 FOR A TARGET DISCONNECTION ON JAN3 2013...
I said "i beg your pardon" and he asked me if i had wanted to cancel my service... I said absolutely not... I have never mentioned such a thing on my phone calls... If i wanted to cancel service i wouldnt have gone the extra mile of drilling a hole through my wall to run an ethernet cable between the ONT and my own router and coverted data from COAX to ETHERNET.

THE tech support guy was baffled himself.
After about two hours he suggested i reach verizon sales/billing in the morning at 8 am to resolve this issue. He was kind enough to mention that i shud ask for credit for my aggravation and patience during this process...
I appreciated this.

Now its about 640 am and i lost phone and tv as well...
I am so pissed. Now I understand why people hate verizon billing. This will open the floodgates into a billing nightmare.

Any advice for my 8 am call to verizon billing and sales to get this crap cancellation order overturned. Seems the work is already done.
I am just afraid of how this affects the deals such as $300 giftcard that verizon promised after 3 months of service and all my djscounts...?

This is utter ridiculousness.

Im fuming...
C
cchhat01

cchhat01

Member

What shud i do?
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McBane
join:2008-08-22
Wylie, TX

1 recommendation

McBane

Member

Re: WTF!!! Verizon cut me off!!!

Another random cancellation. These seem to be cropping up more and more recently... Terrible Verizon customer service when they can't even cancel the right accounts...
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danclan
join:2005-11-01
Midlothian, VA

1 recommendation

danclan

Member

Re: WTF!!! Verizon cut me off!!!

Remain calm.

Contact Verizon, a competent CSR should have been able to reactivate your account and have you up in mere minutes since its a software activation at this point.

Remain calm.

Accidents happen, Verizon isn't out to screw with everyone or really anyone, the good folks that work there have better things to do than to generate work during the short holiday weeks.

Remain calm.

Call them again and be patient. The should re-activate and credit you and get the name of the CSR manager. They will usually give a direct number for you to call (The manager) to further work out any lingering billing issues.

Remain calm being reasonable and even humorous with the CSR will usually result in better, faster service.
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Capt_video
join:2001-12-28
Grapevine, TX

Capt_video to cchhat01

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to cchhat01

Re: WTF!!! Verizon cut me off!!!

This happened to me last March and it took almost 4 months to get everything right. They could not just resurrect my account, they had to give me a new account and I lost all my incentives and discounts. I finally got all of them back but it was a frustrating process. I wish you luck.
McBane
join:2008-08-22
Wylie, TX

2 edits

McBane to danclan

Member

to danclan
Just don't take it out on the people trying to help you. I know another idiot CSR did the damage, but keep in mind it's probably not the one your talking to. Even if it was, if they're trying to help, just get them on your side so they can see your frustration and they will usually be that much more motivated to help you. Dont turn them against you by being out of control and taking it out on them. Take it out on the situation and let them know how ridiculous and absurd it is. I usually use a lot of funny sarcasm at the situation and it usually guilts the CSRs into giving you credit or perks or whatnot for the trouble.

I've been that guy on the other side of the phone. I did tech support when I was in high school and early college so I know how the game is played, granted Verizon CSRs are still some of the worst I've seen. Verizon as a company seems to be cutting corners every way they can and they sure don't put a priority on customer service because they know their network draws and keeps people here to FiOS.

I will greatly rejoice when FiOS finally has some fiber competition and that will force them to concentrate on customer service, but that will probably sadly be decades from now.
billhere
join:2011-10-21
Santa Monica, CA

billhere to danclan

Member

to danclan
Good advice!

Never argue with a policeman who is about to give you a ticket. And a bit of humor will go a long way with a CSR, who probably isn't at all used to that approach.
Sparky19053
join:2011-10-03
Feasterville Trevose, PA

Sparky19053 to cchhat01

Member

to cchhat01
Well, did you get you service back yet?
Being a long time VZ customer if they cut me off I think in the long run it would be easier to go sign up with Comcrap for thirty days while VZ sorts things out then watch for the best discounts/deal and sign back up when I felt the best deal was on the table again.
The comments about go at it easy are good suggestions.
You catch more fly’s with sugar than vinegar.
VirtualLarry
Premium Member
join:2003-08-01

VirtualLarry to cchhat01

Premium Member

to cchhat01
I am assuming that OP paid his bill?

nycdave
MVM
join:1999-11-16
Melville, NY

nycdave

MVM

I was going to ask the same question....

Funny how the OP has been quiet.

birdfeedr
MVM
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI

birdfeedr to cchhat01

MVM

to cchhat01
said by cchhat01:

I signed up for Fios triple play on Dec 3rd 2012.
At exactly midnight jan 3rd 2012 my internet died.

Assuming you meant Jan. 3rd 2013.
December 3rd to January 3rd, new order, OP previously had cable.

Didn't there used to be a requirement to verify the order to make it stick? Is it possible the installation proceeded without confirmation? Is there a new confirmation process post-installation?

30 days, an automatic cancellation? Hmmm.
kes601
join:2007-04-14
Virginia Beach, VA

kes601

Member

And if it was exactly 30 days then no bill would have been due yet.

cchhat01
Dr. Zoidberg
join:2001-05-01
Elmhurst, NY

cchhat01

Member

I called back and was calm for the majority of my conversation.
I was extremely reasonable.
What happened was that my brother and I called verizonb a little after midnight to find out why the services went out. We both spoke to different reps. When i got hold of one gentleman named Mar in the dallas texas help center my brother ended his conversation with whomever he was speaking to... He told me that a cancellation order went in effect at midnight... And i needed to reach verizon in the morning... So i did... But just before that i came here and posted my situation...

So when i called verizon back i explained the entire situation... I wanted to know what happened... The rep named Ms. Brown said something similar.. That the order for cancellation went thru at midnight and she tried to find out why...

Then it just got ugly. She kept me on hold trying to reach fios tech... I have no problem waiting... Just what happened after waiting that really pissed me off.... After the wait... She had me talking three way with fios tech... I explained the situation to her as well... And then Ms Brown from billing/sales interrupts this conversation claiming that there was a call at 12:39 am on january 3 2013 where a rep named brazel "executed a pending cancellation at the customers request WITHOUT their consent"

I was thinking... At midnight we were trying figure out WHY the services went DOWN.. Not to cancel our services... She simply wouldn't budge and said that this was a request from the customer... This really pissed me off... I blew off steam trying to get her to understand that if our services went down Exactly at midnight... how the fcuk does it makes sense that i wanted to cancel my service at 1239....

I just couldnt reason with her... So i hung up called back a few minutes later... Spoke to Jodie in sales and billing... She was more than exceptional in seeing my problem seeing that i had just went through an ordeal and the previous rep poked the finger at me for the cancellation.. She finally came to the conclusion that this was probably a fat finger user error... that a cancellation took place on my account by mistake and apologized for my time wasted....

I simply said ive had enough... This was the height of a problem... I can deal with billing disputes etc... But not with outright cancellations in which i lost all my perks and discounts... I have patience but simply not thins kind....

Bye fios... For now...

birdfeedr
MVM
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI

birdfeedr

MVM

said by cchhat01:

Bye fios... For now...

Curious as to when the installation was complete and services activated. I think there's a 30-day cancellation period without penalty. You said you signed up for triple play on 12/3. Is that when services went live?

TweakerInWA
Optimus
Premium Member
join:2001-12-11
Syracuse, NY

TweakerInWA to cchhat01

Premium Member

to cchhat01
"She finally came to the conclusion that this was probably a fat finger user error... that a cancellation took place on my account by mistake and apologized for my time wasted...."

So at this point, the point when they say "okay, we've made the mistake". This is the point when you say "F*** It"?... Seems you went through a lot to get to this point, why would you all of a sudden stop here? No way they toss out your agreement (contract) made 30 days prior, provider and customer came to an agreement "BOTH SIDES". It should either be in writing, or a recorded one. They would be breaking that agreement based on an error made on their side a few weeks later.... Something isn't adding up....Probably a tad more to the story...
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tired_runner
Premium Member
join:2000-08-25
CT
·Frontier FiberOp..

1 edit

tired_runner to cchhat01

Premium Member

to cchhat01

Re: WTF!!! Verizon cut me off!!!

Sounds like the accidental service cancellation removed all possible promotional deals attached to the account. You would have had to start over as a new customer.

I wouldn't want to restore service at full price either, especially after a billing screw-up.

birdfeedr
MVM
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI

birdfeedr to TweakerInWA

MVM

to TweakerInWA
Speaking in general, not specific to the OP: Folks who abuse CSRs generally lighten up the story in the re-telling.

"Now its about 640 am and i lost phone and tv as well... I am so pissed."

"This really pissed me off... I blew off steam trying to get her to understand"

There's account notes associated throughout the system. Done right, a CSR tomorrow will know you've been calling the last three days hoping to get someone who would write the discount you've been trying to get on a renewal. Maybe that factors in to just how deep a discount they will go.

There's no way of knowing just what the account notes show.

I don't have the temperament to be a CSR. On a bad day, there's bound to be a string of irate subscribers with no relief. At some point I would snap and "fat finger" a cancellation order. I could always claim "oops I must have hit the wrong key", and if they said that's one too many hit the road, I'd put it all on the customers, not myself. I'm glad I'm not a CSR. I wouldn't work out well as a Walmart greeter either, but that would probably be more fun.

My father told me it takes two to tango. Maybe that's why I never learned how to dance.

cchhat01
Dr. Zoidberg
join:2001-05-01
Elmhurst, NY

cchhat01 to TweakerInWA

Member

to TweakerInWA
said by TweakerInWA:

"She finally came to the conclusion that this was probably a fat finger user error... that a cancellation took place on my account by mistake and apologized for my time wasted...."

So at this point, the point when they say "okay, we've made the mistake". This is the point when you say "F*** It"?... Seems you went through a lot to get to this point, why would you all of a sudden stop here? No way they toss out your agreement (contract) made 30 days prior, provider and customer came to an agreement "BOTH SIDES". It should either be in writing, or a recorded one. They would be breaking that agreement based on an error made on their side a few weeks later.... Something isn't adding up....Probably a tad more to the story...

I wish there were more... co-incidentally, the service ended exactly on the last day of my money back guarantee period and this made me think "do i really want to deal with issues like this?" Why subject me to rigorous troubleshooting and then telling me that my service ended because "I wanted to end it" when in reality some dipshit screwed up my existing service.

I actually went the trouble to drilling a hole in my room, re-wired their external wiring so that I can run ethernet from the ONT to my own router. I did this so that I can get better ping times that the 15ms latency i was getting before (it came down to 4.5ms~6.5ms on DSLR tweak test tool from the inital 12ms to 15ms). So I did all this hard work and thought Verizon is getting a bad rep for nothing. This was my opinion. It changed drastically when they pointed a finger at me saying "I wanted to cancel it". Seriously? The accusatory tone that is used at a customer really re-defined the low levels of customer service I've seen.

I don't want to pay money to be treated like crap. No matter if the rep I'm talking to may or may not be responsible for this mistake. Point is, in certain dire situations at least don't make the mistake of pointing the blame at the customer for the cancellation when all the person wanted to do was understand what went wrong with their service and wanting them restored...

If you're looking for more juice, then sorry to burst your bubble. Apart from all this, the only times we call Verizon customer care was to inquire about the move from COAX to Ethernet AND to discuss possibly moving my land line number from T-Mobile without any added fees.

I have to say that I loved the speed and the pings (after my conversion to ethernet). I'm sure at some point of time, I will want to use fios because of the nature that it is the fastest darn thing out here in my area. But all this just left a bitter taste. By the time I spoke with Jodie (my 2nd call that morning), my relationship with Verizon was done. I just needed her to come to the conclusion that it was "their" (read: Verizon's) mistake.

C
cchhat01

cchhat01 to Capt_video

Member

to Capt_video
said by Capt_video:

This happened to me last March and it took almost 4 months to get everything right. They could not just resurrect my account, they had to give me a new account and I lost all my incentives and discounts. I finally got all of them back but it was a frustrating process. I wish you luck.

Yes at my last call, they said we would give you a new number and everything. Just imagine: If I had ported over my home number, what a nightmare that would have been.

I am going back to RCN. Their reps have never spoke to me in spite. They can have my business back anyday.

C
batsona
Maryland
join:2004-04-17
Ellicott City, MD

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to cchhat01
A comedy of errors on Verizon's part. Ineptitude. Each rep tries & fails to deliver a happy customer. The ordering/billing system apparently runs the humans, not the other way around like it should be.

Its times like this that it seems Verizon's not capable of running/administering anything more complex than a bunch of phone switches, and a trillion cable-miles of copper. The old dog has failed to learn the new tricks.
McBane
join:2008-08-22
Wylie, TX

McBane

Member

If they just hired a little more quality techs and paid them a little better for quality CSR retention I'm sure customer service would improve greatly. Right now they probably just literally bring in people off the street, put them in a week of training, and turn them loose on the phones.

The problem is a public company like Verizon only cares about profit and management owned by stock holders want to pay bottom dollar for customer service or it will eat their profit margin.

What they fail to realize is investing in customer care is also an investment in retaining customers, which Verizon admits is it's biggest problem and how they can't meet current penetration goals in existing markets.

Stock holders and their drone management only care about the quick buck dividends, not long term company solutions.

Cheese
Premium Member
join:2003-10-26
Naples, FL

Cheese to cchhat01

Premium Member

to cchhat01
You are saying you went to verizon to get better than 15ms ping times?
McBane
join:2008-08-22
Wylie, TX

McBane

Member

1ms to my gateway, gotta luv it.
McBane

McBane to Cheese

Member

to Cheese
stupid double lag post