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Threatened by Verizon

Incredulous.

After an hour long call in which the customer service rep was unable to explain a discrepancy with the Friends and Family plan, a 'supervisor' by the name of Samantha took over the call. Samantha was immediately defensive and spoke over our questions as if she weren't in a customer service position. Imagine being berated by Verizon personell for questions on your bill? We spent multiple times asking the same questions only to be spoken over and given extreme attitude by a representative of the company we are paying for their service.

Several long minutes later and after some heated exchanges we were finally given how the billing cycle works and why the charges on the bill existed, something we were unable to get between the 1st customer rep and something the 'supervisor' decided that she didn't want to explain at our pace. The conversation soured so much that we inquired about cancellation, to which Samantha replied 'Ok, that will be $500 for the first phone, $300 for the second phone and another $300 for fees, would you like me to cancel that for you'? I'd had enough of being yelled at by customer service and intended on writing a long review about it, something I told Samantha before getting off the phone.

I then found out something even more curious....

Verizon seems to have no direct online source for complaints, just a customer complaint line that I was only able to dig up after several Google searches.

In speaking with the complaints department the representative there said he read the notes on the account and that all he could do was forward the complaint. The overall tone of the conversation was that he wasn't worried about the complaint based on what the original supervisor put in her notes (obviously due to the backlash she knew was coming). In other words, he blew me off and then told me 'have a nice day' as sarcastically as possible to add insult to injury.

Originally we had no complaints with Verizon. The service is adequate, and otherwise no issues. Tonight changed all that for me.

4 Things

1) The customer service reps need to be able to explain plans and billing discrepencies.

2) Supervisors don't get to yell at the customers or otherwise speak over them without fielding their questions.

3) Verizon has no direct route for customer complaints. The 'complaints department' relies on notes from other Verizon staff, not from you.

4) Don't threaten your customer with cancellation fees to get them to shut up.

I have no idea how Verizon got JD Power associates customer service award. This was the very first time I have ever called customer service and they were the most obnoxious and condescending crew I have spoken to of any company.

Does anybody know how these cancellation fees work? I would hate to honestly be stuck with a company that values my service so litte.

This was an awful experience.

Comments

Ann154

The online path is the "Contact Us" at the top of the Verizon Wireless website.

tikibar1

The Early Termination Fee (ETF) for a smartphone is 350 minus $10 for each full month of your contract term that you complete. For a basic phone, it's $175 minus $5 for each full month of your contract term that you complete. Cancellations become effective on the last day of that month's billing cycle, and you are responsible for all charges incurred until then.

soontobeattagain

Yea, looked under Contact Us but 'Customer Service' seems to infer the standard billing reps rather than actual complaints. There is nothing actually labeled complaints. No matter, I was able to finally find it but those fees are incredibly high. I probably would've inquired more about cancellations when I got the phone had I anticipated ever dropping the service.

Is this standard fare for how Verizon handles customers? It doesn't seem like raw luck I was able to run into several bad apples in one night.

This is unacceptable.

budone

Does ATT, Sprint, USCC, Alltel, Walmart, GM, Chrysler, etc...... have a direct link for complaints? If so, please share.

Ann154

The only VZW employees on this peer to peer community forum are clearly marked as "Wireless Employee" in their community rank and by their avatar. Everyone else are customers (either current, future or former customers) just like you.

soontobeattagain

If that were true reasonable posts that point out problems with Verizon wouldn't be deleted arbitrarily.

So far, as a 'community member' it certainly seems like this is a forum is an extension of their customer service. You can continue to answer posts that you are deleting while also claiming no connection to Verizon. Sounds like something customers would do.

pattiekat

Uh, overall I'm happier with Verizon, including customer service, than any other carrier I've had. With that being said, I've experienced a little of what you're talking about, when I'm just asking some basic question, and they go on and on about something unrelated, or irrelevant to my question. They seem to insist on using "their language and references", rather than hear what the customer is talking about. For instance, I was asking about charges for a particular "service period" ie: Nov3 - Dec2, and she could not use that term--that is, she kept rambling about my December bill. That just confuses me, because I'm thinking,,, is she referrring to my usage in December, or is she talking about the end of the service period date of Dec2, which actually refers to my usage charges for November mostly.

Anyway, when I had Sprint, which was the worst of my experiences, I had to write a letter to the Attorney General,( uh-of the state where I signed my contract with Sprint, I think, not necessarily the same as where I was currently staying and experiencing the problem) explaining the facts about why their charges were not valid and that their service was inadequate, because I was unable to get reliable service in a particular area THAT THEY CLAIM TO PROVIDE, in order to get out of my contract without paying the fees they planned to attach. It was basically a: "Failed to provide service as stated in YOUR END of the contract. If I can't make calls, receive calls, or get dropped for the majority of the calls that go through, then I'm not paying for what you cannot provide". I don't know if I was required, but I also sent a letter to the BBB, which has to be the one for the area and address where the Corporation is located, not your area.

It was a hassle, but they dropped all previously disputed charges, and agreed to cancel my contract without the cancellation fees. Just make sure you have documentation, and dates, etc to provide Atty General, to save time, and make sure they understand the facts, because they will contact Sprint about the complaint and get their side of the story.

Remember, all said and done, IT WORKED!

soontobeattagain

This was exactly my experience. Verizon got frustrated with being questioned on bill charges, and in fact were unable to explain them for over an hour on the phone. The supervisor decided to take the offensive after the original rep wasted our time. If I were to speak to customers using my point-of-view and terms within my industry they would never understand me. The object of being in customer service is to try to see an issue from the CUSTOMER SIDE.

Here is a copy of the post that was deleted earlier by a poster who seems to have disappeared:

The 'inability' of your employee to properly translate costs on a bill is your problem not ours. If I ask a waiter why I'm being charged for pickles and he says because 'pickles are in season, you should know this' it's the wrong answer. My guess is that customers call in daily to question charges on bills, that doesn't give your people rights to berate them instead of spending time explaining how a particular charge is valid. 'You should know' is not a defense. My guess is that you are a Verizon employee and this post is an example of the attitude problem within your organization. If you know something about this situation other than what you are reading, feel free to expand, otherwise my guess is that you will never see an 'issue', you will simply try to cover your behind.

Also, getting frustrated and quoting exorbitant cancellation fees as a way to get back at the customer is a threat, no more no less. They may be valid charges, but they were delivered by a clearly angry and overbearing Verizon employee for the purpose of intimidating the customer. This was the CUSTOMER representative.

Anything else?

rcschnoor

Looking at this thread, there are no Verizon employee replies.

I personally have called Verizon CS and have been given clear answers as to why something has been charged to my account. Actually I have only had 2 questions about items on my bill as detailed explanations are available in the bill Verizon provides online if you look at the "detailed" bill and not just the billing summary.

The only questions I have had to call in about were:

1) why I was being charged for premium texting. I called and questioned it. They provided an immediate refund and I had premium texting blocked for all lines on my account. I have never received a charge for premium texting after that time.

2) why the discount on one of my data plans no longer was showing on my bill. I was told that discounts only apply to 1 data plan on an account and that the other discount would no longer be valid.

Clear, concise answers. While an answer is not always what we want to hear, the information was provided.

melvindeville

to me that doesnt sound like a threat. that sounds like she was giving you the breakdown and cost of what would happen if you did terminate your service upon your request.. what would be shady is if she just canceled your service on the spot when you threatened to do so and not told you about the fees....

soontobeattagain

To be fair, it couldn't possibly 'sound' that way to you if you weren't in a position to hear. I was clear about the Verizon rep yelling on the phone, I am reiterating that to be more clear. Also, not explaining 'fees' is what advanced this problem to begin with, if that had been done this would've been a court issue.

msturgis

Tired of your "copy and paste" response in every thread, specially when you are mistaken. There is no policy that all Verizon employees on this forum have to be clearly marked. Any Verizon employee can join this forum and choose not to represent Verizon (but still provide good solutions), and therefore not marked. So, "all VZW employees are marked as such and the rest are customers" statement is not accurate

>MODERATOR COMMENT: Only those who are allowed to speak from VZW standpoint are marked with the appropriate avatar and name. We are will aware there are some who come here posting as a customer acting as a rep. When we discover someone answering as a customer rep on the forum, we pull their posts and will have an investigation initiated by the forum Administrator to determine who the poster is and whether they will be added to the Social Customer Service Team.<

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

msturgis

I think what you experienced is just the new face of customer service in general, not much different than what you'd get anywhere else (even AT&T, or should I say, specially AT&T). These big corporations are driven by EVERY PENNY they can save (and make) and customer service is not a concern. At the same time you also need to look at the people that typically become a CSR these days. The generation that we call the "young" grew up in an ultra-materialistic culture where lack-of respect for others is the appreciated and rewarded behavior. So, you can't really expect anything decent from these guys. CSR jobs are like fast-food burger-flippin' gigs that are a dime a dozen. These guys don't care if they get fired, they can usually land another one quickly because these greedy corporations need them.

So, don't take it personally. It is the "taste" of the time.

jacobweber2000

Your unlikely to get any satisfaction, but, 1) email their customer service (and get records of their replies) 2) File a BBB complaint 3) File a FTC complaint 4) File a FCC complaint, 5) Send a letter to your Congressman, 6) send a letter to your senator and complain that these businesses are too big of monopolies and need investigated under the SHERMAN ACT. IF you can, see about a cheaper company, such as prepaid tracphone which usually uses the same network towers as VZW.

Ms_Lioness

All call centers use the same protocol. Their CSRs work from prepared scripts. They can be chastised for not following that scripts. I had opportunity to call last night, and let the CSR know I was very frustrated up front. He was most pleasant and was actually able to accomplish in about 15 minutes what I had not been able to in about 3 hours (thus the frustration). Hope you have a better experience with the call center nest time.

Jakeman1

You can give this a try here. I have had mostly good luck with going this route than any of the others mentioned.

http://aboutus.verizonwireless.com/leadership/executive/profiles/John_Bianchi.html

Send your email to this address (he is the CS Director for Verizon). He will forward it to the Executive Offices where someone will hopefully be able to help you out on this. I have found that talking to the regular CS within Verizon is sometimes like a rollercoaster, and I leave with the impression that they have no idea what they are doing. The Executive offices on the other hand I have always had consistent conversations, they call back when they say they will and they have the authority to actually make happen what they tell you they can do which is not always the case with the regular CS.

lynerb226

I am glad to see someone has gotten results!

You always see people on here saying they'll report VZW for things, etc.

But this is good to know that it actually works!

Thank you for sharing this!

lynerb226

That is one hundred percent accurate! As far as I am aware, 95% of representatives you get on the phone are outsourced to other consulting companies in the US, and are run exactly like a fast food place! Where the employees have little to no care from the employees about what is happening in the long run, and they are simply there to pick up their paycheck.
I know for a FACT that they hire ANYONE, with very little screening whatsoever, despite having any level of competency at the job or not.

VZW Customer Care is the perfect representation of our modern days.

Thanks for pointing this out!

lynerb226

That is some useful information, Jakeman1! Thanks for posting this.

Once you reach the Supervisor level, anyone above them does not take phone calls from customers.
This is exactly what you should do if you really want to make an impact on the company, you must go ABOVE the highest level in the CALL CENTER

If you somehow get PROOF of what happened, like a recording, or a chat log or anything (also all of their calls are recorded but there is no way to GET that recording as far as I'm aware) and provide it to someone ABOVE most people at call centers, you will have more success.

<< Edited for accuracy and to comply with >>

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

soontobeattagain

I appreciate the tips and advice given here, I will absolutely take it.

I believe that all companies are made and are broken by customer service, that includes companies that think they are too big to be affected by a single customer. There are no single customers in the day and age of the Internet. You can act like we are too small to matter but in the end these things will be made public and one customer will become thousands.

There is no space for being rude and condescending to the people who pay you.

Jakeman1

Going to John Bianchi, he will not answer you directly but they have a staff of executive support that is technically a step above the CS Supervisor within the company. good thing is they have the authority to make things happen and usually are pretty up front about what they can and cannot do.

Becky210

The same thing happened to me. I was told I have 24 hours and my service would be canceled. I can’t believe Verizon would allow people to threaten customers

KH-cathy29811

Due to the age of this thread, it will be locked in order to keep discussions current. If you have the same or a similar question/issue we invite you to start a new thread on the topic.

Verizon_Support

Good afternoon, Becky210! We are here to help! Can you please send us a PM to better assist you?

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