Days of Fury
It’s a simple, trivial, everyday story. I moved from my apartment to a house. I called Direct TV and asked them to send me an installer. I took the Direct TV boxes from my old address to my new one. The installer arrived, a nice, short guy. He installed the antenna on the roof. He told me that he had to add a switch, as if I understood what he was talking about. With a nice, pro - ldquo;tip me later” attitude, he told me not to worry, that he would make sure there weren’t any additional charges. He connected the antenna and the switch. He ran the cable through the three bedrooms and asked me for the boxes, which I handled to him. He connected them to the cable and my TVs. Up until now everything is going fine. While he was connecting the boxes he told me that the HD service was not included and that since my TVs were HD, I should get it. I told him to go ahead and install it. He proceeded to tell me that I needed new boxes and that he had to charge me extra, but that it would be better to cancel my current account and open a new one. Direct TV seems to reward new customers and punish old ones.
As a hunch, I told him that it was a bad policy and it made the company not very trustworthy. He told me again not to worry and that he was there to help me. He borrowed the phone and called Direct TV and requested a cancellation of my service. He handed me the phone to corroborate with the agent the closing of the account and the opening of a new one. While I drank espresso with the “friendly installer, ” I made sure the agent cancelled the automatic debit payment I had on my credit card for this account. The installer fills out a form for the new account. The installer hurries up his coffee, and continuing with his friendly and unselfish demeanor, proceeded to connect the televisions and reminded me of all the money he was saving me. He picked up the old receivers; I gave him a tip and happily walked him to the door.
This happened on March 20. Since then I have been watching TV, unless it rains or storms, for a modicum of $175 a month. I had a happy, relaxing life until the beginning of April. The relaxation started disappearing, progressively until now. Today is impotence, frustration and wrath. On April 7, the assistant in charge of checking and paying my credit card statements told me that Direct TV had been charging me for two services on two separate credit cards. I told her it is not possible, probably an involuntary error on the side of such a noble company. I proceeded to call 1-800-531-5000 and spoke with a young man with a scarce linguistic capability, short of will and inexistent common sense. A partially humanized version of a defective and irritating robot. I gave him my current account number so he could look into my problem. An hour and thirty-seven minutes later (by then I’m talking with a supervisor) we discovered that the problem was not a double-billing issue. Since September six months after having cancelled the service from the old address, DirecTV began charging for the service using the same credit card they had on file before it was cancelled. When I asked why they did such a thing, the answer was that I had never cancelled the service and that the account was still open and active. I explained that they were very aware that there was no service in the old address and that they had the technological capability to check it. The young supervisor, a more sophisticated version of the robot, which now includes upgraded arrogant attitude, acknowledges and confirms the service is not being provided. And blames me: “How can you not realize since September that DirecTV were double billing you? ” I explained to him that I was a very busy person and that my personal accounts were handled by my secretary and that when she saw DirecTV on the statement she assumed that it was for the current service, and that we now realized we were paying double. He then tells me that I have received two separate bills and asked me why that didn’t raise a red flag before. I asked him to please make an extra effort and actually think, “How can I receive something that is consistently sent to an address where I do not live anymore? ”
The masked man does not give up. He raises his bet and tells me that I could not cancel the old service for many months when I did, due to the small print on the contract. I told him that I had been a DirecTV customer for the past six years and that the account has been already canceled. No response. We added together the amounts overpaid. I was overcharged $1,543.00, and proceeds to tell me that there would be an $80.00 charge for canceling. I asked him if that was the Idiot Tax, he responded no, that is the charge to cancel the account. I said OK, to please refund me the balance. He explains that I would receive a letter detailing whether the refund will be via check or via credit card. I asked him to make sure he updated my address. He says that is all, Thank you for calling DirecTV, that I am valued as a customer and that is great that I have been a subscriber since 2004.
On April 14th, I received an e-mail from Direct TV. They let me know that I would be receiving a package from them and give me a tracking number. I think “How efficient, the check is in the mail”. I tracked the package and, oh surprise, I find out that the package was sent to my old address. The arrogant robot ran out of batteries just before completing my change of address.
Here we go again. I called them again and now agent PA1550 answered. I explained the story again in about seventeen minutes. Agent PA1550, very nicely, advises me that the shipment to the old address was only the empty boxes to send them back the old boxes, which I have returned 13 months before. I asked her two things “How can I receive something in a place where I do not live anymore, to return something that I already returned 13 months ago? ”
PA1550 freezes, reboots and advises that the refund check never left DirecTV. And that she could see on my account that someone asked for a review of my case. She told me she didn’t understand why, because that only happens when they couldn’t see the payments on the account, and that was not my case, were I was charged while no service was provided. I thank her for her simple verdict and asked her next steps. She tells me that in 7 days, I should be receiving the full refund. I say bye, graciously.
April 21st: My secretary receives the credit card statement, in which DirecTV credited $58.00. I call. Yes, upset, but I call nonetheless. I asked to speak to PA1550 and was told that this agent was in Panama and they couldn’t transfer me. I asked this new agent to look at my account and I explained the problem all over again in record time: 13 minutes. He proceeds to tell me that I was given the correct refund. I asked if this was a prank. He hangs up.
I call again, answers Barbara 10182, a defective robot, deaf and with evident electronic dyslexia. Yes, of course, you guessed it right: I repeat the story once again. Same response. Tired, I asked for her name and hang up. I count to 5,000 and call again, but now to cancel my current service. They tell me I could not, that it has an additional cost…the contract… the term and the small print and whatnot. Then I hang up. I give up. And go for the axe.
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