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**2nd UPDATE - 10/18/2012** The Comcast Customer Guarantee… Except that they forgot about me.

2nd UPDATE (10/18/2012): When I thought all of my issues would be fixed and everything would be smooth sailing going forward, I see this last night (10/17/2012):

Here is my question: How can my bill be 18 days PAST DUE if I just paid it at the beginning of this month. In fact, I should not have even had to pay it. October should have been completely free from credits due to all of issues detailed in this blog post. According to the Comcast website I had a credit of $27 which was going to be applied towards November’s bill. This “past due” bill should really be $27 cheaper. I logged into the website just now (10/18/12) and now I see this:

This past due bill is now 17 days past due?? How does it go from 18 to 17 days? Shouldn’t it read 19 days? I am so fed up with this company. I have spent countless hours dealing with all of the issues brought on by this corporation. I am not stupid, I just earned my degree in IT and I spend most of my day in front of a computer. I hope something drastic changes because I can’t spend hours on the phone every month trying to fix issues brought on by Comcast. My full time job starts on Monday and I just do not have the time. When I had my other account (August 2011-July 2012) at my other location, everything worked flawlessly between Comcast and myself. There were no billing issues or anything. Since I moved, I have been treated like I am a clueless idiot by clueless reps. It’s a shame that it takes me an hour to write out this long blog post just to detail all of the other hours  I’ve wasted dealing with your company.

Please Comcast, can you do something nice for me? Some form of compensation. There are other ISPs and cable companies I can go to who would actually value me as a customer. The reason I chose Comcast is because the internet speeds are drastically faster than my other choices. That’s it. Fast internet, nothing else you’ve been able to provide is much of a selling point to me, and that’s a shame.

Thanks,

Brian Kissane

UPDATE (9/5/2012): I received a phone call a few hours after this post went live from a Comcast Executive Specialist who addressed my concerns and helped to remedy the issues. Thank you for the personal phone call and helping to make things better. Now that this is put to rest, we can all move on!

Thanks again, Comcast.

_________________________________________________________________________

September 4, 2012.

To Rick Germano or whom it may concern:

Comcast states this on their corporate website: 

We are committed to providing Comcast customers with a consistently superior customer experience. If for any reason something goes wrong, we will work to resolve the issue quickly and as professionally as we can. 

This sounds great. Except that they forgot about me.

For someone like me who loves technology and just earned a college degree in Operations & Information Management from NIU, I understand exactly how processes and technology work. As a graduate, it is my job to make processes better using technology and help make the world a better place. Let me assure you, Comcast, the mega-corporation they are, can’t seem to get their billing process in order. The terrible customer service only makes things worse and puts the customer in the middle of the problem. I have had a nightmare dealing with this company over the last month and a half. Their customer service has not helped, even though I’ve been promised the Customer Guarantee ever time I’ve dialed 1-800-XFINITY. These are the seven guarantees that Comcast makes to its customers:

1. We will give you a 30-day, money-back guarantee on our video, voice or high-speed services.
2. We will always be on time within your appointment window or we’ll credit you $20 or give you a free premium channel for three months.
3. We will resolve routine issues in one vista or we’ll credit you $20 or give you a free premium channel for three months.
4. We will treat you and your home with courtesy and respect.
5. We’re here for you, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to answer questions at your convenience.
6. We will offer easy-to-understand packages and provide you with a clear bill.
7. We will continually offer the best and most video choices.

For my particular situation, the following guarantees DO NOT apply (they are not a concern, or they were handled perfectly to my expectations): 1, 4, and 7. I wasn’t going to cancel service in the first 30 days, the sales rep and technician wore foot coverings and treated my apartment with care, and the amount of video content is irrelevant. Now, let me explain my situation and how the other customer guarantees were violated.

First, a little background: In June 2011 I was referred to a Comcast sales rep by my soon-to-be college apartment land lord. The sales rep was incredibly nice and gave me a very nice package that included Blast! Internet and Digital Preferred cable at a price that I thought was a special student deal. Everything was great! I went the full 12 months without a single issue. Internet speeds were fast, we had HBO for 12 months. It was the way a customer-company relationship should be. I payed the monthly bill early every month and was provided with the advertised service.

Flash forward to June 2012, this is when things start to go downhill and at an incredibly fast rate of speed. I contacted the same sales rep who ordered my service for my college apartment in August 2011. I wanted to let him know that I just graduated and was going to be moving to another apartment in a different town in July 2012. I first told him I thought it would be easiest if I just packaged up all of my equipment, moved to the new location, and call Comcast to activate service. He said that was fine except that my current monthly bill was going to be going up something like $40/month for the same service. Being fresh out of college and looking for a job, I didn’t think that was quite acceptable. He suggested that I create a new account as a new customer at the new location to secure another 12 month deal. This is exactly what I did. 

When service was first installed at my college apartment (August 2011) I was told there may or may not be a $50 security deposit due to my credit (being young and still in college). I was perfectly fine with this. It turns out that I didn’t have to pay it. The deposit was waived since it was the fall rush time and a college apartment. Now once again, I was told there was going to be a security deposit based on my credit for setting up service at my new location this year (July 2012). On July 12, I was notified that Comcast (or a third party working for Comcast) did a check on my credit and sure enough, I was going to pay a security deposit. This sales rep sent me a text message stating that the deposit was $50.00. He included my brand new account number and a phone number I was supposed to call and pay the $50. He sent me this text message on Thursday, July 12 between 5-6pm I think. I immediately paid the $50 security deposit so that way service could be installed the next day. 

Friday (July 13) comes and mostly goes. I heard from this sales rep earlier in the day that he was working and he’d get to my new place in the evening. Later in the day I was notified it could be as late as 7:30pm. This was ok with me (I just wanted my internet and cable) but I felt bad for him. Once he called me a little after 8pm I told him that Saturday morning would work so that he could get some sleep after a long day. I was trying to be a caring customer! I was not mad and I was the one who suggested it. He arrived Saturday morning around 12:00pm I think.

Here is where the DVR Disaster begins:

To avoid having me pay an installation fee (I can do all of this myself with ease) he basically gave me my brand new equipment (DOCSIS 3 modem, Motorola DVR, remotes, etc.) and in return, I gave him my old equipment from my college apartment so that way I could call and close that old account and not be billed anymore. I signed the paper that I returned the equipment and then the sales rep left and I began installation. Once the new DVR and modem were plugged in and turned on, I began the activation process. I activated the modem with success and started browsing the internet with my 35 Mbps Blast! Internet. I then proceeded to activate the DVR using the supplied instructions in the self-installation kit. The prompts indicated that the DVR did activate. That was incorrect… by a long shot.

Thinking nothing of it, I went to continue on with my Saturday and run some errands. When I cam back in the early afternoon (2-3 PM) I tried to turn on a channel and use the Comcast remote to bring up the HD version of the channel - black screen. Other HD channels - black screens. I restarted the box, tried activating it again, tried going into the settings, a factory reset—you name it. I also called Comcast customer service and participated in the new call-back feature. I got a call back with some troubleshooting steps like unplugging the DVR and stuff with no luck. I then logged on to Comcast.com with my new Comcast account ID and password. It showed my only service was internet and not tv (the little icons). I called customer service again and waited a good 30 minutes to talk to someone who said to ignore the fact that the TV icon was not showing up online and it was because I had a “bundled package.” The TV and Internet icons showed up just fine on the website for my college apartment account. It was getting late and I just wanted to relax at this point. I tried again on Sunday with no luck after 3 or 4 calls to customer service. I was getting frustrated. On the second or third call one representative set up an appointment for Monday morning even though I told him no because I was not going to be home most likely. I called again that night and a woman said that an appointment was scheduled and said that were going to be a $30 charge. I was getting mad because I did the self-install kit so I wouldn’t get charged in the first place!

Monday arrives and the tech arrived within the appointment window. He swapped out the DVR for an identical model, plugged it in and set it up (activated it and checked some channels) - everything worked. Still, I was getting charged for an appointment due to a faulty box that was supplied to me—that I spent most of my Saturday and Sunday trying to fix with Comcast’s troubleshooting steps.

Let’s switch gears to the Billing Nightmare.

At my old apartment I was expecting to pay around $90-92 for my Blast! Internet and Digital Preferred Cable with dual-tuner DVR. This was fine. The website updated each month and I paid the bill online  for ease of use and speed, just like I pay my cell phone bill.

Service was installed at the new apartment in the middle of July. I got an alert via text message and email saying that my balance was due on August 8th or something. I do not remember the exact date but I am sure it’s in my customer records/notes that can be looked up. This alert was issued 5 days before the bill was due but both the email and text message did NOT say how much I owed. I logged onto the website to an alarming $250 that was past due. I logged on the website on August 5 and I got the text/email saying that my bill was due on August 8th. How could I be past due?? I was furious so I called customer service and they had no clue what was going on. I spent about 2 hours on August 7th or 8th talking to a few reps to try and figure out what was going on. The one guy didn’t know what was going on but his screen showed I owed $65 so I payed that over the phone without issue. He assured me three different times in the conversation that my balance was at $0 and my next bill would be due on September 4th. Once again, going off of the “superior” customer service, I didn’t think anything of it and proceeded on with my month. A few days later I logged on the website again (August 12th I think) to see that I owed $172 on August 7th. It was NOT in red and said it was NOT overdue, but the online system looked like it was frozen. I figured that the system needed time to adjust and catch up to the right amount.

This brings us to last week, specifically on Thursday, August 30th. I received another automated email and text message stating that my bill was due on September 4th. I logged on to Comcast.com once again and look what I saw: $172 due on August 8th. It was still frozen. I was busy (I am trying to find a job and proceed with my life). So I spent a good chunk of my Friday trying to figure this out. I was on the phone with one representative and then her supervisor for over an hour. Neither one wanted to do anything. This is what is making me so upset: a month and and a half into service I am now being told that that I have a $100 security deposit to pay on top of the $50 I already paid.

What?!? Yes, a month and a half I had another $100 security deposit. I was furious. It’s not the fact that I have a security deposit (when I got my iPhone in 2010 it was a $150 deposit with AT&T) - it’s just the way this was handled. You see, the sales rep told me $50 on July 12 and I paid it. He didn’t make a single mention of any other security deposit or say the $50 was UP FRONT. Nothing, just the $50 and then my normal monthly bill.

So I am trying to explain to the customer service rep why I am being thrown in the middle of this and why it is being directed at me. All the rep did was get her supervisor who didn’t budge. She said I needed to get in touch with the sales rep and his supervisor needs to address the problem - cancel the charges or whatever. I called the sales rep back and he got conference-called into the conversation with the billing supervisor and I. How can he do anything? He is a sales rep, not a higher-up in the company. I called him back after the unsuccessful attempt to fix this with the billing department. Once I spoke to him he said he was working on an installation and when he got back to the office in a few hours he’d look into it.

I spoke with him later that night and he said there was not much he could do since it was in the computer system and suggested I just pay the charges and “everything will work itself out in the end.” I then called the 1-800 number back and got a hold of another representative (by this time it’s 7:30pm on Friday, August 31. I told the rep that I was going on vacation for labor day weekend at 5:30am the next morning (Saturday) and I’d be back on Monday. I didn’t have cell service where I was going, nor did I want to deal with Comcast during my vacation. I assumed the billing department would be closed on Labor Day so I got up early Tuesday morning and gave it another shot - the day my bill was supposed to be due.

At this point I am so incredibly aggravated at this point. It’s Tuesday, September 4th and my bill is due today. I didn’t know what to do so I called the cancellation department NOT because I wanted to cancel, but maybe they could do something. A cancelation department’s job is to retain a customer and make the situation right. The woman I spoke with pretty much said what the billing department said: we can’t do anything. She suggested to put a complaint ticket in against the sales rep. I didn’t want him to get in trouble, I had NO CLUE the problem began with him. I thought it was just a billing screw up that no one can seem to figure out. In fact, I called him to give him the sale at my new apartment because I was so happy with the package he offered me at my college apartment. It’s only a month and a half into service and I am finding out this billing nightmare is because of the order and the way it was entered into the system.

This is what happened. The rep from the cancellation department told me that the order was put in this way: $50 up from before installation (what I paid - the deposit) + $100 security deposit broken down into $33 payments. That’s what messed everything up. I was not told about this and so when I paid the $50 over the phone on July 12 - that went towards the first bill supposedly or towards that $100 extra deposit. The best she could do was offer me a $25 credit towards the October bill plus a $10 credit from when the technician came out to give me the new DVR. This was because I was credited $20 out of the $30 charge for the tech appointment due to your faulty box. Why didn’t I get the extra $10 and only get refunded 1/3 the appointment fee. Suggestion - do not charge customers for appointments until AFTER the appointment and to see if the equipment was really faulty or if the customer was faking it. This way I wouldn’t have gotten charged in the first place.

This brings us to today, Wednesday, September 5. I paid the $144.15 yesterday because the cancellation rep said that the $35 credit will not show up until next month. The “frozen” $172 due on August 8th (on Comcast.com) has now changed to $27.34 - still due on August 8th. I don’t know if that’s what is left of the surprise $100 security deposit or what. I don’t know if the $35 credit she gave me will make that disappear or what.

This has been a nightmare experience that should not have ever happened. Why is the customer (me) paying the price (literally) for the order screw up and not being information by the billing department of this “hidden fee” $100 security deposit. I was told $50 and that was it. I paid it, and all should have worked out just fine. My original account for the college apartment didn’t have a security deposit at all - paid the bill every month ($90-$92/mo) and everything was great. I move to the new place with a new account and the security deposit issue has caused nothing but huge time-consuming problems for me. 

Here are the Customer Guarantees I feel I was never promised.

2. We will always be on time within your appointment window or we’ll credit you $20 or give you a free premium channel for three months.

The tech came in the window so that isn’t an issue. He replaced the faulty box with a working one, but I got charged a $30 appointment fee because I was provided a faulty box to begin with that failed to activate with hours of troubleshooting and customer service calls over the weekend.

3. We will resolve routine issues in one visit or we’ll credit you $20 or give you a free premium channel for three months.

Once again, the issue was resolved (replacement DVR) but I got charged. Also if you want to actually put the original installation (swap out of old equipment for new equipment and sign the return slip) - the order was put in wrong two days earlier (July 12) - no credit for that. Instead I got charged $30 for a new DVR plus this $100 security deposit screwing everything up (and still is according to the online payment system).

5. We’re here for you, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to questions at your convenience.

Every time I tried to call I got a hold of someone (most times it took a good 15-30 minute wait). The problem was I was assured in the beginning of August that everything was fine (pay $65 for your bill and all will return to normal). The reps didn’t inform me until a month and a half after service was activated that there was another $100 security deposit I had to pay. That isn’t really answering your question if you ask me. I asked the guy (beginning of August) so you’re 100% sure I am in the clear and my bill will return to normal. He gave me a resounding “Yes” (that was sure wrong…)

6. We will offer easy-to-understand packages and provide you with a clear bill.

This is the root of my frustration. The bill was not clear. How come my $50 “security deposit” wasn’t the end of the deposits and how come it actually went towards the first bill. Then I got another bill for $33 which I never actually paid $33 - the system must have removed part of the $50 and put it towards the $100 deposit (in $33 chunks.) Then to be notified over the phone a month and a half later because no paper bill, representative, automated phone message, email, website or text message could explain it other wise - the order was put in wrong: $50 up front + $100 broken down into $33 chunks. Yet I was only told 50. This is why I am so incredibly upset.

A final quick recap:

• First year at college apartment was great, called to get a new account at a new place.
• I was told $50 and I paid it. Service was installed two days later (equipment swap and then self installation).
• DVR failed to activate. I spent hours on Saturday and Sunday fixing it with your troubleshooting steps. An appointment was scheduled (without my OK) to bring a tech out. I then had to make myself available on Monday for the appointment. The DVR was swapped for a working one. I was still charged $30.
• In early August I was notified that my bill was due on the 8th (I think) via a text message and an email,I went on the website three days earlier and saw $250 past due in red. Called Customer Service a few times (hour or two dealing with it) to get it resolved. I was told $65 was my bill so I paid it.
• Almost a month later the online system is still stuck at $172, but the automated phone system and a representative say $144.15. I spent hours on Friday (Aug. 31) dealing with the issue with no luck. We got the original support representative involved. It was not fixed and there was nothing billing could do. I was told that I NEEDED TO FIX IT by calling the sales rep and working it out because his department did the order, not the billing department.
• Tuesday September 4th the cancellation department cannot do much and says the same thing - the sales rep and his department need to fix it. I was offered a $35 credit for my 10+ hours trying to fix YOUR problems and not telling me stuff up front ($100 deposit.)

That’s it. This is how I was treated as a Comcast customer for the last month and a half. Clearly not the superior customer service that Comcast claims. Your internet speeds are faster than AT&T and that’s really the only appealing thing for me. The first year was great. Once I moved to my new location I have wasted so much time trying to fix this, let alone, figure out how much my actual bill is and why everything is so screwed up to begin with. All I wanted to do was pay my normal bill each month. Why was this so difficult?

I sincerely hope Comcast Corporate takes a look at this and can make some adjustments to the way billing and customer service processes work. It’s a shame I had to call the cancellation department to actually get something (let alone really small) done in my favor. I was a customer for over a year (just a different account) and I’ve been treated like I’m worthless and a money-grab since moving to my new location. I would greatly appreciate anything Comcast may be able to do like perhaps a free month of service or something. I really wanted this to be a seamless transition and it was far from that.

Thank you for reading this. Have a nice day.

Sincerely,

Brian Kissane