I signed up for Verizon Residential Phone Internet service in Jan/ Feb. I called specifically to ask questions about a "bundle" package I had seen advertised online that included Verizon Freedom Essentials (unlimited US calling), and 4-7 Mbps of high-speed/DSL internet service. The package was for about $44.99/mo. Guaranteed pricing for 2 years.
When I called the Representative confirmed to me that the telephone portion of the service would be $30 a month, and the internet portion would be $14.99/mo. It sounded great, and she wanted to sign me up right away. I agreed to this assistance, and we went through the process.
B/c of our bill paying practices it was not noticed until our April statement that Verizon had been charging us $69.99 for this package! Upon further inspection all of a sudden we were being charged $40 for the phone portion, and $44.99 for the internet portion! Furthermore the internet was now being charged as 10-15Mbps, a speed which their own technical representative who visited our location said our location wasn't even capable of.
I immediately called Verizon customer service and reached an extremely rude individual who did not even give me his name, and would not explain how our bill suddenly changed. I can't tell you how dismissive, and unapologetic this person was. When I found time (5/3) I called back again, and spoke with someone in Billing. She was more helpful but still testy, and I felt extremely unsympathetic to my situation. She claimed that our service had always been 10-15Mbps, and had "NO RECORD" of the original deal we had signed up for. At one point she even threw in my face that we had been on the phone for an hour, as if that's my fault. I was furious at this point, as I had little evidence other than the original conversation I had when signing up for the service.
I feel as a consumer we should have access to the phone recordings Verizon makes between their representatives, and 'us' the public. If I had access to those recordings I could prove what was discussed between myself and their own personnel. I am seriously considering legal action as a matter of principle, because I regard their behavior as a major company vile, and shameful. They are behaving more like a fly-by-night scam organization. I am frankly outraged, and disgusted by the courtesy, accomodation, and especially professionalism of their staff.
If you are considering switching to Verizon, as I was, because of some attractive advertised rate, please Beware! Apparently they may totally lie to you about the service you will receive, only to charge you for some service you never signed up for. I am weighing my options carefully, but I urge everyone not currently with Verizon to not even consider them in your search for phone and internet service, and I assure you I will continue to use every outlet available to me to tell others about my experiences with Verizon until they make this right, thank you.
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