cboylan3
05-30-05, 06:00 PM
.....still refuses to admit mistake.
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/columnists/citizen_watchdog/11729451.htm
The sute requires username and password so I'm copy/paste the whole article.
Man gets static with dish-TV bill
Service stopped in Florida, but the charges kept coming
BY DEBRA O'CONNOR
Pioneer Press
When Randy Hayne of North Oaks examined his credit card statement a little more closely than usual last fall, he was startled to find he was still being billed for dish-TV service at a Florida house he hadn't lived in for 19 months. He was out $859.94.
So he contacted DirecTV to tell them he distinctly remembered notifying the company when he moved. It was their mistake, he said, and he wanted his money back.
The company told him it had no record of his earlier call. Besides, someone there added, it's his responsibility to check his credit card bill every month. If there was an error, he should have spotted it long before this.
Still, DirecTV offered to knock two months of charges off the bill — about $90. Hayne said that wasn't acceptable, pointing out the company also had been billing the new owner of his old house. The refund offer rose to $300, but stuck there. He was responsible for the rest, he was told.
Even the Minnesota Attorney General's Office couldn't persuade the company to change its mind. Then Hayne turned to the Pioneer Press Watchdog.
He sent a flurry of documents, including a handwritten list of various utilities and their account and phone numbers. The list included DirecTV, with the notation "stopped service as of 3-5-03." After looking over the paperwork, the Watchdog contacted DirecTV.
Company spokeswoman Donna Underhill invoked the "R-word" right off the bat. "We're all responsible for taking a look at our bills," she said. "DirecTV is going to stand by its original letter." After a bit, though, she relented enough to allow an e-mail that asked for another look at the account. Bob Marsocci, vice president of communications, called back after a few Watchdog messages.
"(Hayne) is responsible for the payment," he said. The Watchdog wanted to know what DirecTV is responsible for. "We're responsible for providing our customers … with an invoice that clearly explains what they're being charged for." So it's up to the customer to find errors on his credit card bill. But isn't DirecTV responsible for giving the money back when one of its customers discovers the company has been double-billing an address?
At first Marsocci disputed that. It took him several days — and a couple of reminder calls — to confirm the company had been double-billing, however inadvertently. The Watchdog took the easy route to finding out, picking up the phone to call Donald Epstein, who now lives in Hayne's house. Epstein affirmed that he had two DirecTV receivers installed in time for the football preseason. At that time, the installer took Hayne's ID card and told Epstein to throw away the old receiver, Epstein said.
"He certainly shouldn't have been getting charged for it," he said. "What it amounts to is that they were double-dipping." Even so, Marsocci insisted that Hayne couldn't have canceled his service in March 2003, because it wasn't shown in the company's records. Couldn't the company have made a mistake? Marsocci was unwilling to concede that.
At this point, the Watchdog agreed with Hayne that one way to break the stalemate would be to take the matter to conciliation court, where folks can try to convince a judge that they are right and the other party is wrong. Hayne said he was willing to give it a try.
Because you don't need a lawyer to represent you, it's an inexpensive option for anyone who feels they've been treated unfairly in disputes involving modest amounts of money. But for DirecTV, sending a representative to St. Paul could get expensive.
All of a sudden, Marsocci wanted to talk to someone farther up the company's ladder. Soon DirecTV offered to pay Hayne back $581.60, which at least covers the number of months the Florida house was double-billed.
Sounded good to Hayne, who said he's had enough of this problem.
"I'll take it!" he said. "You're the best!"
Editor's note: Feel like an underdog because of a problem with a business, government agency or school? Maybe the Pioneer Press Watchdog can help. Go to www.twincities.com and follow the link to our Watchdog home page. Or call 651-228-5419 or e-mail watchdog@pioneerpress.com.
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/columnists/citizen_watchdog/11729451.htm
The sute requires username and password so I'm copy/paste the whole article.
Man gets static with dish-TV bill
Service stopped in Florida, but the charges kept coming
BY DEBRA O'CONNOR
Pioneer Press
When Randy Hayne of North Oaks examined his credit card statement a little more closely than usual last fall, he was startled to find he was still being billed for dish-TV service at a Florida house he hadn't lived in for 19 months. He was out $859.94.
So he contacted DirecTV to tell them he distinctly remembered notifying the company when he moved. It was their mistake, he said, and he wanted his money back.
The company told him it had no record of his earlier call. Besides, someone there added, it's his responsibility to check his credit card bill every month. If there was an error, he should have spotted it long before this.
Still, DirecTV offered to knock two months of charges off the bill — about $90. Hayne said that wasn't acceptable, pointing out the company also had been billing the new owner of his old house. The refund offer rose to $300, but stuck there. He was responsible for the rest, he was told.
Even the Minnesota Attorney General's Office couldn't persuade the company to change its mind. Then Hayne turned to the Pioneer Press Watchdog.
He sent a flurry of documents, including a handwritten list of various utilities and their account and phone numbers. The list included DirecTV, with the notation "stopped service as of 3-5-03." After looking over the paperwork, the Watchdog contacted DirecTV.
Company spokeswoman Donna Underhill invoked the "R-word" right off the bat. "We're all responsible for taking a look at our bills," she said. "DirecTV is going to stand by its original letter." After a bit, though, she relented enough to allow an e-mail that asked for another look at the account. Bob Marsocci, vice president of communications, called back after a few Watchdog messages.
"(Hayne) is responsible for the payment," he said. The Watchdog wanted to know what DirecTV is responsible for. "We're responsible for providing our customers … with an invoice that clearly explains what they're being charged for." So it's up to the customer to find errors on his credit card bill. But isn't DirecTV responsible for giving the money back when one of its customers discovers the company has been double-billing an address?
At first Marsocci disputed that. It took him several days — and a couple of reminder calls — to confirm the company had been double-billing, however inadvertently. The Watchdog took the easy route to finding out, picking up the phone to call Donald Epstein, who now lives in Hayne's house. Epstein affirmed that he had two DirecTV receivers installed in time for the football preseason. At that time, the installer took Hayne's ID card and told Epstein to throw away the old receiver, Epstein said.
"He certainly shouldn't have been getting charged for it," he said. "What it amounts to is that they were double-dipping." Even so, Marsocci insisted that Hayne couldn't have canceled his service in March 2003, because it wasn't shown in the company's records. Couldn't the company have made a mistake? Marsocci was unwilling to concede that.
At this point, the Watchdog agreed with Hayne that one way to break the stalemate would be to take the matter to conciliation court, where folks can try to convince a judge that they are right and the other party is wrong. Hayne said he was willing to give it a try.
Because you don't need a lawyer to represent you, it's an inexpensive option for anyone who feels they've been treated unfairly in disputes involving modest amounts of money. But for DirecTV, sending a representative to St. Paul could get expensive.
All of a sudden, Marsocci wanted to talk to someone farther up the company's ladder. Soon DirecTV offered to pay Hayne back $581.60, which at least covers the number of months the Florida house was double-billed.
Sounded good to Hayne, who said he's had enough of this problem.
"I'll take it!" he said. "You're the best!"
Editor's note: Feel like an underdog because of a problem with a business, government agency or school? Maybe the Pioneer Press Watchdog can help. Go to www.twincities.com and follow the link to our Watchdog home page. Or call 651-228-5419 or e-mail watchdog@pioneerpress.com.