Anyone Else have Problems with Verizon?

[qwlauren35]

Maybe this belongs in the lounge, but I put it here in the hopes of getting answers and solutions. My mother is 81, and Gawdloveher, still working part-time. Her employers have recently switched to an on-line job notification service. So in order for her to get assignments, she needs to be on-line.

Unfortunately, her dial-up service stopped working in the midst of the winter. It's sporadic, and very frustrating. Not to mention it's costing her money, because not being on-line is preventing her from getting job assignments. So, she decided to go with Verizon and get DSL. Not because she wanted to... but because she has dual lines, and most other providers can't hook it up.

Mom ordered service on March 2nd (today is the 14th). The first thing that happened is that one of her two lines was shut off. Over the next 1-1/2 weeks, she spent hours every day on the phone trying to address THIS issue, and trying to get her DSL service. On the 13th, someone came to her home to install the service properly. And told her it would work when she got home. It worked for a few hours. Then failed the next morning. When she called AGAIN, they told her that they MIGHT be able to fix it by the 19th...

She is afraid that if she spends any more time on the phone with these people, she'll have her second stroke.

So, I'm trying to talk to them now. I've been on the phone with them for 2-1/2 hours today. And what I've learned is that there is an "area" problem, and they don't know IF they can fix it. And won't know until the 19th.

Question: what can I do about this? I don't want my mother to die from trying to get DSL service.

[uberblonde]

1. I went through this many, many times...

The guy from Verizon said, "Look, I feel bad for you, but this company just won't pay to train people to do more than the basic stuff - and they figure you're not going anywhere else, because you don't have many options."

So I switched to the Dark Side - Comcast.

[npincus]

2. my Mom has had HORRIBLE experiences with Verizon DSL!

She's always losing connectivity... and she's 75, not at all computer-proficient and understandably, very frustrated.

I'm so sorry for your Mom. My advice is (if she has a provider in her area) to dump Verizon and switch to cable. I work from home, and transmit huge files via Email, and find my cable GREAT: reliable, easy and fast. Service is hardly interrupted-- if so, for a short time. My ISP is through Cablevision, and the service is called Optimum Online. The downside: it's frightfully expensive. I got a cheap rate for 2 years with a free modem, but of course it went up after that. If your mom works from home, perhaps she can deduct the ISP expense on her taxes.

Though it's a pain in the ass, but I would just bite the bullet, dump the service and ger cable. That's what I've been telling my mom. It's ridiculous: she hardly uses the internet because she has these constant sevrice problems.

Good luck!

[meegbear]

3. Are they the only highspeed around?

I went through some BS with them back in 2001 just to get it installed (Long story short: 21 days before they would come to set me up and they sent no equipment they promised. I called a couple days before the installation date to tell them I didn't get it and they said "sorry, we'll get it out this afternoon" ... and then they pushed my installation date back another 21 days. I canceled.)

I went with my cable provider and they were there in under 48 hours and other than an occaisional hiccup, no problems.

[BluePatriot]

4. Actually, yes.

They had worked ok for us for a while so unknown to them we killed our land line and now have only cell service. Well, surprise, surprise, now we don't get signal into our apt. I plan to call and complain and hope the call to complain gets dropped like everything else lately...and I do plan to throw around the words "bad faith" if they try and make us pay that exorbitant fee to break the contract.

[rox63]

5. It took them 3 weeks to transfer my DSL service when I moved

Frustrated the hell out of me. I had to threaten them with Comcast. Then suddenly my DSL started working. Funny, that... :eyes:

[qwlauren35]

8. I threatened a lawsuit...

But I think I'll switch my mom to Comcast. I hope it doesn't break her financially. Maybe I'll just pay for it myself.

This is just plain f*ckin' absurd.

But at least I know it's a common problem. I sense they will never fix it as long as people still buy it...

[Nite Owl]

6. I had a problem with Verizon

DSL when I had it. Kept losing the connection, especially when it rained (the lines were underground). They said they would no longer fix it and DSL would no longer be available in my area. That was it, just stopped having service. Fortunately there was cable newly available so I switched to that and cable has been much, better faster and more reliable.

[EFerrari]

7. I had trouble with installation and a manager confessed to me

that they couldn't keep up with the volume.

Once that was over, they have been great. Few or no outages and good tech support. :shrug:

[KG]

9. terrible customer service. finally got pissed, dropped landline and DSL

got roadrunner cable here.

[JackBeck]

10. Horrible experience.

Had DSL and when I added VOIP we lost everything. They "mistakenly" cutoff our DSL and it took over three months on the phone with them in order to get our service back. Horrendous customer service. Ended up costing us hundreds of dollars in cell phone charges, since I would be on the phone for hours. I wish I could show you my notes from that terrible experience. We've moved since then and use Comcast, who has better customer service, but we've already had four visits to fix our equipment.

[qwlauren35]

11. Was it hard to get them to come out?

Did service calls have to be paid for? How much did they cost?

Enquiring minds need to know.

I think I'm bound for Comcast...

[JackBeck]

12. Not one visit.

Everything was handled over the phone. It wasn't an equipment problem, rather, my situation being passed around department after department. Along the way, many of them had no idea that Verizon was carrying VOIP. VOIP was an entirely different company altogether!

I was completely polite, but firm. And I was treated like a piece of trash by them. I was hung up on, put on hold and never gotten back to, sent to voice mails with no returned follow-up. They even sent a collection agency after us as revenge. I tried complaining to the corporate office, their attitude was the same. All I can say is "Good Luck!" I hope you don't go through what we went through.

[qwlauren35]

13. I meant Comcast

Did you have any trouble having Comcast come out and fix things?

[JackBeck]

14. No.

It was more of me having to juggle my work schedule and their visit.

As for my rant up thread (I literally just came back from having a smoke break to calm my self from those memories) the lesson I learned from that experience is to always document every call. Write down the date, time, and people you speak with. If you don't already, I'd like to pass that lesson on to you.

[qwlauren35]

15. My work phone has a timer on it...

So in addition to getting names and numbers, I clocked them. What I should have done is clocked how long I was ON HOLD. That's what was most absurd.

[meldroc]

16. Dump Verizon and switch to Comcast.

Comcast can be a royal pain in the ass sometimes, but most of the time, they do provide cable TV and internet service that works. Their internet service is quite fast too.