Vonage - Customer Service charging customers w/o service and for faulty equipment

Vonage - Customer Service charging customers w/o service and for faulty equipment

September 10, 2005

This is how I was treated and no fault of mine. One woman from Vonage was very rude and was unprofessional. I am deeply hurt by Vonage customer service and trying every option to get this message out to senior staff of vonage. This has been sent to Email User Only one person by name Riche...from Vonage is trying to help me but I believe, shipping department is in a bad shape and absolutely no coordination between shipping and customer service. If any one from Vonage sees this message, will understand how much pain Vonage CSR caused me. I ended up paying money for their fault.

I signed up for Vonage service about a month ago, and received damaged equipment. I called customer service and complained. The Vonage service rep asked us to ship the damaged equipment back as soon as we get the return labels. Three weeks passed, several phone calls and no labels arrived.

Account Number: 100sss

RA#: n32sssss

Device: TI Linksys RTP300

Mac Address: 0013sss

Serial Number: CJMsss

The replacement equipmet arrived and unfortunately Vonage was unable to transfer my number. If I wait ten more days, and then cancel service because Vonage was unable to transfer my number, I will not get my original activation fee, and on top I get charged cancelation fee. Under these circumstances I ended up cancelling my account and have to return the second equipment. Again, Vonage service person asked me to wait for return label to return the second equipment. I was asked to check my email for labels and I did, but no luck as of today the September 10th.

Your RA# is 7vnsss

Device: TI Linksys RTP300

Mac Address: 0014sss

Serial Number: CJMsss

Account#: 1003sss

Account Creation Date: Aug 22, 2005

Cancellation Date: Sep 08, 2005 Your Vonage DigitalVoice service has been cancelled and a final charge

of $41.19 was issued to your credit card on 09/08/2005.

When I signed up for service, my credit card was charged ($41.19). The equipment broke, and no number transfer was done. Though it's of no fault of mine, I ended up spending $15 for return shipmet. Today, September 10, I shipped both the equipments by paying money. When I expressed my situation some Vonage agents were discurtious and put me through this helpless situation and were very rude. I am really disappointed and frustrated with Vonage service and the agents response over the phone. I have all names and the time when I spoken to them. I am sending this email and asking for help to refund my money by check. Please call me on my cell 847-209-1751, and help me out. It is not fair to charge your customer for damaged equipment returns (not my fault) and charge cancellation fee and not refund original activation fee because Vonage was unable to transfer my phone number from AT&T. If this issue is not resolved and not paid my money back, I will not hesitate to file a law suit with claims court and also inform Better Business Bureau, and news media. Vonage service and their people attitude towards me in this case is very bad and unacceptable.

Srinivas Click this link to e-mail the message author: Email User

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Vonage is an absolute joke. When I first went onto it I was not told that I needed internet for the phone to work. I had no phone for two months. Finally changed to Qwest and a three way conversation between the agent for Qwest, Vonage and myself occurred on 18th December in which I confirmed the disconnection and authorized Qwest to take over. It is now May and I have debt collectors chasing me for the fees for the last 6 months (when my service was with Qwest, not even with Vonage)

Returning the equipment was a joke as well. At first they said they would send me return labels. After a month when nothing arrived (now past the return refund date) I rang again. They said they would email me the return labels. No email by 3 weeks later. I rang again. They gave me an address over the phone and I returned the box, I returned it again after it was returned to me. I finally rang again after it was returned to me the second time and was told I was trying to return it to the Canadian Returns in New Jersey - (couldn't they have passed it on) so now it has gone again. Only now I have legal action against me for not returning it...........what a joke.

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Vonage - Just say no.

I've had similar problems. It seems that cancelling your account or even just gettig the charges to your charge card to stop is difficult or impossible and that when you call they will put you on with a "Customer Retention" department that should be renamed the "obfusctaion department" to trick you into "keeping the account active at no charge so that if a friend wants to sign up he/she can do it without a sign-up fee". They may have other stories, all carefully crafted to appeal to you based upon your answers to the questions they have asked you so far and to obfuscate the fact that this great humanitarian service they are about to do for you will have them charging you once again in several months. It seems that cancelling isn't cancelling as you've probably come to expect it, it is the beginning of a process, a whole new relationship.

For me, the service was OK while it worked, maybe even better than OK, but I think the Vonage company may not be the sort of company you want to encourage by doing business with them. There are other options at similar prices from companies that will be there to support you tomorrow and seem to value your business enough to make leaving a friendly experience so that you will come back. I've come back after relocating and I've paid a bit more to work with responsible companies that have been good to me in the past. None of this describes my experience with Vonage. The service may work well for you but when it comes to a company, the most telling signs are often how they deal with problems. In my experience, when you have a problem with Vonage, even one caused by them deliberately, you can count on them to do the wrong thing. Sign up with Vonage and you may be with them for life. Vonage - just say no.

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I managed to cancel my Vonage account after four months of trying. Yesterday, I requested written confirmation of the cancellation and accepted an email confirmation of cancelled/disconnected account. Next day, I received a "billing error" email.

During the four months of trying to cancel, I altered my name and billing address online so the credit card wouldn't go through (because they charged my card after they told me my account was "cancelled"). This was after my 2nd attempt to cancel. My first attempt was in July, 2007, but I ran out of time and didn't request a confirmation (which is to say there will be a ****-load of verbal confirmations. They are liars.)

I spent the day after Thanksgiving on the phone dealing with 6 different Vonage reps: 5 Filipinos and 1 Canadian, 11:00 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. My cancellation was processed with the Canadian rep.

I'm still not sure if I'm going to get collection notices or what, but I believe they can't charge me anymore because I don't have a card on file, though they can still invoice me every month and send email. Unfortunately, I put my real name on my account...had to in order to cancel the account, supposedly.

Effing hassle. I had Vonage f 1.5 years. Of course it was cheap, but I simply got tired of dead phone on occasion, which then became dead phone once a week--twice in one week. Missed some calls. What did I do? I got on a cell phone and called both the cable company and Vonage. Sure, technical issues were resolved after that. The following week: no dial tone.

I don't have the time anymore nor the endurance to stick a phone against the side of my head for two or more hours.

Solution? Land line! Ever heard of it? Land lines also work when the power goes out! When cable goes out! Imagine that! Reliable service! What a concept!