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One of the talking points of the American Right is that Private Companies are run well and Government Agencies are run badly. I've worked my entire life in the Private Sector, selling, for the most part, to large companies... so I already tend to view this statement with a degree of suspicion. And then we have today and my deals with DirecTV.
About a month ago DirecTV screwed up, they screwed up sufficiently that I decided to cancel my account and go with the evil that is Comcast. Cancelling was pretty damn hard as they just didn't want to lose me. However, in the end we agreed to cancel. All is good. Except I had a broken DVR in the house. They'd already shipped a working one but it wasn't due to arrive until the following week, but as part of the cancellation process they had to send me another Return Box.
Some weeks pass. I return the new DVR and wait for the box. I get a letter saying that they are sending me a return kit. Nothing appears. Then last week I notice they've debited $179 from our checking account. Eh? Thinks I. I call and have a fairly poor set of conversations which go around in circles while I try and explain that there were 2 DVRs in the mix and I needed another return box. They eventually agree and send out a new box and a 'supervisor' says they will refund my money in 3-5 Business Days.
I am looking at my bank account today and notice that the refund has not returned. I call DirecTV again.
First time I get put on hold while my account is looked at. Then I get disconnected. I call back, and they have to put me through to 'billing', where I am disconnected. Third time I get through to somebody and the conversation doesn't, shall we say, go well. Firstly, there is no record of my previous conversation and further more, it takes them 10 working days to process a refund. I ask for a supervisor on account of the person I am speaking isn't paid enough to deal with how angry I am at this stage.
Supervisor comes on, and then, well... then it gets really weird. We go through the sequence of events again and she gets rather testy explaining that this is all my fault for not returning the DVR...
DirecTV: You didn't return the box sir.
Me: I didn't have a, what do you call them? Return kit?
DTV: Yes you did sir, I'm seeing from our system that we sent you one.
Me: (Frowning) I didn't get it, do you have a date for when you shipped it?
DTV: Yes sir, we sent it on 12/5
Me: Er... yes, that's when I phoned you up last week and explained this last time
DTV: Yes sir.
Me: But that was after you'd charged me for not returning the DVR...
DTV: But we did send you a Return Kit.
Me: Yes... (slowly) but you sent it a week after you charged me for not returning the DVR in it.
DTV: Those are the facts sir.
Me: Could you explain how I could have sent the DVR back in time
DTV: In the return kit sir.
Me: That you didn't send to me until last week?
DTV: Yes sir
Me: Ok.....
So the facts are they charged me $200 for not returning something in November in a box they sent me in December. Er.... REALLY? I seem to have mislaid my TARDIS.
So, here we are. They owe me, in fact, $258, they didn't do what they said last week, and it will take another 10 business days from today before I can get my money back. At which stage they'll have had $179 of my money for over a month.
I've spent over 2 hours on the phone dealing with this, I've spoken to at least 6 people, and 3 of them have tried to sell me DirecTV again. Honestly, you cannot make this shit up.
About a month ago DirecTV screwed up, they screwed up sufficiently that I decided to cancel my account and go with the evil that is Comcast. Cancelling was pretty damn hard as they just didn't want to lose me. However, in the end we agreed to cancel. All is good. Except I had a broken DVR in the house. They'd already shipped a working one but it wasn't due to arrive until the following week, but as part of the cancellation process they had to send me another Return Box.
Some weeks pass. I return the new DVR and wait for the box. I get a letter saying that they are sending me a return kit. Nothing appears. Then last week I notice they've debited $179 from our checking account. Eh? Thinks I. I call and have a fairly poor set of conversations which go around in circles while I try and explain that there were 2 DVRs in the mix and I needed another return box. They eventually agree and send out a new box and a 'supervisor' says they will refund my money in 3-5 Business Days.
I am looking at my bank account today and notice that the refund has not returned. I call DirecTV again.
First time I get put on hold while my account is looked at. Then I get disconnected. I call back, and they have to put me through to 'billing', where I am disconnected. Third time I get through to somebody and the conversation doesn't, shall we say, go well. Firstly, there is no record of my previous conversation and further more, it takes them 10 working days to process a refund. I ask for a supervisor on account of the person I am speaking isn't paid enough to deal with how angry I am at this stage.
Supervisor comes on, and then, well... then it gets really weird. We go through the sequence of events again and she gets rather testy explaining that this is all my fault for not returning the DVR...
DirecTV: You didn't return the box sir.
Me: I didn't have a, what do you call them? Return kit?
DTV: Yes you did sir, I'm seeing from our system that we sent you one.
Me: (Frowning) I didn't get it, do you have a date for when you shipped it?
DTV: Yes sir, we sent it on 12/5
Me: Er... yes, that's when I phoned you up last week and explained this last time
DTV: Yes sir.
Me: But that was after you'd charged me for not returning the DVR...
DTV: But we did send you a Return Kit.
Me: Yes... (slowly) but you sent it a week after you charged me for not returning the DVR in it.
DTV: Those are the facts sir.
Me: Could you explain how I could have sent the DVR back in time
DTV: In the return kit sir.
Me: That you didn't send to me until last week?
DTV: Yes sir
Me: Ok.....
So the facts are they charged me $200 for not returning something in November in a box they sent me in December. Er.... REALLY? I seem to have mislaid my TARDIS.
So, here we are. They owe me, in fact, $258, they didn't do what they said last week, and it will take another 10 business days from today before I can get my money back. At which stage they'll have had $179 of my money for over a month.
I've spent over 2 hours on the phone dealing with this, I've spoken to at least 6 people, and 3 of them have tried to sell me DirecTV again. Honestly, you cannot make this shit up.
