Thursday, September 27, 2007

Fifth times the charm

I've never been one to put up with stupid time consuming crap and choosing basic services is based as much on convenience as on quality. I realize Verizon is not the cheapest cell phone company and I have heard horror stories in regards to their customer service, but as long as I could pay my bills right on my cell phone it never really effected me.

Five months ago I got a call from the Verizon customer service department informing me that I was about to go over my monthly minutes which would be very expensive under my current plan. I was offered a new upgraded phone if I agreed to extend my contract for 2 years and up my plan to 1000 minutes. This sounded like a win win, so I wholeheartedly agreed.

Four months ago I got another call from Verizon telling me that due to technical difficulties, my agreement to the new contract had not been recorded and I would have to agree to all the terms, which the representative insisted in reading in slow monotonous tones one item at a time. I begged him to stop, telling him I would agree to all his terms, but he insisted that each one had to be read carefully and my agreement had to be recorded to each one. Fine, I persevered and finlay made it to the end of the presentation.

Three months ago, I got another call from Verizon telling me that I was not eligible for a free phone since I was agreeing to an upgraded contract and my old one had not run out, and if I could please agree to the terms again, under the new arrangement. Please no I pleaded with the man, but he would have none of it. 30 minutes later he had my torture recorded and I was out one new phone.

Two Months ago, I got a call from another Verizon representative telling me I now owed close to $700 because all my contracts were void and I was not allowed to have my agreements recorded in the state of Massachusetts. Instead I had to sign a contract that she would send me, after which she would agree to remove the extra charges due to going over the minutes I was already promised were mine by 3 other service reps.

Last month prior to leaving Massachusetts, trying to get my affairs in order, I drove to a Verizon service center. I signed a contract with a black pen and despite the service manager towering a foot over my head, made perfectly clear that I was signing up for 2 more years and had him remove all charges from my account.

This week I got a call from Verizon. Right away I asked to speak to the supervisor because I already knew what was coming. The supervisor informed me that my plan was going to expire in 2 months and offered me a free phone if I agreed to have my contract extended by 2 more years. She assured me she could extent this agreement over the phone.

Two months from now I am finally getting my brand new phone, with a larger keypad, much better camera and a brand new cell phone service provider.

2 comments:

Mary said...

I also have Verizon. I used to think they had the greatest customer service and were in favor of the customer.

I went in when my phone broke and they gave me a free $400 phone saying I had earned it. I argued and they insisted, just sign here. So I did and then the new phone was stolen. When I went back they said I had signed up for another 2 years. I argued again as I hate contracts and didn't want another 2 years. I had one year left on my contract. I put my service on hold AFTER paying all the charges pending in full. Now I have recieved another bill after not using the phone for 30 days. What is going on with that company?

How did you get out of that contract?

They had fantastic customer satisfaction before. I wonder what is going on.

Slava Zatuchny said...

I've read about many ways to get out of a cell phone service contract. Some not legal, others just immoral, however I had no interest in getting out. I actually wanted to renew my contract for another 2 years after multiple experiences where my Verizon phone was the only one with service while others with "lesser" carriers stood by with empty bars. However I had to balance more reliable service with the fiasco I wrote about which is completely true and not exaggerated.

Also, who is Mary? If other people are actually reading this thing, not only am I flattered but I will endeavor to post more often.