DirecTV
Satellite Ad Price Not Honored, Rebate Form Never Filled Out

I responded to an ad that came through the mail for satellite service for $29.99 (for one year), so I called the "800" number to sign up. The man on the other end said there was a 150 channel offer for the same price. He also claimed that I would receive coupons worth $300. I accepted and set up a day to bring it in.

The service man who came did NOT hook it up correctly, did not mention a form for any rebate program, and did NOT give me a copy of the paperwork or work order. He gave me NOTHING.

My wife, while reviewing my credit card account, noticed a bill set to be paid to them for $63.97. I immediately got on the phone and began to argue the charge. Finally I was told that I didn't fill out the rebate form. I told them I hadn't received anything from them or the technician. I argued that I had been ripped off and that they had to make the offer good. Finally, the customer service rep said she would fill out the form for me right away, but it would take 2 to 3 months for the billing to catch up. I told her, "You BETTER NOT CHARGE ME the full price!" I still hadn't been told what happened to my $300 in coupons.

On June 26 I was again looking over the credit card statement and saw that they HAD charged the $63.97! I called my credit card company and told them what happened, and I said I wanted to dispute it. They told me I couldn't dispute the charge while I was still getting the service, so I called them to dispute it a second time.

I told them the same thing I had told them the first time. They told me NO ONE had filled out the form like promised, that they couldn't do anything about it, and that if I cancelled, they would charge me $400 for cancelling! I told them I would dispute that too!

At that point I demanded a supervisor. I explained everything to him and said that "Bait and Switch" is illegal. He ignored my comment and said the ONLY thing he could do was fill out the rebate. Then he said it would take 3 TO 4 months to get settled! I told him I wanted the charges to be $29.99 NOW and a credit to my account for the difference.

He again said he could only fill out the rebate form for me. I also told him about the rotten installation and the rudeness of the tech, and he ignored that comment as well. I told him, "Fine, if you can't satisfy me now according to your salespersons' promise, then disconnect me, and I will dispute ANY OTHER charges you put on my account." I also told him that I was recovering from spinal/neck surgery and couldn't lift the equipment, so they had to come out, take it down and take it themselves. He told me they don't do that, but that the service would be shut off as of midnight that night and I would have to find a way to return the equipment.

As soon as I got off the phone, I called my credit card company and told them the story AGAIN and said I wanted to dispute any and all charges coming through from that company.

Company: DirecTV
Country: USA
State: Colorado
City: Greenwood Village
Address: P.O. Box 6550
Phone: 8005315000

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