Charter Spectrum customers spent much of 2017 angry at the company's bungled acquisition of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. While Charter insisted the deal would bring "incredible synergies" to consumers, what consumers got instead was significantly higher prices and even worse customer service than the abysmal customer service the company was already known for. Charter was also fined by New York State for failing to meet conditions attached to the deal.
As per the company's agreement with New York, Charter promised to reduce customer complaint rates by 35 percent by 2020, something it says it's on track to accomplish.
"As the commission is aware, change can trigger complaints as customers adjust to new service options, promotions and packages," Charter wrote to the state Public Service Commission in a January 29 letter. "Notwithstanding these challenges of integration and product advancement, Charter is pleased to report, as noted above, that complaints have actually declined in 2017 and Charter is making significant progress towards meeting the complaint rate targets established in the merger order."
Many acquired customers say they saw price hikes upwards of 40% in the wake of the merger. Others complain that Charter doesn't even try to offer promotional discounts when they threatened to cancel. Consumer feathers were ruffled further when Charter CEO Tom Rutledge, the country's highest paid executive in 2016, said the company was simply moving "mispriced" customers in the "right direction."
But Charter tells the PSC those concerns are all in the rear view mirror now.
"Notwithstanding these ongoing changes, Charter expects that the processes it has established to enhance how it handles complaints will continue to drive down its PSC complaint numbers," the company wrote. "In order to ensure that we build on this favorable trend, Charter will actively monitor and assess the number and type of complaints it receives from the PSC to ensure appropriate actions are taken to reduce the overall number of complaints that are received by and escalated to your agency."
Charter customers: lets us know if you think things have actually improved in the comment section below.