DirecTV Just As Incompetent As Comcast
"I was one of the majority when it came to being fed up with Comcast. However, unlike most, I never had any of the customer service nightmares so often reported on consumer sites. My dissatisfaction with Comcast was purely based on what I felt was unfair pricing.
Our Comcast bill arrived in the mail on the 9th of this month and after a brief discussion, and a phone call to my father-in-law (asking him how he like his satellite service,) we decided we'd had enough. While I dialed Direct TV, my wife dialed Comcast. It would be our team effort to free ourselves from the service provider we'd loathed for so long. We were running into the arms of what we felt would be a kinder, gentler television provider."
When I first spoke with a DTV CSR I wanted to name my father-in-law as our referral. When asked for his account number, I didn't have it and I needed to call him. She (the CSR) told me that I could finish signing up first, then call back with his information at any time. She also told me that my installation could be done the next day. I was very excited.We're glad you feel better and that you now know that large providers don't differ from one another in any meaningful way. Comcast rapes your wallet, DirecTV seizes your calendar. It's all the same. Time Warner and Cablevision are just as miserly, as are the telecoms. With the singleminded determination of a lusty teen, they see you only as a piece of cash.The next day came, I took off work, no technician came. When I called DTV I was told that I was mistaken and a technician would be out in one week.
My next call to DTV was to follow up with my father-in-law's account number for the referral. I was shocked to hear that what I was trying to do would not be allowed. I was told that notes would be made in my account, but my father-in-law may not receive any compensation.
On the 17th the technician arrived. His name was Chris, and he's the best representation of Direct TV I've dealt with. He was prompt, professional, and I genuinely felt like he cared. He explained to me that because it was a windy day he wouldn't be able to do the installation until a later date. I was so moved that he came out to deliver this message to me in person that I couldn't be upset with him over this bad news. I was told to expect a call to reschedule and would most likely have TV again within the next couple days.
Today, after having not received any call to reschedule, I called to inquire. As it turns out, I have already been rescheduled without my knowledge for January 2nd. I needed the CSR to repeat the date. I simply couldn't believe it. She told me I could call my local dispatch office but there was nothing she could do.
I called the dispatch office to find that they couldn't do anything for me other than put my name on a "cancellation list". I hung up the phone in disbelief. I thought about it "25 days without service" and apparently there's nothing that anybody can do about it.
Finally, I called DTV customer service for the last time. Calmly and politely I exclaimed that I'd like to cancel my order. Then I hear nothing but silence from the other end. "are you still there?" I ask "yes, I'm still here" the CSR responds. Immediately I hear a loud tone followed by dialed numbers. I'm being re-connected elsewhere. A very chipper voice asks who she has the pleasure of speaking with, and I get to tell my story all over again. "Surely the premium service we provide will be worth the wait" she responds. I explain to her that I've had a taste of this "premium service" and I'd like no more. At this point I'll beg for my DVR back from my local Comcast office. I'll bet they'd have me hooked up in a couple of days. I go back on hold for what seems like an eternity before she returns to ask me if I'd like her to cancel my pending order. "Yes" I reply. "Will I be mailed a a confirmation of my cancellation?" "No, you're order was simply 'pending'" she says.
How true, and at that moment I realized that after spending this much time in anticipation of my new service, I never became more than just one of the thousands of "pending" contracts on Direct TV's plate.
Having finished typing my story, I'm asking myself why I felt the need to send this email in the first place. I suppose I just needed to "unload" and "get it off my chest." I feel better.
Jerry
So who deserves your business? Figure out who offers the features you want, and then haggle for the best price. To steel for a return to Comcast, pour yourself a stiff drink, read our confessions of a CSR, and prepare to tap our list of escalation numbers.
(Photo: scentzilla)
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We've been with Dish Network for approx. 10 yrs. now. We've never had any problems with them, whatsoever. We have had to replace our receiver twice in that time. We have automatic payment for it, and since we do, they send out a new receiver w/out us having to send in the old one first.
Our installation was done on time, and on the date we have scheduled. Any time I've had questions, I've always been treated courteously. I'd go for them!!
Oh and by the way, I just signed up for that 1 cent deal for cinemax. I had it w/in 5 min. of my call.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Call me a cheapskate, call me a old-fashioned kind of guy, or call me weird... But why oh why do we have to have TV? When did "25 days without service" become intolerable? 25 days without power, yes, but without cable? I'll take that $60 / month (or 70, or 80) and put it towards some other forms of entertainment... Alternatively, I could find whatever I want to watch on the internet, download to my computer, and connect that to the TV. Hard? There's a little geekiness involved, but imagine the look on your friends face...
You have options beyond the mega-corporations. Look for them and you'll be pleasantly surprised.
I've had Direct TV for oh, close to a decade now.
The service is good; I only get very rare "digitized fade" in high winds or driving rain.
My one complaint is fee creep. For 4 years it was a reasonable $29 a month. Now, with a Tivo and locals, my bill is $58 monthly.
Is it worth $1.87 give or take a day for service? No. But what are the alternatives? I like the locals, I like the fact that with Tivo I can ignore the inane commercials, and XM radio channels, though programmed through Clear Channel, are commercial free.
On the up side, if I decide to disconnect or change my scheduling, I can do it via the web site. No muss, no fuss.
It's not a need, but a want. I may clip it for 6 months to see if I really want it.
"25 days without service".
Well first rule with anything like this (TV, Phone, Internet, New Car, etc....)
DO NOT cancel what you have until the new service or item is installed. I mean if you still had Comcast for 1 more month, would it have been such a big deal to wait for DTV?
Think of it this way - is it better to be without the service, or possible pay for a few days of "overlapping" service?
- - - - -
We had DishTV at our old house but was slow in getting local channels, so we switched to DirecTV. (Guess what we did - we waited until our DirecTV was installed to cancel DishTV. I forget how long it took from first call to get installed - but I still had service so it was no big deal.)
The other thing to do would be to call Comcast and hit the "Cancel Service" prompt. They're usually given more leeway to work things out with you (and if you mention that you're switching to another service, they'll give you the biggest discounts).
When my $55/mo cable+Internet+HBO deal ran out, the bill jumped to $140. I called, played the poor student card and got it cut to $70. The only downside is that the price isn't locked in, so I'll have to call in another six months but that's ~$400 that can go to something more important than Comcast.
@chrisbacke: IAWTC. I've never had cable TV in my entire life and appear to still be breathing. I can understand being upset over lousy service, but "25 days without service" does not a crisis make.
I get Directv Latin America and they will not supply nor will they allow us to buy our own Dolby receivers. They do offer to discontinue our service if we are not happy. Directv, take it or leave it. We will not improve it!
My wife and I have constantly been paying around $60 a month for cable+8mbcable+starz+hbo/showtime (depending on the deal) for coming on 3 yrs. We have mediacom. When our deals run out (six months to a year usually), we call and let the CSR know that we can either cancel, and have the spouse call in a day for that "New customer" discount, or they can just give it to us right then and there. They always just give it to us.
We've never had a problem, a delay in service, no issues at all. I'm sorry that you did. Maybe in a few months (when they aren't experiencing high-volume holiday installations) you might consider giving them another chance. And to be on the safe side, don't dump Comcast until the DirecTV is up & running.
I can't believe I just told someone not to dump Comcast.
Once again the people that place comments on this site are far more amusing then the original posters. I love the perfect world that they live in. Never a grammatical mistake, never pay too much for any service or item. Always have the correct answer to any problem. Most always favor the big business if some original poster makes a spelling error. Well the comment section is good for one thing laughs..
Seriously, I don't understand how any of you guys can put up with their crap. I feel sorry for you that you have to put up with it in the first place. I am glad that I am a Cox Communications customer.
They have been nothing but perfect.
I've been with DirecTV for about 8 years now and the only problem I have is that you have to LEASE a HD Dvr from them.
I refuse to believe anything is more incompetent than Comcast.
Meanwhile, Cablevision just added ESPN2HD this week. Merry Christmas to me!
Like so many companies that subcontract out installation or service, there can be a big disconnect between the company and the local sub. I've been a DTV customer for 8 years, and did the "Mover's Connection" about 6 months ago. DTV customer service was happy to take my order and schedule everything, including an HDDVR and new dish install 2 days after we moved in. Always fearing for the worst, I called at 2 weeks and 1 week before the install date and everything seemed fine. On the install date, no one showed up. I called DTV, and somehow the install date the subcontractor committed to had moved out 2 weeks. After being very insistent (but not rude) with DTV and the sub, two installers showed up the next day and did everything.
I absolutely love DirecTV. The only problem I have with them, is that they use subcontractors to install for them. That means they have little to no control over them.
I say it all the time here and I'll say it again. I don't understand why anyone deals with any of these companies. Especially if you have broadband.
Between itunes, the network websites, amazon, x-box live, there are plenty of ways to get your daily dose of garbage without a cable bill.
I have never had any trouble with Oceanic Cable (owned by time warner). They have always been quick to install, and quick to respond to problems. Their reps are friendly, and hold time aren't very long (or you can get a call back if you don't want to hold). When I moved into my new apartment (about 3 months ago) I called, they gave me a great price becasue of where I work, they scheduled the install for about 9 days later then added me to "cancel" list so if any appointments were canceled I could be bumped up. Sure enough, the day after I made my appointment, I received a call and got an earlier install date (2 days from then). They gave me a 3 hour window when the tech would be there. He called shortly before the window and let me know the hour he would be there, he arrived on time, finished quickly and was very polite. He even left me some extra CAT5 so I could hook up my router in addition to my desk. wonderful service from them.
I have also had the same service on the business side of time warner. We have 25 T1 lines through them at various locations and have always received wonderful service.
Hahaha! As incompetent as Comcast? Not even close.
I've been with Dish for a few months now and my stress level is way down. No more outages, no more lame excuses from rude incompetent employees. The one problem I did have was solved quickly and courteously. I wouldn't go back to Comcast if they offered me the service free for 6 months. In fact, they don't have enough money to get me to go back.
@chrisbacke: unfortunately, after ww2 there was so much prosperity that people all over this country bought crap like televisions. i think there are now something like 285 million televisions that are used in the U.S. it really creeps me out that an unneccessary item such as tv has become an absolute necessary form of entertainment. now, everyone wants cable. i don't know anyone who doesn't have cable except me....i'd much rather watch my shows online with the fee i pay for internet.
i used to have dishnetwork...but when i moved i decided there is much better stuff in life than being treated like crap, not being able to choose which channels i like, and being overcharged. i have since found significantly more meaningful forms of entertainment.
As per my previous comment on "Confessions of a Wii, PS3, iPhone Reseller":
"Dear America,
Stop staring at computer/tv screens on your off time. Read a book."
Indeed. Having moved midway across the country 6 months ago, I had to switch cable companies to the local carrier, Cox Communications. I must say, I've actually been quite impressed with them. Customer service has been great, no service outages, and their cable broadband is twice as fast as my old carrier for the same price. 1MB/sec downloads for $40/month? Yes, please!
Wow... I've had Comcast for close to 2 years now and have never had a problem, and service outages and problems are extremely rare. I must be lucky or something but it's true... probably varies widely on a regional basis.
Get a wrench and get on the roof- problem solved! Seriously though, call Dish- if DirecTV isn't doing it for you... don't go groveling back to Comcast!
Anyway... I've been with Dish for 7 years or so and have always found them to be pretty reasonable to deal with. I can't afford to pay Comcast's exorbitant rates- I still give Dish more money than I'd like (over $600/yr) but I like my HD come college football season. :(
@chrisbacke: What is unimportant to you may not be unimportant to everyone. Yes, to many people TV is more vital than it is to many of us here. There's nothing wrong with that, only something wrong with being judgmental about it.
@ivanthepig: I watch a lot of geeky shows. But, before you start crowing about how much I suck for that, I just brought home another five library books. I'm a heavy library user; I pay the same amount in taxes every year no matter how much I use it, so I use it a lot. You can't tie an admission of watching a lot of TV to not ever cracking a book or having other hobbies.
Granted, a lot of what I watch is documentaries, but there's nothing wrong with that either.
@lorddave: I don't know, I'd think that between paying for broadband, X-Box Live and then whatever Amazon and Itunes cost, you'd end up paying more a month than if you had a cable company.
Nevermind that for a lot of us that broadband provider is of course, Comcast, which can have the same number of, if not more, issues as cable.
When did this thread go from "DirecTV just as icompetent as Comcast" to "All you slack-jawed yokel who watch TV are unenlightened". Nobody cares if you got rid of your tv and now pen dramas in Ye Olde English using your homemade quill pen, crushed burned acorn ink, and redwood papyrus.
Reality called, nobody cares.
The best consistency I have ever experienced is with Comcast. By luck or competence the appointments were kept, the lines repaired, the services provided, and bills refunded when service was interrupted.
Satellites - Direct TV and Dish - did not have the service level as the cables - but they were sure eager - promising installation dates that were not met, etc. The service would get static in storms or strong winds and you would experience some system crashes when using the menu - communication issues, sunspots? But not a terrible experience - I reserve that to our Telcos...
Telcos...anyone remember all the sales calls during dinner? Telcos are a major reason for the DNC lists. The confusing calling plans - being charged several dollars for a call if you did not call at the right time of the day, weekend, or calling a local number that somehow is defined as long distance? Being charged parts and labor for line repairs because you did not buy Verizon's line insurance plan? Odious FIOS! Telcos are the worst and have a long way to go to win back any market share - that is why I believe cable has the advantage with triple play and is winning phone customers to losing cable subscribers 20 to 1! People are not stupid - Telcos are stupid.
As a longtime DirecTV subscriber (coming up on eleven years), I believe the secret to getting good service from them is NEVER SCHEDULE AN INSTALL. Granted, I'm a renter, and granted, I only need TV in one room, but I have moved four times and every time I've "installed" the dish and wiring myself, with no hassles whatsoever. Right now the dish is bolted to my deck railing and the cable goes through my living room window straight to the DVR. Who needs an installer when there's no mysterious box, no underground cables, no activation. It's just a dish and your TV.
@DallasDMD: Pointing out that someone else is being judgmental is not in itself judgmental. It's just the truth.
Here's something to look forward to: DirecTV has already charged your credit card for your DVR and won't refund the money.
Call your credit card company now and file the dispute. Tell them you never received anything and ask that DirecTV provides proof of delivery.
It was $400 for me for the HV-DVR and it took Mastercard about 2 weeks to issue a chargeback.
BTW I'm less than thrilled with Dish but the service always works... something Time Warner can't compete with.
Dish Network is always available...
After suffering through the standard "hour and a half callbacks" from Time Warner Cable, I did some research on other options (via many many reviews on the 'net), and what I deduced was an overwhelming amount of happiness with DirecTV. There seemed to be an overwhelming amount of UNhappiness with Dish (and I notice that a lot of people confuse the two, as "Dish" seems to have become the generic term people use for satellite providers.
I decided on DirecTV and I have to say, my experience was so good it was almost surreal. I got immediate answers on the phone AND email from really professional, MATURE people...such a huge difference from the apathy at Time Warner! I got a really great deal that included all movie channels and a FREE (unleased) DVR.
Sorry your experience was bad, we just love them. I know they have to contract with dish installers, so that service probably varies by location, but contacting them directly has been a great relief for us formerly tied to TWC.
except for fee creep, which all the companies are guilty of, i have had no problems with time warner cable ever. just sayin.
Do you live in an apartment? No? So why are you bothering waiting for DTV to hook you up? It ain't rocket science to put up a dish.
I've had DTV for 11 years (yes, I did a self-install), and my only complaint is my market is too small to get the locals, and since I use the digital OTA signal, I can't TiVo or tape anything on my locals. That sucks, but it's worth it to not deal with Comcast.
@BaysideWrestling: I agree. It is not at all difficult to install DTV by yourself. Go to a store that carries the equipment, and I'd be willing to bet there is some special for free equipment with new service. Go home and install the stuff (I've even installed it in an apartment before, but I had a southern-facing balcony), and you'll be up and running in an hour.
I have been with DirecTV since April. My only problem with them is NOT a small one. Whenever it rains moderately or the wind blows hard I lose the signal, sometimes for hours. I thought of going to Comcast but I hear so many bad things on this site about it. Perhaps Dish is better?
@coren: But unlike cable, broadband serves a much stronger purpose than simply delivering television.
@savdavid: I've been with Dish for a while now, through rain, snow, wind, etc. and have not lost the signal once. It's great! Beat the heck out of Comcast.
I was a very satisfied DirecTV user until I bought an HD TV set and was told that I'd have to shell out over $400 for HD programming - not to mention the monthly access fee. This was BEFORE they even offered an HD DVR. It seems I was going to need a new type of dish, the installation, and the purchase of the HD receiver. This was about 2 yrs. ago. I went to Comcast (which was offering a "Dish Buyback" promotion and gave me $300 for ditching the dish.
I've flirted with going back to DirecTV many times - the most recent of which was aobut 2 months ago. They still require that I shell out $300 or $400 for the HD DVR. They actually promoted that as a advantage over staying with and leasing the HD DVR from Comcast. They told me with DirecTV, I OWN the HD DVR versus paying monthly lease fees. I told them that I do NOT see that as an advantage (own vs. lease) since by leasing, I have, in effect, a lifetime warranty on my HD DVR because if it fails, I merely go to my local Comcast site and immediately pick up a new one. When I asked the DirecTV rep what happens if the HD DVR I buy fails during the warranty period (1 yr.), they replied I'd have to send it back for repair or replacement (this would consume a great deal of time). Outside the 1 yr. warranty - I would have to shell out another $300 or $400 for a replacement. Consider the payback for a $300 or $400 cash outlay with DirecTV. Compare it to the relatively modest monthly lease through Comcast. It does not take a financial analyst to figure out that monthly leasing (for a lifetime warranty with immediate resolution if you encounter a problem) is the wiser choice. I told them "Thanks, but no thanks+ I'll stick with the lifetime warranty under Comcast.
When or if DirecTV ever leases or gives away the HD DVRs I would consider going back to them. until then.....it's Comcast for me. I haven't had any real problems with them......yet.
Has anyone had any luck getting a free HD DVR - or obtaining a leasing arrangement comparable in price to cable for the HD DVR? If so, please let me know. I would likely go for it - that's how please I was with DirecTV.
BTW - their DirecTV/s rationale for charging customers $300 to $400 for the HD DVR was that in reality, they cost a lot more than that - they are being "good guys" and subsidizing some of the cost.
This frightened me even more because it led me to believe that if the one I bought died outside the 1 yr. warranty period I would be shelling out significantly more than the original $300 - 400.
How the hell much do those things cost anyway? How reliable are they?
"I thought about it "25 days without service" and apparently there's nothing that anybody can do about it."
Then why on earth did you cancel Comcast first before getting DirecTV installed to your liking? Sounds like an impulsive, stupid thing to do.