Time Warner Cable Run Around...

Posted Fri August 17, 2012 7:52 pm, by Nichole K. written to Time Warner Cable

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My husband and I moved into a new home on August 1. It took us a few days to decide what cable, internet and TV provider to use. Having had AT&T Uverse at our last home, we were very disappointed that it was not yet offered at our new address. After careful consideration, we decided that the most logical choice was Time Warner Cable. Our first call to set up service should have been our first, last, and only clue that it was a poor decision.

Our first call was to ask questions regarding the Whole House service. Having two adults and 5 kids, we didn't want to lose the ability to record 4 shows at one time. We spent approximately 40 minutes discussing our options with the representative. We decided to move forward with setting up service. The rep set up our account and told us we would only need a small $15 installation fee when the tech arrived. When the rep tried to finish the set up, he informed us that the previous occupants had not disconnected service and in order to set up service, we had to provide proof of occupancy at the nearest TWC office. When we asked where the closest office would be, we were given an address over an hour away. We told him that wouldn't work for us and that we needed a closer office or to work via fax. Four addresses later, he was finally able to find an office only a few minutes from our house.

On August 8, my husband took the required paperwork to the office to set up service. We very specifically wanted two DVR boxes in order to meet our needs. This was relayed to the phone representative as well as the office rep. She set up service and called us to schedule installation for Friday, August 17. Additionally, she told us that the installation fee would be waived and that we would qualify for a $150 target gift card for transferring from another company.

On August 16, my husband received a call from TWC confirming the service appointment. The recording stated that we would need $170 to give the tech in the morning. This payment was news to us as the prior two representatives said nothing about it. He called TWC to find out why we suddenly owed this money. The woman told us that they require the first month's payment and an install fee at the time of installation. This may be TWC's policy but this was not mentioned the two previous conversations. Additionally, the install fee was supposed to be waived. The conversation ended with us making the monthly payment and a very clear confirmation of what was being installed the next morning. Whole House service with 2 DVR's. The rep very clearly stated that and my husband repeated it.

This morning, your tech arrived at our house. He was very pleasant, professional and completed the install quickly. Before he left, he stated that he installed one DVR and two regular boxes. We told him that we were supposed to have two DVR boxes... He said that only one was on the order and there was nothing he could do about it because they are only given the equipment needed to complete the job. He said that we could take the box to the nearest office and swap it for the DVR box.

Around 1pm today we went back to the office and the same representative that helped my husband helped us. We explained our problem and our hours spent trying to get the service set up and she looked up our account. She said that our account was set up for one DVR box and that they did not have any DVR boxes on site because they are a small office. She said the best she could do was set up another installation date to fix it. In order for us to have the service we wanted, we asked her to set it up. The available times were very inconvenient and the other option was to wait a few weeks for a more convenient time of day. She then told us that our monthly price would go up and that we would owe more money. Additionally, she informed us that our new customer "Free HBO for 3 months" was only valid with automatic payments, which was also never told to us. When she calculated what our new monthly bill would be, it was exactly what the representative from the night before had quoted us and what we paid for our first month. Our next question to her was how did we pay the correct amount if only one DVR was set up for our account? Somewhere along the way, the system didn't properly reflect our order. At this point, it became very obvious that TWC made a mistake. The representative also realized this and urged us to call TWC because in order to rectify the situation, it would require someone with more authority than what she has.

When we arrived back home, my husband called TWC and he was only offered a credit for the difference between the DVR service charge and the regular box for the days between now and the installation of the new box. We feel that this is a very small price for TWC to pay, given the excessive amount of time we have spent trying to resolve this. Between the phone calls, time at the office, wrong installation and the next (hopefully correct) installation, we will have spent at least 8 hours (depending on how this second installation goes) trying to set this service up the right way.

I would like TWC to honor an installation time that is convenient for us. Additionally, I would like our HBO to be extended to six months and the automatic payment requirement to be waived.