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Comcast Wrongly Bills User $1,775, Says It's Their Problem

Another week, another story where Comcast does something wrong, then only seriously moves to fix it once contacted by the news media. The Consumerist tells the tale of a business-class Comcast customer that found themselves incorrectly charged an early termination fee (ETF) of $1,775 well after their contract period was over. Comcast admitted to the user that the money was withdrawn in error, yet the company's promise to mail out a check to the user never materialized.

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The overcharge in question was in 2014. By 2016, despite numerous promises and phone calls, Comcast still hadn't provided a refund.

Recently, the user finally received an e-mail from someone in Comcast's "Executive Customer Relations" department. But instead of making things right, the employee informed the user that it wasn't really Comcast's problem and that the user needed to address the issue with their bank:
quote:
“I understand you’re claiming that someone advised you Comcast would send a refund check for the last payment that was debited but this is generally not the way we handle these situations,” continues the condescending email. “We generally only issue a refund check for a disconnected account with a credit balance leftover. For your situation, you would have to dispute the payment with your bank.”
Once contacted by the Consumerist, someone at Comcast promised that the check was in the mail. Maybe. While the nation's biggest cable company has made some minor strides in customer service over the last few months, there's pretty clearly still a lot of work left to be done.

Most recommended from 35 comments


afn06011
join:2012-10-15
Florida

43 recommendations

afn06011

Member

Lessons learned

Lesson number ONE: Never let someone have access to your bank account. The bill gets payed only when you are satisfied with its accuracy.

DaveDude
No Fear
join:1999-09-01
New Jersey

18 recommendations

DaveDude

Member

Comcast , we are worse then Bell

Comcast , is just a bully. We need real competition for internet. Like one Public, and one private.
moonpuppy (banned)
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD

8 recommendations

moonpuppy (banned)

Member

I am waiting for the Comcast employees.....

......and the excuses about how this happens very rarely.

Face it, Comcast is a crappy company that wouldn't survive if they had to compete in every market.
wiggum
join:2003-05-05
Seattle, WA

3 recommendations

wiggum

Member

I had a similar problem.

It was like pulling teeth to get my refund when I disconnected service. Every time I called in, i was always told to wait two to three weeks for a cheque. This went for about 8 months, and would have likely continued if I hadn't got the BBB involved.

Seems to be a common practice for them.

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

3 recommendations

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

Sometimes you have to take auto pay

There are a few bills that require auto pay like my auto and renter's insurance (or they'll charge higher per installment fees) and DIRECTV gives me a discount for auto pay but I always pay my Comcast and Verizon Wireless bills manually. Vonage also requires auto debit. Some bills though still use the good old fashioned check like my landlord and security company. I hate getting checks out in the mail (but I'll gladly take a check any day as long as it's legit and not one of those phony checks you hear about on the evening news) and I hate waiting for them to clear because it throws my bookkeeping off.

It seems more and more companies are requiring auto pay as a condition of service or they're giving a discount for doing so.