Reader Aaron directs us to his recent delightful experience with Comcast’s internet service. The tale begins when he finds the cable that is supposed to be supplying Comcast to his thirsty computer… draped across his driveway. This event causes one of those Kafkaesque situations where the tech guy calls to make sure you are home, even though the CSR said you didn’t need to be home, and then the tech doesn’t show up because he says you said you weren’t home, but you clearly were home, even though you didn’t need to be home…

Aaron says:

The cable is clearly coaxial (used almost exclusively by cable providers), is still attached to one of the telephone poles and clearly fell out of the junction box/router/amplifier/whatever it is across the street on another pole. So I get back inside, try to check my email and of course I have no internet.

To me this seems like a clear case of failed Comcast infrastructure. I call them up and ask them to come out and fix it. The rather nice service rep assures me that someone will be out between 2-5PM. I can live with that. It takes to time get people to places and really, it’s 12:30 right now so not too long of a wait. The rep also assures me that I don’t have to be home, though it would be helpful so they can make sure service is restored. Around 2PM Comcast calls me to make sure I am at home and I say yup, come on over. Not sure why they needed to call if I did not need to be home, but whatever, I was home.

5PM comes and goes with no repair person showing up.

I call again. Kind of angry this time. The rep tells me no one answered the phone when dispatch called to confirm the appointment. Uh, wait. Yes I did. The service rep apologizes. I am sure that was a scripted apology just like everything else these service reps are trained say. He schedules another appointment for me for some nebulous time between 5PM and 8PM even though I informed him I had a dinner meeting at 6PM and would probably not be back home till after 8PM. He insists. I acquiesce.

I now have an appointment scheduled that requires me to be home, the rep said I had to be there this time. Except I assured him I would not be home. Logic does not exist in Comcast’s world. The dispatch person calls my home phone at some point during the evening to confirm I am home. I am not. No tech is ever dispatched.

I arrive home from dinner at 10PM, find the cable nicely wrapped around one of the poles, but still clearly not reattached. I think a neighbor decided it was unsightly to have it draped across my driveway. Thanks neighbor. Just to make sure, I check my internet connection. Still dead.

I call again. Why? Because it would really be nice to be able to work tomorrow.

Aaron doesn’t think the whole Xfinity rebranding thing is going to work if this is what its like to deal with the company.

My main beef is why do I have to be home to fix a problem outside my home that exists between two utility poles? Connect up the cable, make sure a signal is running through the line and call it a day. If I am still having troubles I will call back, I assure you. Yes, I realize it is cheaper, in the short term, to make sure my service is working in my home while you are nearby. But really, I think the long term damage to their brand is worse. I am willing to bet I am right and the reason they changed their brand was precisely because they ruined it with experiences like this for their customers.

The Comcast customer service fire brigade is already posting comments to Aaron’s blog, so we’re assuming they’re going to take care of him.

A day in the life of a comcast err…. Xfinity customer [Exebot]

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