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MJM · 10-18-2006, 08:07 AM

I'll chime in with an Adelphia story....

Last Summer, we had a lighting strike on our street (underground utilities). Cable went out, because the lighting fried it. So, Adelphia came out the next morning (which we felt was good service). There were LOTS of problems for them, and to make a long story short, there were Adelphia tech guys working on our street every day for 9 days. We had no service the whole time, but at least we could see them working on it every day.

So, the next bill comes in the mail....yep, you guessed it, for the full month! I called the 800# to point out that we didn't have cable for 10 days, so take 10 days' charges off the bill.

What a runaround.
Adelphia: "Well, sir, did you call us to let us know you were without service?"
Me: "My neighbor called you, and your guys showed up, so I didn't call because obviously you knew about it."
A: "Well, if you didn't call specifically about your own service, we have no way of knowing if you specifically were without it."
Me: "Sure you do - just check with your Service Dept., and see that they were here for 9 days. I assume you don't send crews out to a neighborhood for 9 days when everything is working fine..."
A: "We have no way of checking with Service."
Me: "Huh? These trucks were Adelphia trucks. It's you guys. Same company."
A: "Um. Ok, but it'll take two to three weeks."
Me: "No. Put me on hold and find the answer now."
A: "Sir, that can't be done."
Me: "Sure it can - a minute ago you told me it can't be done at all, then you said it can be done, but it'll take weeks. You're moving in the right direction. Keep going."
A: "Uhhhh...well, Sir, lighting is an act of God, so it's not our fault it went out."
Me: "Correct. I'm not calling to blame you for lightning, I'm calling to correct your error of billing me for something you didn't provide to me."
A: "Ummm...."
Me: "Forget the whole thing. I'll go to the local office and hope to find someone who knows how to do their job."

The person at the local office took maybe 15 seconds to adjust the bill.

10-18-2006, 08:07 AM	#36
MJM Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 262 Thanks: 0 Thanked 23 Times in 11 Posts	Ahhhh...cable companies I'll chime in with an Adelphia story.... Last Summer, we had a lighting strike on our street (underground utilities). Cable went out, because the lighting fried it. So, Adelphia came out the next morning (which we felt was good service). There were LOTS of problems for them, and to make a long story short, there were Adelphia tech guys working on our street every day for 9 days. We had no service the whole time, but at least we could see them working on it every day. So, the next bill comes in the mail....yep, you guessed it, for the full month! I called the 800# to point out that we didn't have cable for 10 days, so take 10 days' charges off the bill. What a runaround. Adelphia: "Well, sir, did you call us to let us know you were without service?" Me: "My neighbor called you, and your guys showed up, so I didn't call because obviously you knew about it." A: "Well, if you didn't call specifically about your own service, we have no way of knowing if you specifically were without it." Me: "Sure you do - just check with your Service Dept., and see that they were here for 9 days. I assume you don't send crews out to a neighborhood for 9 days when everything is working fine..." A: "We have no way of checking with Service." Me: "Huh? These trucks were Adelphia trucks. It's you guys. Same company." A: "Um. Ok, but it'll take two to three weeks." Me: "No. Put me on hold and find the answer now." A: "Sir, that can't be done." Me: "Sure it can - a minute ago you told me it can't be done at all, then you said it can be done, but it'll take weeks. You're moving in the right direction. Keep going." A: "Uhhhh...well, Sir, lighting is an act of God, so it's not our fault it went out." Me: "Correct. I'm not calling to blame you for lightning, I'm calling to correct your error of billing me for something you didn't provide to me." A: "Ummm...." Me: "Forget the whole thing. I'll go to the local office and hope to find someone who knows how to do their job." The person at the local office took maybe 15 seconds to adjust the bill.