Today I tried to cancel my service with Directv and they said I have a contract. About a year ago their DVR burned up so I went and bought a new one at a store to replace it. They are saying that I'm leasing it and I have another year on a contract. I don't think so, I bought the new DVR and when I hooked up the new DVR nothing was said about a lease, a contract or anything else. When I explained to the lady what was taking place I was transfered to a guy that further pissed me off. He wanted to know how much I paid for the DVR. What does that matter? I can't cancel my service without going there a bunch of BS. And people wonder why there is postal attitude... Please give me some assistance with cancelling my service. Thank you very much.

I was given a credit to remain a customer with Directv, I accepted and didn't cancel. A month later I found out that my credit was removed. I was told by a supervisor that the rep that gave me the credit used her own dicretion but other reps have the right to remove the credit. I am now being charged $207 when I thought I had a zero balance.

I have been with Directv since Nov. '07. I paid my bill religiously every month since the start of my service.My service was bundled with my aunt's phone from verizon at first but I called Verizon and told them to separate it and I will deal directly with Directv.In Aug. '08 I received a bill that was twice the regular amount.I called Directv and I was told that Verizon has sent them a charge to add to my account but they don't know what it is for and I have to call Verizon and ask them.I called Verizon and I was told that the charges were the difference from when I was paying a cheaper price in the bundle and now over 6 months later they are going back to recover it.I called Directv again and explained what i was told and told the representative that I want to cancel because I don't want to deal with a company that adds extra charges to your account without knowing what they are charging you for.Especially when I have been paying on time every month since I started my service.She agreed that the charges didnt seem fair and offered to give me a $150 credit to not cancel my account.I accepted and didn't cancel.I called Directv again about 2 months later to cancel and spoke to another representative who told me that she was going to remove my credit if I cancel.I told her that the credit was put on there to keep me as a customer otherwise I would have cancelled already.I asked for a supervisor and she told me someone would call me no one called and i cancelled a month later.

Misrepresentations made about installation, upgrades and charges. All my dealings with this company have been difficult and they don't do what they promise

I've used Directv for a few years now only because Comcast didn't offer as much. If you can put up with glitches, no sound at times, tiled and frozen screens and poor weather reception then they're your company.
I had a Tech (they are not techs) to my home to fix a no sound problem. He left with no cable connection so I could record a program and watch another and added a broken up picture (tiled). I called Diredtv the same day to tell them my problem. The problem now was because the first guy screwed it up it becomes some kind of "Special Management" case and requires a manager to allow the guy to come back to fix the problem.
I first called Diredtv on the Friday they were here. It took six days to finally have a "Manager" call me. That was after calling them everyday for six days. Then this idiot of a manager says it will be another five days until a tech can return. That's a total of eleven days without TV reception.
This kind of business incompetence should be addressed by the FCC.
Anyone considering doing business with Directv should surely think twice. They're reception is poor.
They're HD recorders take several seconds to just change the another channel. I don't have enough room here to say all that I've found unsatisfactory with diredtv. Find someone else, PLEASE

Log of complaints with DirecTV
This log is intended as record of problems I have dealt with DirecTV and is intended to be used in case of litigation or as a testimony to either the cable company or DirecTV in the future.


Problem #1 12/16/07
Details: I was recording the Saturday night football game so that I could watch it later this evening. I went to list selected the game and began watching the game. With the score 0 - 0 in the first quarter the TV went blank and a message came on the screen saying that the receiver was resetting. It came back up in a setup program asking questions I could not answer so I called your 1-800#. First of all your automated answering system is rediculous, it took me several minutes to get to talk with someone
that could help me. When I got to customer service they walked me throught the setup and got my service back up BUT the game I had recorded was no longer on my play list and I could not retreive it, so I lost the game that I had been all set to watch. I was warned by others not to leave cable and go to satelite but I didn't listen. Now I know what my friends were warning me about. If this is the kind of experience I can expect form you then I will contact a lawyer to get out of my contract and go to the
internet and tell the truth about Satelite service. I am very disappointed with your service and I've only had it for a few months. I was a cable customer for 20+ years and never had an experience like this.NOT HAPPY

Resolution: 12/19/07
Positive
Called the complaint office and they apologized for the loss of my game and gave me a $10 discount for the next 12 months for a total of $120 discount. Plus if I take the NFL ticket next year they will give me the additional super fan feature for free.

Problem #2 01/05/08
After holding on line for way too long I sent the following complaint through their web site.

Customer 01/05/2008 03:55 PM
DIRECTV FEEDBACK MESSAGE

Name: CHARLES ENSCOE
Status:
[Account Number: 68922384]
[Phone Number: 5858721081]
Email Address: [email protected]
[Topic Selected: DIRECTV Billing]

I have been on hold all day trying to talk with an agent so I will try this.

I just received my first bill since coming off the promotion package. You have charged me for two packages. You charged me for Choice @$49.99 AND Plus DVR @$59.99. You should have only charged me for Plus DVR @59.99. Also there are some discrepancies with partial charges in adjustments and credits.

I am not off to a very good start with your company. In fact I have decided to start keeping a journal of all these problems including the times I lose reception in case I have to take action in the future.

Please contact me when you have resolved this issue.

-----Original Message-----
From: DIRECTV Customer Service [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Sunday, January 06, 2008 9:40 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Over billed [Reference #: 080105-005057]


Subject
Over billed

Discussion Thread
Response (Josephine) 01/06/2008 06:39 PM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thanks for writing and for letting us know your concern about the charges on your DIRECTV account. I appreciate the opportunity to assist you today.

I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and confusion this situation has caused and I understand that you should only have the PlusDVR package. In order to resolve this, I went ahead and cancelled Choice then issued a total credit of $51.66. You'll see this credit reflected on your next DIRECTV bill, or you can see it immediately by signing into your DIRECTV account online at directv.com/mydirectv and clicking on "View Recent Activity" in the My Account column.

At this time, your account shows a remaining balance of $87.35. If you still have any questions regarding your bill, just write us back or call us at 1-800-531-5000 and one of our Customer Service Representatives will be glad to assist you. You can verify your online bill access by signing into your account and clicking on "View Statement;" you should immediately see a list of at most twenty four statements available for you to view.

I hope this information clarifies your recent bill. Thanks again for writing and stay tuned to directv.com for the latest news and information about our services.

Sincerely,

Josephine L.
Employee ID 100124836
DIRECTV Customer Service

I replied through email sent Mon 1/7/2008 8:33 AM
Dear
Josephine L.
Employee ID 100124836
DIRECTV Customer Service


By my calculation my bill should be $77.35 and not the $87.35 you have stated in the note below. I have a $10.00 monthly credit from an earlier agreement which looks like it has been applied but I see a $10.00 charge for Protection Plan Cancel which I don’t understand. I was on your 4 month promotion plan which expired 12/30/07 so how can you charge me for a cancellation?


Please respond and let me know the resolution to this inquiry.

Thank you,
Chuck & Chieko Enscoe
621 Bending Bough Dr.
Webster, NY 14580
585-872-1081


1/7/08 Their Response
Subject
RE: Over billed [Reference #: 080105-005057]

Discussion Thread
Response (Allain L)
01/07/2008 04:24 PM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thank you for writing us back. I understand your concern about getting charged $10 for canceling the DIRECTV Protection Plan and I apologize for any confusion that this may have caused. Please allow me to address your concern.

I checked your records and found that you signed up for the special NFL SUNDAY TICKET offer that included four months of free PREMIER and DVR Service. Please note that this offer did not include getting the Protection Plan free of charge.

In addition, I'd also like to let you know that you were supposed to keep the Protection Plan for one year. Since you cancelled the Protection Plan within your first year, you were charged a $10 Protection Plan cancellation fee.

I hope this clarifies your concerns. Should you have further questions, please email us back or call us at 1-800-531-5000 and a Customer Service specialist will be most happy to assist you.

Thank you again for writing and giving us the opportunity to respond to your needs.

Sincerely,

Allain L.
Employee ID 100164310
DIRECTV Customer Service

Summary to problem #2.
They did in fact over bill me and made the correction but on the correction they charged me an additional $10 for canceling my protection plan. The protection plan was something that came with the original promotion and not something I asked for. The charge for the protection plan is $5.99 per month. When I switched over to the plus package the cancel protection plan was already a default selection so I left it that way. Now they tell me there is a $10 penalty for canceling the protection plan within a one year time frame. So they sign you up for a 4 month promotion knowing full well that you will most likely change plans after the promotion period is up and when you don’t select the protection plan they bill you $10, something they never explained in the first place. I could go back and complain some more but it’s just not worth the aggravation I have dealing with these people. I’ll eat the $10 this time and hope my problems go away.

Problem #3 02/01/08
Details: Friday night about 11:45PM signal started getting patchy, breaking up. By midnight I had completely lost the signal caused by ice and snow build up on my dish. This kind of thing only rarely happened with cable.
Resolution: 02/02/08
Positive/Negative: By the next morning I had my signal back, but with cable I wouldn’t have lost the signal.

Problem #4 02/05/08
Details: Tuesday night I tried to rewind the news on channel 10 and the DVR would not rewind. Called 1-800-531-5000 again.

Resolution: 02/05/08
Positive/Negative
After getting through their automated messages and being put on hold I got customer service. I explained the problem to CS and after taking my information and problem description she put me on hold for some time. She realized that she couldn’t help me so she transferred me to Technical support. Again on hold but in less than a minute of hold I got hold of a technician. It took a half hour on the phone with the tech before he realized that there was nothing he could do on his end to fix the problem. I found out that the DVR has never worked properly because he explained that if I hit record in the middle of a program that it should go back to the beginning of the program. Mine never has, if I hit record in the middle of a program it just records from the point I hit record. So this has been faulty from the beginning. They are charging me $19.95 for shipping to send me a new DVR and have me send the old one back. Since I am getting a new DVR I will lose all the programs I have stored on the disc. To appease me they are giving me 3 months of free movie channels so that I can record new movies onto my disc. That’s a $36 value so it makes up for some of my misery. Techs name was Mike employee #410653. When I hook up the new DVR I have to call 1-800-695-9251 pin #1439 which will get me right to Tech support without the crazy automated messages. I need to tell them that I want to activate my new DVR and deactivate my old DVR.

02/09/08 11:56AM
I received my new DVR yesterday afternoon but it was too late in the day to install it as we had company coming over for dinner. I installed the new DVR on Saturday morning.
Old DVR:
Rcv ID 0023 9629 0732
Ser# A02CA7GH131454
Model # R15-100
Access card # 0019 8044 3517

New DVR:
Rcv ID 0008 7922 7049
Ser# B02AF7BA310978
Model # R15-300
Access card # 0021 6298 5358

The new DVR is much smaller than the old DVR so I had to use the older DVR’s box that I had kept from the original installation to ship the DVR back to DirecTV.
FedEx return shipping info
Shipping label # 26283283
SKU: R15-300C-R
Order # 0377209568
PO# 0013425033000010
Ship date: 06FEB08
Trk # 9450 1585 2918
After installing the DVR I called tech support and spoke with Lawrence who helped me through the guided installation then deactivated the old card and activated the new access card. I related to Lawrence that I spoke with other DirecTV customers and they said that I shouldn’t have to pay the $19.95 shipping because this DVR was defective from the start. Lawrence didn’t argue, he explained that it was a FedEx charge and not DirecTV but because of the circumstances that he would credit my account the $19.95. I thanked him and soon after I got an email from DirecTV showing the transaction.

I also explained that the new DVR was much smaller physically and that I couldn’t use the same shipping box. He said it was ok to use the other box I had in my possession.

End of call was 12:20PM

Keeping a hard copy of this transaction in my Feb billing folder.


Problem #5 2/26/08 8:30 PM

Connecticut at Rutgers basketball was supposed to be shown on channel 621 MSG but when I went to watch it I got a message 721 not available in this area. Called customer service 1-800-531-5000. Spoke with a Sarah who tried to troubleshoot the problem by having me reset my receiver then she ran me through setup and had me verify satellite data info. None of this worked. She transferred me to the technical department and I spoke with Jeremiah. I had to run through my problem again with him and he put me on hold for several minutes. He got back to me and said I should not be blacked out there must be a problem on their end and that he was going to have to escalate the problem, he sent an email off to engineering letting them know the problem but that doesn’t help me one bit on watching this game. He asked me if he had answered all my questions and I said no he hadn’t answered me on when I could see the game. He answered that it would be resolved when engineering fixed the problem and there was nothing he could do on his end other than apologize. I told him that I was building a case by documenting all these incidents as I never had these problems while I was a cable customer and that I was going to try to get out of my contract. He said once again he apologized but there was nothing more he could do. I got his employee #W2393 and told him that I was an unhappy customer. No basketball game tonight. 9:20PM almost an hour on the phone.

I logged on to DirecTV and sent a message to customer service with the above comments and asked them how I could get out of my contract without paying a penalty. Time of message sent to customer service 9:39PM



Subject
Blacked out and missed game

Discussion Thread
Response (Arlene S) 02/27/2008 04:23 AM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thanks for writing. I'm sorry to hear about the problems you had watching the basketball game. Let me assist you with your concern.

I just wanted to let you know that we received your email and I have forwarded it to a sport specialist who will research your email and follow up with you. Please note that due to high volume it may take a few days for a specialist to contact you. For immediate assistance, please call us at 1-800-531-5000.

Thanks again for writing, we appreciate your patience and understanding.

Sincerely,

Arlene S.
Employee ID 100235362
DIRECTV Customer Service

Make the most of DIRECTV by registering your account on directv.com. You'll learn about exclusive online promotions, new features of DIRECTV and the latest programs and packages. Visit www.directv.com/register today.
Customer (Entered by Arlene S) 02/27/2008 04:23 AM
DIRECTV FEEDBACK MESSAGE

Name: CHARLES ENSCOE
Status:
[Account Number: 68922384]
[Phone Number: 5858721081]
Email Address: [email protected]
[Topic Selected: Sports]

Details: I have pasted the following excerpt from my problem log that I use to document all the problems I have with your service. Problem #5 2/26/08 8:30 PM Connecticut at Rutgers basketball was supposed to be shown on channel 621 MSG but when I went to watch it I got a message 721 not available in this area. Called customer service 1-800-531-5000. Spoke with a Sarah who tried to troubleshoot the problem by having me reset my receiver then she ran me through setup and had me verify satellite data info. None
of this worked. She transferred me to the technical department and I spoke with Jeremiah. I had to run through my problem again with him and he put me on hold for several minutes. He got back to me and said I should not be blacked out there must be a problem on their end and that he was going to have to escalate the problem, he sent an email off to engineering letting them know the problem but that doesn't help me one bit on watching this game. He asked me if he had answered all my questions and I said no he
hadnt answered me on when I could see the game. He answered that it would be resolved when engineering fixed the problem and there was nothing he could do on his end other than apologize. I told him that I was building a case by documenting all these incidents as I never had these problems while I was a cable customer and that I was going to try to get out of my contract. He said once again he apologized but there was nothing more he could do. I got his employee #W2393 and told him that I was an unhappy
customer. No basketball game tonight. 9:20PM almost an hour on the phone. It is now 9:39PM and as I write this channel 621 has come back on as the basketball game is now over. There is no way I should have missed this game. What do I have to do to legally get out of my contract without paying a penalty?


-----Original Message-----
From: DIRECTV Customer Service [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 6:23 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Blacked out and missed game [Reference #: 080226-006720]


Subject
Blacked out and missed game

Discussion Thread
Response (BP Michael H) 02/27/2008 03:23 PM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thanks for writing. I am sorry that you were not able to view the Rutgers/ UCONN basketball game on Madison Square Garden network. I will be able to address your concern today.

As the provider of the most comprehensive sports programming lineup in the digital home entertainment industry, it's challenging to describe the blackout rules for many different locations and sports briefly. Please visit our web site at directv.com/blackouts for our general blackout FAQ, and click on the specific sports package you're interested in for more detailed information.

We realize blackouts can be confusing and sometimes frustrating to our customers. However, to honor our agreements with the leagues and other owners of broadcast rights, we must pay close attention to the restrictions that we are required to follow.

As a reminder, When you started your DIRECTV account, you were given very specific information regarding cancellation of services before the agreed upon programming commitment. The programming commitment is in return for discounted equipment. We agree to lease you our equipment at a reduced rate and you intern, agree to keep DIRECTV services for a period ranging from 18-24 months.

I hope you find this information helpful and thank you again for writing.

Sincerely,

Michael H. ID#U8397
DIRECTV Customer Service

Make the most of DIRECTV by registering your account on directv.com. You'll learn about exclusive online promotions, new features of DIRECTV and the latest programs and packages. Visit www.directv.com/register today.
Customer 02/26/2008 06:42 PM
DIRECTV FEEDBACK MESSAGE

Name: CHARLES ENSCOE
Status:
[Account Number: 68922384]
[Phone Number: 5858721081]
Email Address: [email protected]
[Topic Selected: Sports]

Details: I have pasted the following excerpt from my problem log that I use to document all the problems I have with your service. Problem #4 2/26/08 8:30 PMConnecticut at Rutgers basketball was supposed to be shown on channel 621 MSG but when I went to watch it I got a message 721 not available in this area. Called customer service 1-800-531-5000. Spoke with a Sarah who tried to troubleshoot the problem by having me reset my receiver then she ran me through setup and had me verify satellite data info. None
of this worked. She transferred me to the technical department and I spoke with Jeremiah. I had to run through my problem again with him and he put me on hold for several minutes. He got back to me and said I should not be blacked out there must be a problem on their end and that he was going to have to escalate the problem, he sent an email off to engineering letting them know the problem but that doesnt help me one bit on watching this game. He asked me if he had answered all my questions and I said no he
hadnt answered me on when I could see the game. He answered that it would be resolved when engineering fixed the problem and there was nothing he could do on his end other than apologize. I told him that I was building a case by documenting all these incidents as I never had these problems while I was a cable customer and that I was going to try to get out of my contract. He said once again he apologized but there was nothing more he could do. I got his employee #W2393 and told him that I was an unhappy
customer. No basketball game tonight. 9:20PM almost an hour on the phone. It is now 9:39PM and as I write this channel 621 has come back on as the basketball game is now over. There is no way I should have missed this game. What do I have to do to legally get out of my contract without paying a penalty?

2/27/08
Dear Michael H. ID#U8397
DIRECTV Customer Service

I have read your blackout rules but they are very ambiguous especially the statement “If a local off–air broadcast channel (not ABC, NBC, CBS or FOX) or local cable system has rights to broadcast a game in a certain region, customers in that area will be unable to receive that game through their DIRECTV® subscription(s). “ Does that mean that if Time Warner cable is showing something that DirecTV can’t show it. If so then you couldn’t show anything because Time Warner shows all that you have and more. That can’t be correct or you wouldn’t be able to show anything.

This particular game was broadcast on Channel 621 Madison Square Gardens which is available to my account Plus DVR with Sports Pack. It was not being shown locally on any channel. Your customer service representative (Sarah) verified that I should not be blacked out and tried to fix the problem. She escalated the call to Tech support and your Tech support representative Jeremiah employee ID #W2393 also verified that I should not be blacked out. He was able to see the game on HD but not on 621. So either your own representatives don’t understand the blackout rules or you are incorrect. Since I don’t feel that your correspondence with me has sufficiently addressed the problem I would like this to be elevated to your supervisor for further investigation.



Thank you,
Chuck & Chieko Enscoe
621 Bending Bough Dr.
Webster, NY 14580
585-872-1081

Subject
RE: Blacked out and missed game [Reference #: 080226-006720]

Discussion Thread
Response (Noel B) 02/27/2008 09:11 PM
Dear Chuck & Chieko Enscoe,

Thanks for writing us back about your sports programming concern. I'm sorry to learn that we were not able to address your specific concern with our previous response. I just wanted to let you know that we received your email and I have forwarded it to a specialist who will research your email and follow up with you within the next 48 hours. For immediate assistance, please call us at 1-800-531-5000.

Thank you for your patience and understanding and for providing us with the opportunity to be of service to you.

Sincerely,

Noel B.
Employee ID 100135478
DIRECTV Customer Service

Make the most of DIRECTV by registering your account on directv.com. You'll learn about exclusive online promotions, new features of DIRECTV and the latest programs and packages. Visit www.directv.com/register today.
Customer (Entered by Noel B) 02/27/2008 09:11 PM
.

Resolution #5: 02/05/08
Negative

Subject
RE: Blacked out and missed game [Reference #: 080226-006720] [Reference #: 080227-007359]

Discussion Thread
Response (AV Josh D) 03/01/2008 09:35 AM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thank you for taking the time to write. The reason why the Rutgers and Connecticut game was incorrectly blacked out in your area is not known. We were able to open an escalation to our broadcast department to try and resolve the problem that night as quickly as possible but as you have stated we were unable to resolve the problem before the end of the game. I do apologize that you were unable to see the game due to the technical problems we were experiencing.

We do strive for perfection to not have any of these types of issues arise for customers who are supposed to receive the correct programming but for unspecified technical reasons are not able to receive the programming. Please be aware that we cannot guarantee it will not happen again but we will work as hard as we possibly can to ensure you that all of our customers receive the programming they are supposed to.

Thanks again for writing and I thank you very much for your patience and understanding.

Sincerely,


Joshua D. Y4368
DIRECTV Customer Service


Problem #6 3/14/08 7:50 PM

It's happening again. Back on Feb 26th 2008 I called Customer Svc because I could not see the Rutgers vs Conn. baseketball game on channel 621 MSG. Customer svc saw that I should have been able to view that game but was unable to resolve the problem. They escalted the problem to Tech support, they acknowledged that I should be able to receive that channel and supposedly escalated the problem to engineering. I started a string of emails with you which ended with the following email.

" Subject

RE: Blacked out and missed game [Reference #: 080226-006720]



Discussion Thread

Response (DI Michael Y)
02/28/2008 05:08 PM

Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thank you for writing. I understand your concern regarding not being able to watch the Connecticut and Rutgers game on the MSG network, channel 621. I apologize for any inconvenience and I will be happy to assist you. In reviewing your account, I see that you have been a customer for six months, and I want to take a moment to thank you for your continued support of DIRECTV.

I see that the MSG network is one of your local regional sports networks. You are authorized to view the pro and college games shown on that channel. Due to contractual broadcast rights between the networks and the leagues, those who live outside of your area are not authorized to view the same games.

You should have been able to watch the Connecticut versus Rutgers game. If you are not able to watch a game on MSG network, the YES Network, and FSN New York that you should be able to view, please contact us at 1-800-531-5000 twenty four hours every day and we will be happy to assist you with resolving the problem.

Thank you again for writing.

Sincerely,

Michael Y. U8843
DIRECTV Customer Service "

I just got off the phone with Elan from customer svc, and Ryan emp#100240863 from Tech support both agreed that I should not be blocked out. Ryan stated that sometimes your engineering department blocks out people who should not be blacked out. I told Ryan that this was supposed to be escalated to engineering on the 26th of Feb but he showed no escalation in his records. So here we are again. I'm missing a very good hockey (Rangers vs. Panthers) game broadcast on channel 621 from 7:30 to 10PM and you still have not resolved the problem. You are not living up to your end of the contractual agreement, you need to fix this problem.

A customer that is not happy.
Mr Charles Enscoe

Subject
Not receiving a program I should be able to see.

Discussion Thread
Response (Danielle) 03/14/2008 07:38 PM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thanks for writing us back and following up on your previous E-mails. I'm sorry to hear about the continued problems you have experienced. I went ahead and forwarded your follow-up email and additional concerns to a specialist who will contact you within 24-48 hours.

As what was mentioned in the previous reply, normally, we are able to get back to you as soon as possible. Our agents are working overtime to be able to help you as fast as possible, but if you need immediate assistance, please call us at 1-800-531-5000.

We appreciate your patience and understanding.

Sincerely,

Danielle D.
Employee ID # 100102567
DIRECTV Customer Service

Make the most of DIRECTV by registering your account on directv.com. You'll learn about exclusive online promotions, new features of DIRECTV and the latest programs and packages. Visit www.directv.com/register today.

Subject
Not receiving a program I should be able to see.

Discussion Thread
Response (CS Kirk S) 03/15/2008 09:30 AM
Dear Mr. Enscoe,

Thank you for writing about the college games and I can address your concern.

I realize that this must be very frustrating for you and certainly understand your concern. This issue was escalated to broadcasting on March 14th, 2008 for further review. Please allow additional time for broadcasting to address this issue.

Thank you again for writing and I hope that I was able to help you. As always our goal is to provide you with excellent customer service and world class entertainment.


Sincerely,

Kirk S.
U9311
DIRECTV Customer Service

Resolution #6
Negative
It is now 3/25/08 and they never got back to me as they asked for additional time to resolve the problem.


Problem #7 3/25/08 7:00 AM
Searching for signal message on several channels but the one I wanted to watch was ESPN2 the opening baseball game of the 2008 season, Red Sox and Oakland A’s from Japan. Called customer service and heard a message that they were aware of the problem and that the signal should return soon.

Resolution #7: 03/25/08
Negative
I was put on hold for 11 minutes and when I finally got through I asked what they were going to do for customers to make up for this. I spoke with Axel from Tech support who acknowledged the problem was quite extensive and said that they needed 24hrs to resolve the problem. 24 HRS! That does a lot of good the game is in the third inning right now and I don’t think they will wait for DirecTV to catch up. I asked what they were doing for customers and they said that they could offer one month of Showtime. I asked if there was something else other than Showtime and they said they had nothing else to offer. I told them that I didn’t like Showtime but if that was all they could offer I would take it. The signal came back about 90 minutes later.

Problem #8 3/25/08 8:15 PM
Went channel surfing through my sports package and found on 8 channels that I should be receiving I was getting a message that stated “Channel not purchased (721) Rcvr 0008 7922 7049 Card 0021 6298 5358 “ I went on line and looked at the channel line up for the sports package and according to the web site I should be getting those channels because I purchase the sports package. I called customer service 1-800-531-5000 and spoke with John who verified that I should be getting those channels, he tried some troubleshooting like unplugging the receiver from the wall and then seeing if the situation changed. It did not.

Resolution #8: 03/25/08
Negative
He searched his logs and said he found a note that they were having problems with certain sports package channels and that they were working on the problem at this time but he had no estimate on when the problem would be fixed. He apologized and said that the next time I called in to customer service that he had put in his notes that I would receive some sort of compensation for this inconvenience.

Problem #9 3/27/08 9:30 PM
Went channel surfing again through my sports package. Yesterday I was getting the stations I had problems with in problem #8 but today I’m back to having 6 channels that give me the message “Channel not purchased (721) Rcvr 0008 7922 7049 Card 0021 6298 5358 “ Spoke with Amy and related the problem, she saw that she could not resolve the problem so she transferred me to Tech support. Stephen explained that I was being blocked from seeing the game because of contractual agreements with professional sports. That to see the hockey game I was trying to watch I would have to purchase the center ice package. Since it was being shown on center ice it could not be shown on the sports package and the would be the case with all professional sports.

I explained to him that I was told when I purchased the sports package that I needed the sports package to see MSG, YES, SNY, the channels I always watch to see the Mets and Yankees, and that now I find out that this was not the case, since I subscribe to choice extra I am entitled to those channels even without the sports package. So I was lied to seven months ago and have been paying $12 a month for something that I’m not interested in. I was so angry with DirecTV that I demanded to be reimbursed but they refused. I cancelled the sports package immediately and hung up on Stephen.

Resolution #9 3/27/08 10:00PM
Negative
A three Advil moment.


Problem #10 11/24/08 9:30 PM

This is not really problem #10 it’s probably more like #20 I just got tired of writing complaints. The above complaints mostly involved me calling them and using this as a log to keep track of what goes on. I have had so many complaints about missing Syracuse basketball games, missing Mets and Yankees baseball games because for one reason or another they blocked the signal that I just gave up logging them in. Well I am writing this the morning after (11/25) I lost satellite hookup to ESPN on a Monday night. I was recording Syracuse basketball on ESPN2 and watching Monday night football on ESPN. It was a great game for SU against Florida a 2 pt game and I lost the feed at half time so I don’t know what happened and of course I lost the football game in the second qtr and don’t know what happened there either.

It’s 7am now 11/25 and I am going to call 1-800-531-5000. Office was closed for general support so they directed me to try online support. It is now 20 minutes later. It took that long to get through the screens and submit my complaint/question, they forced me to choose categories for my email that didn’t fit the profile of my complaint. More later.