Seasonal Home Service?

[Jace]

I'm consulting in North Carolina , my primary service is in Chicago , but I'm renting a house for 5 months while working in the Charlotte area.

Is it possible to get temporary service from DTV , add an IRD to my account for this rental home? I want to do it the right way, my company will cover the service. I just can't sign up a new place because of 2 year agreement.

Thanks for help/advice.

[Shades228]

You're going to have to buy a receiver owned and pay for installation yourself. This is the only way to avoid the commitment. It will end up costing you more this way though then paying the ECF $20/mo remaining. If you just get a standard receiver and the new customer offer it's only an 18 mo commitment. Either way it will be expensive for a temporary situation.

[Jace]

Charter Cable may be the better way to go, it's also very pricey service.

[Ken S]

You're going to have to buy a receiver owned and pay for installation yourself. This is the only way to avoid the commitment. It will end up costing you more this way though then paying the ECF $20/mo remaining. If you just get a standard receiver and the new customer offer it's only an 18 mo commitment. Either way it will be expensive for a temporary situation.

Give DirecTV a call. At the very least you can put the service on hold while you're not in Chicago.

[rudeney]

If you don’t need simultaneous service in your Chicago home, then all you need to do is have a dish installed in NC and take your receivers there and give D* the updated service address. You could even use Mover’s Connection to get the install for free, just know that that you can’t use it again within a year. You would not need to use it when you return to Chicago because you’d already have a dish and cabling there – all you’d need to do then is reconnect the receivers and call D* to update the service address.

If you do need to maintain service in Chicago, then call D* and see what they can do for you. It may cost you, but there may be a way they can waive the commitment terms.

[bsprague]

I'm consulting in North Carolina , my primary service is in Chicago , but I'm renting a house for 5 months while working in the Charlotte area.

Is it possible to get temporary service from DTV , add an IRD to my account for this rental home? I want to do it the right way, my company will cover the service. I just can't sign up a new place because of 2 year agreement.

Thanks for help/advice.
Your situation is not a lot different than that of an RV owner. There are various methods used. One is to get an official 'mobile' account, but some find that complicated and many CSRs have a hard time fitting RV, trailer, motorhome, coach, etc into their experience. DirecTV pursues boaters, truckers and RV owners yet support can be confusing due to contract, policy and legal changes over the years.

To keep things simple, many RV owners buy the "Disaster Recovery Kit" for $49 and bring one of their favorite recievers from home. The only problem can be getting local channels if you get too far from home base.

(The "Disaster Recovery Kit" is ordered on line where you would order an extra remote. It includes tripod, dual LNB, dish, 50 feet of coax, wrench, screwdriver, compass, instruction and DVD on how to set it up.)

On edit: My home base is near Seattle and my motorhome TV system performed flawlessly in Charlotte last year.

[Shades228]

Your situation is not a lot different than that of an RV owner. There are various methods used. One is to get an official 'mobile' account, but some find that complicated and many CSRs have a hard time fitting RV, trailer, motorhome, coach, etc into their experience. DirecTV pursues boaters, truckers and RV owners yet support can be confusing due to contract, policy and legal changes over the years.

To keep things simple, many RV owners buy the "Disaster Recovery Kit" for $49 and bring one of their favorite recievers from home. The only problem can be getting local channels if you get too far from home base.

(The "Disaster Recovery Kit" is ordered on line where you would order an extra remote. It includes tripod, dual LNB, dish, 50 feet of coax, wrench, screwdriver, compass, instruction and DVD on how to set it up.)

On edit: My home base is near Seattle and my motorhome TV system performed flawlessly in Charlotte last year.

RV accounts work differently then a second home would. An RV is allowed to mirror programming of the primary home legally. Having service at 2 different locations on the same account is not legal.

He would have to have a second account or move his current service to his new home for 5 mo then move it back.

So really here are some qualifying questions.

Do you need service at both locations at the same time?

Are you already in NC?

Do you care about carting your equipment back and forth?

[bsprague]

RV accounts work differently then a second home would. An RV is allowed to mirror programming of the primary home legally. Having service at 2 different locations on the same account is not legal.

He would have to have a second account or move his current service to his new home for 5 mo then move it back.

So really here are some qualifying questions.

Do you need service at both locations at the same time?

Are you already in NC?

Do you care about carting your equipment back and forth?

There is often a difference between what is right, what is wrong and what is legal!

When I wrote "To keep things simple...", I was refering to people I've met that justify a single account by saying when they are watching in the RV they are not watching at home. In other words, one user, one account.

DirecTV policy seems to have changed over the years. Many on RV websites have reported conflicting answers from CSRs. Lately there have been reports that the RV must now be a completly separate account.

In my case, I think my account is designated as "mobile" with two remote service recievers in a condo. For the record, when it was set up it was done with a seasoned CSR and in accordance with the rules. I think the rules have changed a little but I am still "grandfathered" under the old rules.

Again, to keep this on point, a "simple solution" can be to bring a reciever from home and hook up a temorary dish. It may not be what DirecTV wants, but there are a lot of "campers", "hunters" and "tailgaters" that don't miss their NASCAR or football this way. There are even a few that own "cabins" that work it this way. Certainly a true second home (to be legal) would requre a separate account.

[Shades228]

There is often a difference between what is right, what is wrong and what is legal!

When I wrote "To keep things simple...", I was refering to people I've met that justify a single account by saying when they are watching in the RV they are not watching at home. In other words, one user, one account.

DirecTV policy seems to have changed over the years. Many on RV websites have reported conflicting answers from CSRs. Lately there have been reports that the RV must now be a completly separate account.

In my case, I think my account is designated as "mobile" with two remote service recievers in a condo. For the record, when it was set up it was done with a seasoned CSR and in accordance with the rules. I think the rules have changed a little but I am still "grandfathered" under the old rules.

Again, to keep this on point, a "simple solution" can be to bring a reciever from home and hook up a temorary dish. It may not be what DirecTV wants, but there are a lot of "campers", "hunters" and "tailgaters" that don't miss their NASCAR or football this way. There are even a few that own "cabins" that work it this way. Certainly a true second home (to be legal) would requre a separate account.

The rules for RV's haven't changed except in the way that DNS service works. Before if you owned an RV you didn't have to have it on a second account to do the RV DNS request. Now you do. Other then that they are the same. If you get an agent that is confused over this have them read the RV policies it's pretty simple but people like to over complicate situations more then they have to. So you might be grandfathered into the DNS part but that's a different thread.

You can have service at 2 homes on one account as long as service is not active at both at the same time. So if you have 2 receivers at 1 home and 2 at another you can deactivate the ones not in use and activate the 2 that will be used. With the lease model though this becomes an issue because once you deactivate a receiver you must send it back or pay the non return fee. Vacation/Second home accounts used to be much simpler but now are not due to lease, and the new suspend policies. It can still be done it just costs more upfront to do it the way it's not a pain to switch back and forth on as a customer.

[harsh]

This is NOT the same thing as an RV waiver.

The rules require a second account if service comes to two different residences.

Lying/cheating/defrauding is somewhat problematic as you won't get any LIL at one address or the other.

I would suggest going the CATV route or try E*'s DISHNow program. If you can't stand the thought of either of those, then you'll likely have to try buying and installing everything on your dime to avoid a commitment as well as forsaking any and all promotions or discounts.

Only DIRECTV can tell you for sure how they are going to treat you and you may need to get a second or third opinion from them to confirm that.

[inkahauts]

You could ask them about opening up a second account and then mergging the two accounts when you leave...

[sore_bluto]

A second or vacation home on a single account is permitted provided that you don't violate the Terms of Service. What that means is that you can't have active receivers at two different addresses at the same time. So if you are only going to be in one place at a time, you are good to go. Call DIRECTV and arrange for a dish to be installed at the second location. Then simply call them and inform them which receivers you are taking with you when you go. Then call them back and inform them that you've returned home. If, on the other hand, you need both locations active at the same time, you must sign up for a new account. That also means commitments for that account, etc.

[Jace]

Thanks for the advice, I do need service as both addresses, as I travel to Charlotte Mon-Thur, and home in Chicago on Fri-Sun.

I'm going to just get CATV through Charter ... sucks, but seems to be the easiest way to go.

I am going to give DTV a call to see what they have to say.

[compnurd]

Thanks for the advice, I do need service as both addresses, as I travel to Charlotte Mon-Thur, and home in Chicago on Fri-Sun.

I'm going to just get CATV through Charter ... sucks, but seems to be the easiest way to go.

I am going to give DTV a call to see what they have to say.

I did that for 6 months earlier this year from Charlotte to Hartford CT.

[dicklaff]

I am a "snowbird" and for the past 10 years have changed my location twice a year. The first time I called movers connection when I went to Fl. and they came and installed a new dish, I brought my own receivers. Now every 6 months I move and when I arrive I call D and change my Zip code to receive local channels.
Up north I have 3 receivers and take 2 south. The other one stays north and we use it when we take short trips back. Only drawback is I can't get local channels as I don't change zip codes for a few day stay!