Ridiculous chat session with customer service

[paulainmo]

Ok. This may not be the forum to post this, but it's such incredibly bad customer service that I had to share it. After almost 30 minutes of waiting to be helped, this is what I got. This is the real chat log that I copied. I am Paula and Phillip is the CS rep for Dish I was talking to:

Phillip: How can I provide you with the best value and service today?
Paula: My satellite is losing signal.
Phillip: I’m very sorry to hear that you are having an issue. I’d be happy to resolve that for you.
Paula: I have unplugged it for 15 seconds like it said to. It's only one of the satellites. The other one (119) is fine
Phillip: I show that it is raining in your area, and that is whats causing the signal to go out
Paula: it's not
Phillip: I show that it is
Paula: it hasn't rained here all day
Phillip: I show that it is
Paula: I promise you. It is not raining here. It may be somewhere nearby but not here
Phillip: im sorry but I show it is, and I can not trouble shoot when it is
Paula: are you freaking kidding me? I waited on hold this long just so you could argue with me over whether or not it is raining here? IT IS NOT RAINING.
Phillip: im sorry but I show it is, and I can not trouble shoot when it is

[paulainmo]

I would love to if I wasn't stuck in a contract with Dish. I don't want to be slammed with a bunch of fees. I believe that would be what one calls "being screwed". Argh (sorry didn't mean to get all piratey).

[phrelin]

:welcome_s

Yes, that was a pretty awful response. Just to check, did you select technical support? (Sounds like you did, but need to check.)

Your not going to like it, but the best option when something like that happens is what's known as CSR roulette - only in this case TSR roulette. Over the years, I and others here have discovered the when you have a moron on the Dish end, all you can do is politely terminate the contact and try again.

Usually technical support people are ok. So you should be able to get someone on the second try.

By the way, there are some here from your state, so if you feel like it, add information about what model receiver or DVR you have, where you get your locals (St. Louis, Kansas City???) and what channel you're watching when the signal drops. Others might be having a problem or have fixed a problem.

[paulainmo]

:welcome_s

Yes, that was a pretty awful response. Just to check, did you select technical support? (Sounds like you did, but need to check.)

Your not going to like it, but the best option when something like that happens is what's known as CSR roulette - only in this case TSR roulette. Over the years, I and others here have discovered the when you have a moron on the Dish end, all you can do is politely terminate the contact and try again.

Usually technical support people are ok. So you should be able to get someone on the second try.

By the way, there are some here from your state, so if you feel like it, add information about what model receiver or DVR you have, where you get your locals (St. Louis, Kansas City???) and what channel you're watching when the signal drops. Others might be having a problem or have fixed a problem.

Thank you Phrelin for your reply,
I did finally get a different tech support person who was more helpful. My problem now is that they want me to pay for someone to come out here ($95+) or $163 to cancel service. If I was in anyway responsible for the problem I could understand that; however, I have had this exact same problem with this exact same satellite for the last year. The first time being days after it was installed. After 3 technician visits, they fixed it for a few months. Now, same problem again. The technicians all blamed the previous ones for the problem so I know for a fact that it is caused by something done by the installers or technicians, so I think it is outrageous to expect me to pay more. I'm a reasonable person, but this is not a reasonable request.

[phrelin]

You have a choice. You could sign up for the service plan which would drop the cost of the call (I think to $15). Or, if you have the patience, you could send a polite email to ceo@dishnetwork.com explaining your history and include the phone number associated with your account and a daytime phone number. It can take up to ten days for the administrative office folks to get back to you, but they are usually pretty good about it and do solve problems.

[paulainmo]

You have a choice. You could sign up for the service plan which would drop the cost of the call (I think to $15). Or, if you have the patience, you could send a polite email to ceo@dishnetwork.com explaining your history and include the phone number associated with your account and a daytime phone number. It can take up to ten days for the administrative office folks to get back to you, but they are usually pretty good about it and do solve problems.
Again, Phrelin, thank you for your help. My only problem with the service plan idea is that I will still end up paying a lot for someone to come out since I will then have the added monthly fee for the service plan plus another $25 if I cancel the service plan. So, I'm going to take your advice and contact the ceo. You have been WAY more helpful than Phillip. Maybe Dish should get rid of Phillip and save themselves some customers. I'm not trying to be rude at all, but it only takes one poor CSR to do a lot of damage to a company. Again, thank you for your very prompt and helpful assistance.

[boba]

Thank you Phrelin for your reply,
I did finally get a different tech support person who was more helpful. My problem now is that they want me to pay for someone to come out here ($95+) or $163 to cancel service. If I was in anyway responsible for the problem I could understand that; however, I have had this exact same problem with this exact same satellite for the last year. The first time being days after it was installed. After 3 technician visits, they fixed it for a few months. Now, same problem again. The technicians all blamed the previous ones for the problem so I know for a fact that it is caused by something done by the installers or technicians, so I think it is outrageous to expect me to pay more. I'm a reasonable person, but this is not a reasonable request.

Be reasonable and understand with SATELLITE unlike cable you are responsible for maintaining your system. The original install had a 90 day warranty and each service call you had should have extended that warranty by 90 days. After the last 90 day period elapsed it became your responsibility to maintain your system. $15 for protection plan and $25 for cancellation is still a cheap service call rate so unless you can do it yourself.:)

[finniganps]

Be reasonable and understand with SATELLITE unlike cable you are responsible for maintaining your system. The original install had a 90 day warranty and each service call you had should have extended that warranty by 90 days. After the last 90 day period elapsed it became your responsibility to maintain your system. $15 for protection plan and $25 for cancellation is still a cheap service call rate so unless you can do it yourself.:)

I agree with this posting completely. I also hate the service charges if the technician comes out...but I definately appreciate that I pay less every month (then cable) because they don't charge more so that a tech can come and fix a problem for "free".

[phrelin]

Be reasonable and understand with SATELLITE unlike cable you are responsible for maintaining your system. The original install had a 90 day warranty and each service call you had should have extended that warranty by 90 days. After the last 90 day period elapsed it became your responsibility to maintain your system. $15 for protection plan and $25 for cancellation is still a cheap service call rate so unless you can do it yourself.:)Normally, I'd agree but I suggested the ceo@ because of this part of paulainmo's third post (emphasis added): ...I have had this exact same problem with this exact same satellite for the last year. The first time being days after it was installed. After 3 technician visits, they fixed it for a few months. Now, same problem again. The technicians all blamed the previous ones for the problem so I know for a fact that it is caused by something done by the installers or technicians....Something was wrong at the original install that is recurring. Because we're talking electronics, it may be one of those mysterious things nobody can find a cause for in a normal service call, but one can make go away for awhile.

[Nick]

paulainmo, let me also welcome you to the board. We're glad that you found us, . DBSTalk.com has been in operation since 2001 and has over 90,000 registered members. The board tallies over a million unique visitors every year.

Hang out here for a while and you will find more help and information on a variety of topics than you could ever have imagined.

Again, welcome!

[paulainmo]

I would be alright with this had it worked from the beginning or even after the first technician came out. Since I had to pay for the 3rd technician to come out and it is still recurring, I refuse to pay more. On the 2nd technician's visit, I asked about just cancelling it as I had the dish for about 2 months by then and was only able to view half of the channels from day 1, but was paying for all of the channels. At that time, I was told I would have to pay an incredibly high cancellation fee, so I decided I had no other choice but to have them fix it again. So, I completely disagree with you. I've paid and paid for this system and have not had it work smoothly for MOST of the time I have been paying for it. None of this is anything I have done wrong. As a matter of fact, one technician even gave me his direct cell number and asked that I call them directly instead of reporting it through Dish as they would be docked for the problem. This is not good customer service, so you comment is not a realistic expectation for me when I have been a solid paying customer and, I think, more than patient waiting on Dish's end of the committment to be properly fulfilled.

[paulainmo]

I agree with this posting completely. I also hate the service charges if the technician comes out...but I definately appreciate that I pay less every month (then cable) because they don't charge more so that a tech can come and fix a problem for "free".

The problem is, I haven't paid less than cable. I have been paying for channels I can't see and I have already paid and paid. This system was not working properly from the beginning, so paying any additional fees for a poor installation or malfunctioning equipment is not good customer service and I think it only shows how they care about getting my money with no regard to doing a good job. I've continued to pay and pay. At what point does someone else have to take responsibility for their poor work?

[paulainmo]

Be reasonable and understand with SATELLITE unlike cable you are responsible for maintaining your system. The original install had a 90 day warranty and each service call you had should have extended that warranty by 90 days. After the last 90 day period elapsed it became your responsibility to maintain your system. $15 for protection plan and $25 for cancellation is still a cheap service call rate so unless you can do it yourself.:)

According to your own post then, the installation came with a 90 day warranty, 1st technician visit extends that for another 90 days, 2nd technician = another 90 days, 3rd = another 90 days. That's 360 days total, so they should fix it for free as next month will be the 360 days. So why am I getting the runaround if it, according to your post, is still under warranty?

[l8er]

According to your own post then, the installation came with a 90 day warranty, 1st technician visit extends that for another 90 days, 2nd technician = another 90 days, 3rd = another 90 days. That's 360 days total, so they should fix it for free as next month will be the 360 days. So why am I getting the runaround if it, according to your post, is still under warranty? I believe he meant 90 days after each technician's visit. Your math only adds up if the next tech came out at the end of the 90 day count from the previous tech.

I'm just curious why you would put up with not getting all the channels you were paying for, for close to a year. Any installation done correctly should be good for several years - unless something is changing at your end - like a tree growing, house shifting, wasps building a nest over the feedhorn on the dish, neighbor tampering with the dish, etc.

[paulainmo]

I believe he meant 90 days after each technician's visit. Your math only adds up if the next tech came out at the end of the 90 day count from the previous tech.

I'm just curious why you would put up with not getting all the channels you were paying for, for close to a year. Any installation done correctly should be good for several years - unless something is changing at your end - like a tree growing, house shifting, wasps building a nest over the feedhorn on the dish, neighbor tampering with the dish, etc.

I put up with it because I didn't have a choice. I kept paying my bill, because I didn't want to pay the huge cancellation fee. I kept calling. Like I said, for a little while, the 3rd technician had it working fine. Then, it came back. The other 2 technician's would also get it working for a short time. All I'm asking is for a problem that has been present the beginning to be fixed, for good. I really don't think it's unreasonable. I find it unreasonable to be charged to fix it. That's all I want. If it takes a new system, then so be it. Although, if that's the case, I really don't want the original installers doing it. All I want is to be treated fairly. If this were a vehicle, Lemon Laws would cover it.