Comcast - Experience Trying to Get New Service

I recently relocated from Texas to Illinois into a "vintage" condo that does not allow the installation of unsightly satellite dishes. I have been a loyal satellite user for 10 years, so I was prepared for some bumps in the road when I contacted Comcast to setup cable and internet.

First contact:

I don't have a home phone, so to save my cell minutes I used the online Comcast Customer Service (chat). The person I "chatted" with, after 20 minutes of standard information gathering, told me that someone else already had service at my location. I explained I had just purchased the condo - closed earlier that morning, June 6th, 2008. She said she saw that there was a disconnection scheduled for 2 PM (it was about 11 AM at the time) and that I would have to request new service after that. This seemed very strange to me since most other services like cable can take "future" service requests. She assured me that this was not possible and that I would have to contact them again and repeat everything I had already gone through.

Second contact:

I didn't have time over the weekend, so I did another chat session the next week. After the 20 minute information gathering session I was told again that someone else already had service at the location. I recounted what had occurred the previous Friday. The rep stated there was nothing they could do � I would have to call the customer service desk. I asked wasn�t I chatting to customer service and was told that the �chat people� do not have the same authority as the people you talk to on the phone. Feeling frustrated and that my time had been wasted yet again, I did not call for a few days.

Third Contact:

I phoned customer service. After 35 minutes on hold I spoke with someone who repeatedly put me on hold off an on for another 30 minutes. This person told me again that someone else already had service and that I would have to physically go to a local Comcast location to prove that I lived there and owned the condo. The local locations were inconveniently open from 9-6 Monday through Friday and from 9-1 on Saturdays.

Feeling even more frustrated I looked for an alternative to Comcast, but all other alternatives required the unsightly (and banned) satellite dish.

I finally took the afternoon off from work yesterday to physically present myself to the Comcast representative with my mortgage statement and gas bill to prove that I lived and owned the condo where I was trying to initiate and pay for internet and cable service.

Fourth Contact:

The representative looked in her computer for information about my service location and first told me the same thing � someone else already had service at the location. I explained the situation and she looked further into her computer. Ah ha � she told me. In the notes it was clear that the previous owner had called to say they were moving and that a technician had been scheduled to turn off the service on June 6th, 2008, but for some reason this had not been done. I asked her why none of the other Comcast Customer Service Representatives I had contacted had access to this information. She assured me that they had access to the same information � they just must not have looked. I felt the frustration building up again, but told myself at least it was finally getting resolved. Next she asked me what type of package I wanted. I couldn�t remember the offerings and she did not have any brochure to review to make a selection, so I tried to describe the service I had enjoyed on satellite (HD, DVR, no premium movie channels) and the price I had paid. She said she had something similar, set everything up, handed me the necessary equipment and I was out the door. The entire visit took about 40 minutes. By the way, she was the only one behind the desk and by the time I left a line of about 5 unhappy looking people had built up.

I took the new equipment home and followed the installation instructions. I got to a step which said to call a number to activate the receiver. I called the number (from my cell phone) and received a recording saying I could not call the number from the phone I was calling from. So I called the standard customer service number.

Fifth Contact:

After being on hold for about 10 minutes a very hurried sounding representative took my call. I explained that I was trying to activate my receiver, but that I got the recording when I called the number. She went through some basic troubleshooting steps, repeatedly placing me on hold for 10 or more minutes at a time. 45 minutes later she told me that she would send a signal to my receiver and if that didn�t work she would have to send out a technician because that meant I didn�t have any service. I explained that I had tried the cable without the box and I was indeed getting service, I really thought I just needed to activate the receiver. She put me on hold. About 2 minutes after she put me on hold I had a picture, however I had to hold for another 5 or so minutes for her to come back on the line to be able to tell her this. She said the signal she sent must have worked so now she had to cancel the technician appointment she had been setting up and sounded very annoyed about this. I thanked her � which she did not reciprocate and ended the call feeling relief that the ordeal was over.

I then turned my attention to the Internet. I had my own modem (I work for a company that manufacturers them) and the customer service representative from the local office had advised me that I would need to call and register the equipment. I ran the installation software and then called the customer support number.

Sixth Contact:

After holding for 25 minutes I spoke with a representative who had a great deal of trouble locating my account. I gave her my phone number, address, and account number. After about 7 minutes of searching she located my account and started troubleshooting procedures based (I assume) the information I had provided to the IVR of �no connection�. There was no selection for �register equipment�. I explained that I thought I just needed to register my modem. She continued to troubleshoot, placing me on hold multiple times for extended periods of time. During on of the holds, the hold music was replaced with a ring tone and to my surprise I was back in the IVR queue as if I had just called in! I went through the same selections, heard it ring again and then I was disconnected. This whole encounter took about 50 miuntes.

Seventh Contact:

I called back immediately and was promptly connected to a very professional sounding customer service representative. He was friendly and confident and even asked about my day. He assured me that he would be able to get my situation sorted out. He immediately identified the need to register my equipment. He explained that he had to place me on hold and that it would be for a little while, but that it was necessary and he would resolve the situation as quickly as possible. I was on hold for about 10 minutes. He returned to the line and told me everything was sorted and asked to me confirm by opening browser window. I confirmed that it was working. He asked if there was anything else he would help me with and thanked me for my business. I was very impressed and grateful and wish I had his name to give him kudos.

I happily surfed the web that night, but discovered that I did not have access to all the channels I expected to. Specifically, I did not have access to the Sci-Fi channel. When I selected the station I had a message �Not Authorized�. So I called Customer Service.

Eighth Contact:

I called the customer service number and was on hold for about 10 minutes before my call was answered. After talking to the professional representative the day before I was confident that I talk to someone who understood my situation and be able to quickly remedy it. I have never been so mistaken. I explained that I didn�t have access to the Sci-Fi channel and wanted to confirm the package that I had and find out if it has access and if it did not I wanted to find out which packages did have access. He put me on hold. 5 minutes later he came back on the line and said I should have access and asked what station number I was selected. I told my 177 and again explained the message on the screen. He put me on hold again for another 5 minutes.

He then came back and explained that I had the Digital Starter package which did not have access to the Sci-Fi Channel. I said, OK, what package do I need to get to have access to it? He put me on hold again for another 10 minutes.

He then came back and told me that the only way I could get the Sci-Fi channel was to subscribe to every single available channel. Yes. He actually told me that I had to purchase the most expensive access possible in order to get the Sci-Fi channel. I told him this could not be possible and said I would go to my computer and look at the packages. He put me on hold again for another 5 minutes.

Now he came back and told me I had to have the Premier Package, which was $58 a month in addition to Standard Cable, which was $30 a month. I again said this does not sound right. He put me on hold again for another 5 minutes. This pattern went on three more times with him giving me a high priced proposal, me challenging it, and him putting me on hold. Finally, he told me he could give me a promotional price of $48 for Digital Classic for 12 months. This was very close to what I had paid with the satellite company so I agreed.

Next he told me he needed to schedule a technician to come out. I asked him why this was necessary since I already had the equipment and service and was only adding a few channels. He again put me on hold for 10 minutes. He then came back and said, no, a technician was not needed, but that I would have to pay a $1.99 charge for changing my service. I asked why I had to pay a service charge to add services and pay more money each month. He told me it was Company Policy. I was, as I�m sure you can imagine, extremely frustrated at this point, but I calmly told him I wanted to lodge a protest against this policy and that I was very dissatisfied with the level of service I had experience so far.

Is this really the way that Comcast does business?