VERIZON....no longer the best choice for loyal customers

For those of you looking at all your options you may want to think twice before continuing with Verizon. Having been a happy Verison customer for 14+ years I can attest to the complete lack of customer service and rewards for customer loyalty that are present in Verizon today. This past November I upgraded all 5 lines on my plan to iphones and was hit with a 30.00/per line upgrade fee (STRIKE 1) Then of the 5 upgraded phones 2 had to be replaced with in 4-6 weeks due to battery issues...one of them was returned outside of the 1 week grace period and Verizon charged my account 399.00. Following up on this I was told it can take (brace yourselves) 150 DAYS to credit that back...yes that is 5 MONTHS!!!!! After giving them 6 weeks to process this I followed up with a phone call as I began to recieve COLLECTION CALLS on my account...after dealing with customer service I was assured they would research the return (it showed recieved in their system Dec. 7 2012 so what is there to research?) and that it would be resolved in 5-7 business days. I specifically asked if I needed to pay anything to make sure my service would not be interrupted and I was told "no"....4 days pass with collection calls EVERY DAY, I answer after the 4th day to see if the issue has been resolved but no it is a collection call...I point out the issue and they say they will note it in the system, I ask AGAIN is there anything I need to do or pay to keep my service from being interrupted? Again; "no". Fast forward 3 more days (after 3 more days of collection calls) I pick up, it is AGAIN the collections department, I explain AGAIN what is going on and they put me on "death hold" which is terminated 35 min later via a message that informs me that due to heavy call volume I need to call back later.....ARGGGGGH!!!!! I go online to my bank and make a "same day" payment to Verizon because I do not trust them...THERE SEEMS TO BE ZERO COMMUNICATION BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS AT THIS COMPANY!!!!!!!! Next day, you guessed it! My account is suspended!

I have been a customer since 1999 and I have NEVER had my account suspended....but this company has ZERO value placed on loyalty, zero value placed on a history of timely payments, zero value put on rectifying an account that has been over-charged. I am writing this here as there is no way provided for a customer to file a complaint at Verizon to the "powers that be"...a customer service representative will file it for you (right?!) I may be trapped for the duration of my contract but this will be the LAST of my $$ VERIZON will ever see.

Accepted answers

CelticScorp

That may be true at Best Buy but when I go to a Verizon store, I expect them to be trained and have the same response as I would get if I called Verizon over the phone. I expect ALL stores/associates within the same company to have the same answers..not different answers depending on who I am talking to at the moment!! Unacceptable! I realize Best Buy will sell me everything and anything but I am pretty sure when I go to several Best Buys, I will get the same answer when I ask something specific...such as, does this t.v. give me internet access? It's either yes or no.. period. Same with my issue with Verizon, it's either yes or no and their misinformation is now costing me. He told me yes when it should have been no, and he doesn't gain any commission from me by doing nothing, my contract didn't change, was just extended.. he sold me NOTHING new, therefore he gained ZERO commission.

All comments

Verizon_Support

Hello 15yrcustomer, We certainly appreciate your loyalty and do not want to to let you down any more! I have started following you, please follow me back and I can take a closer look at the account. I look forward to hearing from you!

Thank you,

YaleK__VZW

Follow us on Twitter @VZWsupport

15yrcustomer

Where were you last weekend Yalek? NOTHING a customer support person has

told me to date has ended up being true so sorry there is nothing you can

do to help...and since I consider myself responsible for a great deal of

positive word of mouth that gave you hundreds of customers over the 15

years I have been a Verizon customer...I will now use that same word of

mouth to let people know that VERIZON is now too big to give a shit about

those whose loyalty made them #1.

On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 11:24 AM, Verizon Wireless Customer Support <

Ann154

This is a peer to peer customer forum where customers can give suggestions and advice to other customers. The VZW employees roam this community and will respond to unanswered questions especially when no other user has responded. That is where the delay comes from. They are trying to give the other users a chance to reply before they do. Not everyone who reads this community responds to every single post nor do they have a comment on all the posts.

unknown

I am having a similar issue with being told one thing by a customer service agent and calling back to be called a liar by another. When I signed up for Verizon several years ago the text plan what 500 texts for $10. In 2012, this switched to $10 for 1000 texts. My plan was never changed to reflect Verizon's change. Thus, since 2012, I've been paying $10 a month for 500 texts and I have been getting overages for each text over that, for 12 months. When I finally figured this out I called to complain. Why hadn't they switched me? Why would I pay $10 for 500 texts when I can get 1000 for the same price? The service agent seemed to agree and I believe a supervisor was constulted and after holding for a very long time I was told that they'd switched the plan (as they should have done in January 2012) and I would get a $20 credit as a token for all those overages I'd received throughout 2012. This credit was never applied. I get my new bill and no such credit to be found. So I call Verizon, and of course I have to relay the entire story again, and hold again. This time however, instead of being sympathetic, I'm told that there is no such notation on my account and if I had been told that they were going to credit my account, there would be a note. Which is a not-so clever way of calling me a liar. Now I'm told that there will be no such credit and that just because there is a feature I'm not aware of doesn't mean they should do anything about it. The only problem is that it's not a new feature, it's the same feature I'd had for years, the only thing that changed was I should have been getting more - instead they gave me the same amount and charged me extra. How this makes sense to anyone is beyond me and how it makes sense to call your loyal customer liars is also a mystery. I want nothing more than what I was promised and now, since Verizon has shoe itself to be a petty and ridiculous company - out of my contract with no fees. I can go to Virgin and pay less than what I'm currently paying and get unlimited texting and data. Hopefully they'll have a better customer service. At this point I don't care, I'm done with Verizon because they are the real liars here.

rcschnoor

The reason Verizon did not change your texting plan to the new plans is because Verizon does not force people off their old plans without some sort of action on the part of the customer.

Would you be happy if Verizon switched you to the new Share Everything plan without your permission? What if the new texting plan had been 250 texts for $10 instead of 1000 texts for $10? Would that have been OK.

Once you are on a plan with Verizon, YOU are responsible to make changes to your account. Verizon will not make them for you. YOU have to take action. I can't imagine how many people would be irate if Verizon just started changing items in someone's account without any action taken on the part of the account holder.

Occasionally, changes in plans result in a price savings, but just as often, changes in plans result in a price increase. Are you willing to take the automatic price increases to your plan if Verizon starts changing items in your account just as you expect to get the price break for what changes Verizon SHOULD have made to your account?

That is not how the service works. YOU are the only one who should be making any changes to YOUR account.

unknown

Unbelievable. There you have it folks, evidence of Verizon's deplorable customer service. >Comment deleted. Stay on topic and refrain from personal comments about others< If anyone had any question about signing up with this company, let the above response serve an example of the kind of service you're going to get. I'm switching to Virgin because I'm tired of getting screwed by these money grubbing lunatics.

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

rcschnoor

Except for the fact I do not work for Verizon. I am just another customer like you.

I would also be very unhappy if Verizon were to make changes to MY account without MY consent. You seem to feel differently.

Ann154

This is a peer to peer customer forum. You responded to another customer.

The 500 texts for $10 sounds like the plan that was 500 messages to all carriers except VZW with unlimited M2M messages between other Verizon Wireless customers.

The new 1000 messages for $10 is to any carrier.

For some customers who send text messages mostly to other Verizon Wireless customers, the 500 message plan is more economical and affordable than the 1000 message plan. Customers who had that 500 message plan were grandfathered in when the option was retired and allowed to keep it so long as they didn't change their plan.

I still have 250 message (all messages, any carrier) for $5 that is also retired. I don't need anything higher for my usage. If I change my text plan, I can't go back to that plan.

mediaonepro

>Duplicate posted deleted. Cross-posting is not permitted.<

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

CelticScorp

I am so angry with the entire Verizon company right now. When I go into a Verizon store, I expect the people there to be trained and give me accurate information. My senses told me to go to the store to speak to someone IN PERSON and I was given misinformation and now I am locked into paying for a phone that is not being used until October 2014!! I just called customer service and spoke to a very nice woman who basically told me there is nothing she could do but I could go back to the store since they gave me misinformation and see if they can help me. I have been a Verizon customer for at least 10 years and I am sure not to renew my contract when the four phones on my plan reach their contract completion date. I am so livid right now. Three of the 4 phones will have either already reached or will have reached their completion of contract by this March (2013) and I am sure to be leaving Verizon. I am so angry and disappointed!! They screwed up in the store and gave me wrong information to my face and now I am stuck paying for a phone until October of 2014 that I am not using!! I will be leaving Verizon in March and in the end they are going to lose a whole heck of a lot of money from me!

unknown

When I go into a store with SALESPEOPLE who work on COMMISION my senses tell me to be wary of what they are telling me. If you go into a Best Buy and you get a TV, not only will they try to talk you into getting a more expensive TV than you wanted to get they will also try to sell you things like a $100 HDMI cable when a $5 cable will work just as well.

CelticScorp

Heretic1989

Hi 15yrcustomer. That $30 upgrade fee went into effect April 22, 2012. You upgraded November 2012. Hence the $30 fee.

unknown

Verizon phone CS rep = hourly employee, Verizon store salesperson = paid commision.

This goes for ANY business with sales staff. You think that car salesman is your buddy? You think he's trying to get you the best deal?

15yrcustomer

I'm not a complete idiot...I do understand they had a change in policy. My point is that when you have a longstanding customer who is more than doubling their cell phone budget by upgrading then why would you alienate them by making the transition more painful. Change your policy but apply it to new customers and grandfather in the customer base you should value.

unknown

Sorry but rules should apply to ALL. Also it would be confusing and cause issues with new customers that they have to pay upgrade fees and other custoemrs do not. And they wouldn't be that new since it would be 20 months before they can upgrade. It's like unlimited data. Thos epeole are made they have to pay full prie for aphone to keep it. I wish they just get rid of it all together. Sorry I pay $30 for 2 GB so the compaints about not getting that $400 discount on a phone so one can have UNLIMITED data for the same $30 is not getting any sympathy from me.

Also seriously $30 is what we are talking about here. Not $30 a month $30 ONCE every 20 months. If $30 is going to break you then get a phone that's $30 cheaper. Go to at&t or Sprint they'll charge you $36 to upgrade. T-mobile won't because you are forced to pay full price for the phone.

unknown

>Post deleted<

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

unknown

I have been a Verizon customer for many years. I just have to say, I have never had any issues and I think Verizon is a good company with a good product and is very fairly priced. I have a Motorola Droid Razr Maxx with a $30 unlimited data plan and a $30 unlimited hotspot feature. My wife has a basic flip phone that she has had for 6 years. Just today, she received a new basic phone which I activated for her a couple hours ago. We paid the subsidized 2-year price plus the $30 upgrade fee minus a $50 on-line discount. I have never had to call customer service with a problem, but have called a few times to add minutes or reduce minutes on my calling plans, etc. Every time I have called they have been very courteous and helpful. I have zero complaints. My Maxx is one year old now with 8 months left on my contract. I plan to keep it as long as it works properly and will pay full retail price for a new phone next time if unlimited data is still available. And no, I do not work for Verizon. I am simply a rational, very satisfied customer.

unknown

Why would you allow someone to talk you into buying a phone you don't need? That's on you, not Verizon.

CelticScorp

I wasn't talked into buying a phone I didn't need.. again, you presume to know that I purchased something, which I did NOT!! If you took the time to read the entire complaint and follow the thread, you will see where I said I purchased nothing.

unknown

>Post deleted. Stay on topic and refrain from personal comments about others<

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

scruwd

Sr. Leader of what? Making a reply that doesn't match the reasoning of the complaint? Verizon does not promote a better plan in good faith. That's a known fact for anyone that has ever had a plan with them. Hoping you become a better leader one day for everyone not just Verizon.