| Lies and Deceit regularly practiced... I received the same letter everyone else did and I was upset at first. Now I'm furious.
About 2.5-3 years ago, I signed up for AT&T Broadband for $49.95/month. It took 3 weeks to get someone to install it, but when I got connected I was getting well over 3000kbps downloads and 768kbps uploads. EXCELLENT! At one point - SuperBowl Sunday, 2002 to be exact - someone in my apartment complex STOLE my cable line! This person had broken the cable node open (in the garage) and removed all the ID tags from the lines running to different apartments.
I called AT&T and told them that my cable was out, they tested my line and said I was still connected yet I still had no signal. I asked him if it was possible that someone had stolen my line, he said it was impossible. After 2 weeks and 3 AT&T technicians, AT&T dispatched an outside contractor from New Age Cable to hook it up. I followed him into the garage and within 10 minutes he was able to reconnect my line. He said it was obvious someone had tampered with the node (the lock was broken and lines were cut).
I reported the whole incident to AT&T and spoke with a representative who thanked me for reporting the incident and said that I would receive 1 month of free service in addition to the 2 week out-of-service credit. I wrote down his name and the name of his supervisor, but failed to get their "Customer Service ID Numbers". When the bill came, there were no credits on my account. I called and they said it would probably be on my next bill. (Probably?) The next month comes, I still have no credit, I call CS and ask them what hell is going on and she asks me who I talked to. I quickly tell them and then she asks, "Do you have their CS ID numbers?" "They never gave it to me, I didn't know I had to ask!" She says, "Without the CS ID number, there is nothing we can do for you." *CLICK*
I searched out other ISPs and found a few decent ones, but the max DL speed I could get was 1500kbps, so I went back to AT&T in the fall. All was going well until I tested my new line, only to receive about 1600kbps download and 300kbps upload. WTF? I called and found out that the original speed they offered 6 months prior was now $85/month. Oh well, what can I do?
Today I called AT&T to complain and get an explanation of the new rates. The first gentleman I talked to had nothing to offer me, so he transfered me to the Cable TV section. The woman there (Marcella) listened to complaint and then put me hold only to come back with the following response:
"I just spoke with another employee and because you are only an AT&T Broadband Internet customer and have no other services through us, you can disregard the letter. Just throw it away, your rates will not change."
Not believing her I asked for her ID number, she said that she didn't have one and that no one in the Cable TV department has one. Hmm... I asked her to transfer me to the Cable Internet department department to verify the story.
Upon being transferred to Melinda in Cable Internet, I told her the story Marcella had fed me and she said that my rates WOULD change. I asked to speak with her supervisor (Andrea - RJ9) and she said there was nothing she could do for me except give me the address for complaints and log my situation into the computer (so future customer service people can give me the run-around?). I asked her to transfer me back to the Cable TV supervisor and she said she couldn't, she could only transfer me to the department.
Fine.
I ask to speak with the supervisor as soon as I connect and she asks for my name and phone number, I refuse and tell her to connect me immediately (but politely). She then informs me that there will be a wait and I insist that I will hold. She takes me off hold after a few minutes and says her supervisor is still on the phone. I ask if it would be OK for the supervisor to contact me. She says yes and as soon as she is about to get my information, I am mysteriously disconnected.
That leads me to where I am now, typing this message. It would seem that AT&T (now Comcast) follows the best business model - plausible ignorance. By not allowing the people who take calls to provide any resources or TRUE customer service, they can drag out the situation to the point where (I'm sure they have a statistic) people just cave in and accept their losses.
Microsoft isn't our problem, Comcast/AT&T/MediaOne is our problem. I wonder why RoadRunner Service can't cross the Mississippi River? Hmm... |
