Protection Plan

[Justinto]

The unit I have is leased. Someone said that they all are. Should I add the protection plan? Why or why not?

[Stuart Sweet]

The protection plan will take all the worries out of any service call or repair issue. It's true that you can get a leased receiver replaced for $20 (shipping and handling) but what about a dish realignment, bad cables, bad multiswitch, etc. It's your call, you have to balance out the cost with your peace of mind, and the fact that DIRECTV service calls cost $70 without the plan.

[MikeR]

I thought the 4.99 protection plan was overpriced, until I called to get a dish alignment completed and the ease of it to setup with the protection plan. Now anytime I get an installer that says "everything is good", and I can see that it is not (or read here), I call up for another alignment/service appt.

Also...replacement of a receiver (especially the HR20) for $20 is a good deal. Peace of mind if anything goes wrong....

[2000voltz]

I'm cunfussed, they replaced a hr 20 for me at $20 with no plan because they said it was a lease. now I do understand the whole add 2 years to the contract everytime they need to do that but they don't / should charge for a reciever you don't own, right. or am I all messed up?

[Tonedeaf]

I'm cunfussed, they replaced a hr 20 for me at $20 with no plan because they said it was a lease. now I do understand the whole add 2 years to the contract everytime they need to do that but they don't / should charge for a reciever you don't own, right. or am I all messed up?

That is my thought also. I don't have the plan and got an HR10 replaced for $20 shipping. If the wiring etc. goes then I guess I am screwed and would probably add the plan and then schedule a call to get new lines run. At that point, would keep the plan.

[HolmesCo]

I am not sure about the HR20, but I have the plan as it covers all my receivers, cablilng, remotes, dish, switch etc. Seems like cheap insurance to me, but its a personal decision based on how much equipment you have etc. of course.

[Thaedron]

... but what about a dish realignment, bad cables, bad multiswitch, etc. It's your call, you have to balance out the cost with your peace of mind, and the fact that DIRECTV service calls cost $70 without the plan.

Personally, I think that as D* is converting equipment from owned to leased, they need to suck it up and convert ALL the equipment from owned to leased (including dishes and multi-switches). I wouldn't have either if I weren't a D* customer, they are required to obtain their service. The fact that I should pay anything when "their" equipment that I am leasing breaks is cwazy. :confused:

That said, I have not had the protection plan in the 10+ years that I have been a customer, however I am adding it to our account today. With all of the churn of late, I currently view it as good insurance to get me through the next year at least. After that, I'll re-evaluate.

[HolmesCo]

Personally, I think that as D* is converting equipment from owned to leased, they need to suck it up and convert ALL the equipment from owned to leased (including dishes and multi-switches). I wouldn't have either if I weren't a D* customer, they are required to obtain their service. The fact that I should pay anything when "their" equipment that I am leasing breaks is cwazy. :confused:

That said, I have not had the protection plan in the 10+ years that I have been a customer, however I am adding it to our account today. With all of the churn of late, I currently view it as good insurance to get me through the next year at least. After that, I'll re-evaluate.

I've often wondered how much it matters if its owned or leased, since if you don't have their service its a useless paperweight anyway.

[Slip Jigs]

A couple other points regarding leasing and service plans.

1. If you cancel your service (after any contract is up), you will probably have to return the receivers. I'm not sure about the dishes and switches tho - probably not.

2. You have to have the plan in place at least 30 days prior to schedling a service call with the plan. Sometimes they will waive this for you. Before I got the plan, I had to plead my case that this was an onoing issue and was reported within the original window. They eventually caved and didn't charge me for the call, but first tried to make the free call contingent upon signing up for the plan.

I eventually gave in and bought it just to avoid any further hassle. Cable companies don't charge a la carte for this, but you can bet it's built into the cost of service.

[inazsully]

They gave me the equipment, installed it for free, gave me free movie channels, gave me free HD for 6 months, gave me a portable DVD player for free. All so I would pay them $100 a month for their service. Now they will let me go elsewhere because they don't want to provide a free service call?

[brucegrr]

why should it be free?

It costs someone......Directv. Other subscribers.

Where else in life do we expect a company to do something for free? Try that with your local auto repair shop.

Seems pretty straight up. Pay for the protection plan or pay for the service call (after 90 days)

[2000voltz]

why should it be free?

It costs someone......Directv. Other subscribers.

Where else in life do we expect a company to do something for free? Try that with your local auto repair shop.

Seems pretty straight up. Pay for the protection plan or pay for the service call (after 90 days)I had no problem with that when it was something I owned, but we are talking about something we don't own. could you imainge the outrage over calling your cable company and saying your digital box isn't working anymore and they say they are going to keep charging you everymonth and you have to pay to fix "our" digital box. does that seem any different to you?

[rabit ears]

So, here's the situation.

My 5 LNB dish and HR20 unit was installed on July 2, this year - so, my 90 days ends next Saturday. Since that Installation I've had 4 HR20 units and 2 service visits. Taking advantage of the HD tests over the weekend, I have had one or more of the tests work every time, but I have never had all the tests work at any one time.

When I check signal strength I get nothing higher than a 47 on 103.

So, if they light up the new HD signal this week and I have to make a call, I should be good - even though they tried to charge me for the last two HR20 replacements. But, if they drop the ball again and don't light up until next week, I'm screwed and have to pay for a service call. Even if I sign up for the protection plan, I'm not covered until 30 days from today.

I tried calling to tell them I wasn't getting the new HD channels and was told "That's because they're not on." When I explained the issues, I was told that if there was a problem (after the HD service was turned on) and it was reported before Saturday, I would be covered, but after Saturday the cost would be $70.

I don't want to cheat anyone, but given that I've been a customer since 1994, never gotten anything for free, and bought 4 receivers over the years without a whimper when the original units broke (one $400 unit after just 3 months in 1995) and am clearly having problems with the latest setup, I think I deserve some consideration.

Anyone got any suggestions?

[brucegrr]

I agree with you on the leased box matter. Their box, their problem. But the dish, switch, jacks, and cables are not leased. They belong to the customer. If the dish is not aligned properly either the customer pays or you have the protection plan and the insurance pays.

[wingrider01]

That is my thought also. I don't have the plan and got an HR10 replaced for $20 shipping. If the wiring etc. goes then I guess I am screwed and would probably add the plan and then schedule a call to get new lines run. At that point, would keep the plan.

There is a 30 day cooling off period from when you get the plan, least there was when I got mine

[brucegrr]

The satellite 103b is definitely "on" Been sending signal for a few days now. If you have no signal, or low signal on 103b you have a problem somewhere. And I would insist Directv come and fix your setup since you are within the 90 days. You have been a good customer you'd think that they would take care of this

[2000voltz]

I agree with you on the leased box matter. Their box, their problem. But the dish, switch, jacks, and cables are not leased. They belong to the customer. If the dish is not aligned properly either the customer pays or you have the protection plan and the insurance pays.

I agree with that 100%

[wingrider01]

I'm cunfussed, they replaced a hr 20 for me at $20 with no plan because they said it was a lease. now I do understand the whole add 2 years to the contract everytime they need to do that but they don't / should charge for a reciever you don't own, right. or am I all messed up?

They replace the reciver with no plan, but it costs you the shipping and handling, if you have the plan then there is no shipping and handling. Add to the fact the plan covers the replacement/repair of any unit, leased or not, the dish, the wiring, the switch, alignment, etc. Alingment alone will set you back $70.00 for them to show up

[fwlogue]

The unit I have is leased. Someone said that they all are. Should I add the protection plan? Why or why not?

I originally got the protection plan when my equipment was all owned. Now all but 1 of them is leased and I have kept the replacement plan on. I have had two receivers an r15 and a H20 replaced through at no cost at all to me. I also had a tech out today he spent almost three hours here today troublshooting and replacing the LNB on the dish and re-aligned the dish all at no cost to me. I feel that it has been worth it to me to have the plan.

[richlife]

They gave me the equipment, installed it for free, gave me free movie channels, gave me free HD for 6 months, gave me a portable DVD player for free. All so I would pay them $100 a month for their service. Now they will let me go elsewhere because they don't want to provide a free service call?

The point is that the service plan doesn't cover only the box, but all your cabling and connections. Would you prefer that they charge everyone $105 a month instead of $100 just to cover a service plan? You have a choice. I've been taking my chances, but if I have any more problems with my cabling (all tracked, diagnosed and replaced as needed -- by me) I know I'm going to regret not paying that $5 a month.

[inazsully]

My point is, why would "D" give you all this stuff for free and then charge you to keep it operating? If the customer has two choices and they are, pay for a service call (keeping in mind your not happy about needing the service call in the first place), or change to another provider and that provider will give you everything for free and install it. Why would "D" ignore its equipment investment and lose the $100 per month fee? Besides, the dish, cables, labor, and anything else used in the install sure as hell ought to last more than a year. And don't compare this to a car warranty because if you give me a 3 year warranty (like most new cars) I will not worry about having to pay for service calls.

[brucegrr]

They don't give anything "free" Everything has a cost and the cost of equipment is factored into subscription cost.

That's why it should bother ALL directv customers when "some" subscribers continually hit Directv up for free service, discounts, etc. We all end up paying.

I would like to see DirecTv stand their ground on this stuff. Make so everyone plays by the same rules and that a call to tech support or customer service does not become "lets make a deal."

SO from my corner of the world I would rather see them let a customer go who is trying to hold the company hostage for 70.00

As a famous card player said "know when to hold them, know when to fold them" :)

My point is, why would "D" give you all this stuff for free and then charge you to keep it operating? If the customer has two choices and they are, pay for a service call (keeping in mind your not happy about needing the service call in the first place), or change to another provider and that provider will give you everything for free and install it. Why would "D" ignore its equipment investment and lose the $100 per month fee? Besides, the dish, cables, labor, and anything else used in the install sure as hell ought to last more than a year. And don't compare this to a car warranty because if you give me a 3 year warranty (like most new cars) I will not worry about having to pay for service calls.

[fwlogue]

They gave me the equipment, installed it for free, gave me free movie channels, gave me free HD for 6 months, gave me a portable DVD player for free. All so I would pay them $100 a month for their service. Now they will let me go elsewhere because they don't want to provide a free service call?
Your local cable company or telephone company if you call them for a service call and they find that it is the wiring in your house they do not cover that and they charge you a fee for coming out and looking at it. Then charge you and additional fee if you want them to fix it or you by there maintence plan that they also sell and they cover everything no matter what it is.

[Thaedron]

I would like to see DirecTv stand their ground on this stuff. Make so everyone plays by the same rules and that a call to tech support or customer service does not become "lets make a deal."


And I would rather have them follow the telecom/cable model where if anything upstream of the POP (Point Of Presence) demarcation point is broke they fix it on their nickel and if it's downstream of the POP, then it's on my nickel unless I have the protection plan. The POP would essentially be at the output of the multi-switch. Just because D* doesn't have an office or store in my local city, doesn't mean that I should pay $20 for them to ship me a replacement receiver that I am leasing is broken, nor should broken equipment extend my contractual commitment.

I can see why they take the position that they do, because dealing with the removal of all the dishes and multi-switches would be a logistical nightmare.

Yet despite my theoretical arguement, I am adding the protection plan to my account, simply because I think it's good insurance in this period of instability.

[jbellanca]

So, I called them up this weekend because I was getting about 10-15% signal strength on 103b for the new HD channels that will be launched soon. She said she'd send someone out to realign my dish, and I asked about the cost, and she said No Charge. And I don't have the protection plan. Maybe it was free because it was related to the new channel launch, I don't know, but maybe depending on what the issue is, the can decide whether to charge you or not.

[tim99]

In my experience they don't. I've been a customer since they first went into business. The earlier equipment was easy to deal with, ie the dish was easy to align yourself. But once they came out with the more complex dishes I have always called them to fix problems. They start about the protection plan and I tell them if I can’t get their service I’m not going to pay for it. They explain ‘it doesn’t work like that’ and I explain ‘watch how quickly it does’. Sometimes you have to say ‘cable doesn’t give me any of this nonsense about getting the service to my house’. Then a service truck comes.

I would never expect them to replace a $1000 HD Tivo if I would have knocked it off the rack but I do expect them to keep their dish aligned or anything else I can’t reasonably do. With the first generation dish I mounted it myself and it never needed an adjustment for 9-10 years. They replaced this with a more complex dish that they insisted they install so now it’s their problem. The newer dish THEY installed has needed realignment twice in two years and had to be moved twice more because of tree growth. Last time they needed to align it they wanted to charge me something like $75 and I told them ‘My alignment lasted 10 years, if your professionals haven’t done that good of a job then they need to get back out here and do it again’.

Not advice BTW. If you’re not willing/able to fix simple stuff yourself and stand your ground on stuff you can’t then the protection plan is probably your best bet.


My point is, why would "D" give you all this stuff for free and then charge you to keep it operating? If the customer has two choices and they are, pay for a service call (keeping in mind your not happy about needing the service call in the first place), or change to another provider and that provider will give you everything for free and install it. Why would "D" ignore its equipment investment and lose the $100 per month fee? Besides, the dish, cables, labor, and anything else used in the install sure as hell ought to last more than a year. And don't compare this to a car warranty because if you give me a 3 year warranty (like most new cars) I will not worry about having to pay for service calls.

[scrappy 2000]

After reading this thred I called D" and asked about the protection plan. The CSR ask be to hold while he checked. I told him I had two HR20s. He told me if they went bad then would replace them for a shipping fee of 19.95 but because I am an * A list person * that they would wave the shipping charge. I also asked him if one of my other receivers that I owned went bad would they replace it for free. He told me that they would replace an owened unit with a free unit because of the *A List thing*. I asked they why should I pay $5.95 per mo. for a service plan. He told me that I did not need the plan since I am an *A list person * I know better than to completely believe CSR but I have not taken the service plan.

[oakwcj]

I'have had D* service for four years. I just had my first service call. 48 months of the "protection" plan would have cost me $240. One service call: $70. I could pay for three more service calls and still be ahead of the game. Just who is being "protected?" It's just like any other extended warranty plan. They offer it because it's profitable, not because they're providing a charitable service.

[tim99]

No disrespect intended but that's like saying that everyone that buys a car at full sticker price should be bothered that they are subsiding other people informed enough to know they don't have to pay full price. Or that people who know about the existence of coupons or special midnight sales are driving up the cost for everyone else.

By the same token we just bought a new fridge and when the salesman tried to talk me up a model I asked to waive the $50 delivery fee. He ultimately gave me a rebate coupon for $45 that he had at his register station. He never offered that up until I tried to negotiate with him. But he DID have them for just this reason so its clearly part of that companies business model and a standard practice. Just like when D* wants us to upgrade to new stuff.

Others have suggested D* is being ‘taken advantage of’ which is a little (a lot really) naïve. They well understand that people are calling in just to get a deal and feel good about their service. It’s just another form of marketing and you can be certain that its in their budget. They also know what % of people who threaten to leave really will. I’ve worked with companies with these kinds of call centers and every single thing is tracked and accounted for in excruciating detail. Its all part of their process and you can be sure they’re on top of it.

In short, this is how D* does business, you simply do NOT have to pay the MSRP. Unless you don’t know that. Then you do.





They don't give anything "free" Everything has a cost and the cost of equipment is factored into subscription cost.

That's why it should bother ALL directv customers when "some" subscribers continually hit Directv up for free service, discounts, etc. We all end up paying.

I would like to see DirecTv stand their ground on this stuff. Make so everyone plays by the same rules and that a call to tech support or customer service does not become "lets make a deal."

SO from my corner of the world I would rather see them let a customer go who is trying to hold the company hostage for 70.00

As a famous card player said "know when to hold them, know when to fold them" :)

[redram38]

I thought the 4.99 protection plan was overpriced, until I called to get a dish alignment completed and the ease of it to setup with the protection plan. Now anytime I get an installer that says "everything is good", and I can see that it is not (or read here), I call up for another alignment/service appt.

Also...replacement of a receiver (especially the HR20) for $20 is a good deal. Peace of mind if anything goes wrong....

With the protection plan you are not charged 20.00 shipping.

[RamaX]

one problem with making "all" units leased is what about those of us who already bought our? I have the protection plan because after buying my units i wanted to know that if there was a problem i could get it easily fixed. As well as after alllllll the installation screwups, i wanted to be sure that if i had a problem i could just call and whine a bit.

Also keep in mind that even for those of us who "own" our units, we still have to pay an extra $5 each month for an extra recvr. I practically consider that a lease payment. For those of you who do lease, do you pay the 5 as well as a leasing charge, or is there no charge for leasing just the extra recvr charge...somehow it doesnt seem all fair.

The last reason it didnt all start out as all in house made/leased receivers was so that the competition between recvr makers would create better products with more features. I dont see that happening anymore, im not even sure who else even bothers to make DTV recvrs other than DTV. Why would they if DTV gives them away/leases them. So the change in plan by DTV also adds to the confusion for the customers, some of which bought theirs, some of which leased.

One question tho.....having the protection plan i have also had a problem with a bunch of bad recvrs (my livingt room seems to be some sort of death trap to them) and in all the times ive done the send me a new one ill sned you backthe broken one swap, ive never been charged anything, including the one they just did this past Sat. Who is getting charged $20 for a swap? Maybe non protection people ? Or maybe its just to like swap for an upgrade? Im quite curious.

[2000voltz]

nobody can "buy" a hr 20. is that the reciever your talking about?

[nullrider]

nobody can "buy" a hr 20. is that the reciever your talking about?

I was told that you can buy an HR20. It just costs about $700 more.

[2000voltz]

I must be wrong, I was told you couldn't even buy the ones at best buy.

[RamaX]

FYI:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7959051&type=product&id=1155071079972

As for my eqpmnt. I had an RCA Directv recvr which i bought about 6 years ago now. I got the protection plan, and when it croaked they sent me an H10. The H10 croaked and they sent me an H20, which croaked and they sent me an HR20. In the meantime i had bought another RCA which croaked and they replaced with an R15.
When i got my kids their computers and LCDs i also got them directv, i bought H20s direct from directv at i beleive it was $99 or $199 a piece
Then they gave me MAJOR installation issues (they have come back here about 7 times to fix all the errors they made, ive got an antenna farm/graveyard on my roof) and in the middle of all my troubles they sent me an HR20 as an apology/upgrade to one of the H20s i just bought.

So i consider all my eqpmnt mine, because at one time or another i paid full price for it.

[2000voltz]

right, it says lease...

[RamaX]

i was about to close that Bestbuy tab when i kept reading. now im REALLY confused hehe. Toowards the bottom of that page it says:

Prices shown are "lease upgrade fees." Additional $4.99/month. Lease fee applies for each DIRECTV Receiver you add. Programming commitment required. See terms.

The $4.99 a month thats added is for any recvr you add past either the first or second (i dont recall). never thought of that as a "lease" fee I mean i own my units, as im sure some or many of you do. So now im a bit confused, do they think im leasing these? Should i be paying this? Are there 2 charges $4.99 for leasing as well as $4.99 for having more than 1 (or 2) recvrs..??

Anyone think they can splain this..?

[Thaedron]

Anyone think they can splain this..?

"Purchasing" a receiver at Best Buy is no different that "purchasing" one from D*. The $299 price is what they consider to be the upgrade fee to go from an HD receiver to an HD DVR. The only difference being that you walk into BBY and carry it home with you. Many people (myself included) have gotten deals that are considerably better than the $299 advertised price from D*.

Yes, it's kind of confusing. In the past (owned model), they called it a "mirroring" fee. In the current (leased model), they call it a "lease fee". Both are $4.99/mo. No you don't pay both a mirroring fee and a lease fee on a leased HR20.

[RamaX]

Hehe, so basically they were gonna get that $4.99 come hell or high water hehe.

I guess i just got my panties in a bunch because i started out by buying RCA recvrs, so i consider them mine, not leased. Just because i pay for a protection plan and they sent me replacement units, i dont consider them any less mine.

In most aspects it makes really no difference. The only possible way i could imagine it would, would be for say if i were to quit directv, then feeling i own my hardware, i would feel free to sell it. If they think they are leased, would they want them back..? I dunno, in my case or in anyone elses. But for ones i bought back when Hughes was just one of a couple, and not even the best, directv recvrs and i bought RCA, they be mine hehe. I suppose those two i bought 2005 Xmas for the kids from driectv may be considered leased, who knows hehe.

Sort of grinds my gear tho to pay 200 for something, so youd think youd bought it, only to find out its leased....

[Thaedron]

Sort of grinds my gear tho to pay 200 for something, so youd think youd bought it, only to find out its leased....

Anything that you bought prior to NNNN is considered owned. Sorry, I don't recall the exact switch over date. It's only within the last 6-12 months that D* started the leasing method. They will ask for leased H20s or HR20s back. Anything lesser and they would probably prefer for you to deal with the disposal of if than for them to take care of it. Of course I'm talking about recycling it rather than throwing it in the trash.

[RamaX]

Thaedron, i happened to notice that you have the Oppo, ive been considering it for awhile now. Ive heard rave reviews about it, but have never seen one myself. Im considering getting one in the future, but only drawback id say is that so few people, know about them that i have little to rely on as far as info.

So, how do you like it.?? Hehe

[Thaedron]

Thaedron, i happened to notice that you have the Oppo, ive been considering it for awhile now.

I love it! Upconversion to 1080p is spectacular!

I leaned towards the Oppo because of it's rave reviews over at AVSForum, it's great upconversion capability and its PAL support.

Others have argued, the Toshiba HD player does just as well in the upconversion space and gets you HD-DVD to boot. I might have considered this, but 1) no PAL support, 2) more $$$, 3) I'm not yet ready to support the DVD format wars until there is a clear winner (unlikely soon) or someone starts selling a sub-$300 dual format player.

PM me if you want any more info.