I am being hounded by DirecTV. They claim I owe them $350.00 for breaking a two-year commitment when I upgraded my receiver to HD. The problem is, there was no two-year commitment.
DirecTV called out of the blue one day to offer me a free upgrade to an HD receiver. Not once did the solicitor inform me that doing so would require another two-year commitment. When the technician came out to the house to install the HD receiver, I specifically asked him if there was an additional commitment, and he replied no.
When FIOS became available, I decided to put everything on one vendor, one bill. So I switched my internet, television and telephone to FIOS.
When I cancelled my DirecTV service, the operator did not mention a two-year commitment or the penalty for violating it. If she had done so, I wouldn't have transferred over to FIOS yet.
DirecTV called to inform me that a penalty was being applied. I argued with them that there was no commitment. They then sent me a letter informing me of the charge. I replied in writing, again reiterating that I signed up for NO commitment.
DirecTV replied to my first letter by totally ignoring my complaint and restating that my account had this penalty charge on it and that I was to remit payment by a certain date or a late payment penalty would be applied. I wrote them again, stating emphatically that they are ignoring my issue. All they said was that after reviewing my account, the charge was correct and I should remit payment immediately.
I have now written them a third time, demanding that they NOT send me another computer-generated reply and that they forward the letter(s) to someone in the company empowered to take the appropriate action.
I consider this a deceptive sales practice. Neither the solicitor, the installer, nor the operator who took my cancellation phone call mentioned the commitment penalty. DirecTV is in the business of deceiving its customers, lying to cover up its deceptive sales practices, and outright theft. I will never subscribe to DirecTV again. I am advising my friends and family of what I have experienced and advising them to drop this crooked company.
If they repeat their generic reply, I am prepared to file complaints with the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission.
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