Customer NO Service Hung Up On Me!
Posted under: When I was a teenager, my dad always told me I complained too much. No doubt, he’s right, I did complain a lot. I complained about EVERYTHING. The problem was, I didn’t know how to take that character trait of being a complainer and turn it into something positive.
Now I know how to do that!
When I complain, I get things done. I get companies to take responsibility for service problems, defective products and poor customer service.
With that said, this is the first installment of an ongoing series that I’ve yet to name. In this series, I’m going to call companies out for bad products, bad customer service or any other issue that seems relevant. I’m not doing this to bash them, I’m doing this to let you know of potential problems and hopefully prevent them, or resolve problems on your own.
But really, why am I doing this? You work hard for your money right? So do I. Once upon a time companies made products or provided services that were WORTH your money. These days, too many things are outsourced to foreign countries and the quality decreased. Too many times companies provide a service where the job doesn’t get done, or doesn’t get done right. This isn’t acceptable! I don’t put up with this and neither should you because all it does is waste your money!
So, for today’s installment, I’d like to talk to you about a telephone company called Windstream. If this company does not service your area, please keep reading anyway. There are some points I want to make that apply to other companies as well.
I’ll try to make this short.
I called Windstream today to go ahead and arrange for service at our new address. Yes, we’re not moving for 6 more weeks but I like to have things in place and cross things off my to-do list. I looked online and found they were offering a promotion for new customers, so I wanted to take advantage of the discounts before they ended.
I called Windstream to inquire about internet speeds at the new address. Since we’re living in the country, we can’t get the highest speed available so I wanted to find out exactly what we’d be getting. I told the lady that I was going to place my order online but she insisted that she could do it for me to save me time. I asked her if I would get the same discounts advertised online, since they did say “online only”. She assured me that I would, so I let her begin gathering my information so that she could place the order and initiate the service request.
She also told me that even though we are current Windstream customers, since we’ll have to get a new phone number because we’re moving to a new town, we’ll be new customers and I can take advantage of the new customer discounts.
According to the website, I was to receive a $200 bill credit PLUS $190 in extra savings. It broke the $190 savings down to include $75 free activation, free modem ($100 value) and free shipping on the modem ($15 value).
When we got to the point where she was telling me how much my bill would be, I asked her how the advertised $200 bill credit would work. She told me that they would deduct the $75 activation fee from it and then whatever was left would be applied to our first months bill. I asked her why she was doing it like that because the website indicated that I was to receive the bill credit PLUS the free activation, modem and shipping. She told me that since I already have a modem (true, I do) that I don’t need a new one and therefore am not eligible for that part of it. What? I told her to go ahead and send me a new modem. She said she could do that, but it would just come out of the bill credit as well. I told her that the website did not label it that way. Here’s how the conversation went:
Windstream Customer NO Service: “We’re not giving you $190 on top of a $200 bill credit.”
Me: “That’s exactly what the website says, it says a $200 bill credit PLUS $190 savings for a total of $390.”
(In case you’re doubting me, here’s the screen shot)
Clear enough? Apparently not, according to Customer NO Service.
She continued to argue with me, with me telling her that the website indicated I should get both the bill credit AND the $190 savings. I asked her if it wasn’t showing up for her because it was listed as online savings. She assured me it was not the case. I told her wanted to get the bill credit AND the savings as their own website advertised and if I needed to order online to make that happen, then I could do that.
At that point, she hung up on me.
I was hung up on because I was asking for a promotion that was clearly advertised on their website. Maybe the confusion came in because it did say “online only” but remember, I didn’t call in to place the order, I called to find out what internet speed was available at my new address so I would know what speed to order. She was the one who assured me I could get the deal and insisted that she place the order. I’m guessing she got some sort of commission or something if she signs people up for service. She didn’t get commission off of my order though, since she hung up on me and all!
At this point, if there was any other phone company who offered internet and phone, I would NOT use Windstream. This is not the first time that I’ve dealt with their poor customer service, but it is the first time they hung up on me. I would call Time Warner and have phone and internet from them, but Time Warner doesn’t even provide service where we’re moving!
Resolution:
In the end, I placed my order online and got my $200 bill credit plus the $190 in extra savings. I will be emailing Windstream regarding their Customer No Service, but I honestly don’t expect them to do anything. I’m telling you about my experience here so you’ll know that if a promotion is available online, a customer service rep on the phone may not be aware of it or if they are, may not be able to get you the same deal. Be diligent, check things out, and don’t settle for any deal less than what is advertised!
And…
If you experience bad customer service, please email or call the company. If enough people were to complain, maybe they would change their policies and make customer service a priority. I can’t fight this battle alone.
