Ludicrous customer service policies
meyerweb
Enthusiast - Level 2

I have FIOS TV and Internet. I've generally been satisfied with the quality of service, but I'm definitely not happy with Verizon's customer support.

My setup has a battery backup. (I'm not sure why, since I don't have phone service, and if the power goes out so does my TV and internet, but that's Verizon for you.) But the battery low indicator came on a few days ago, and the fool box started beeping every 15 minutes. So a few minutes ago I called Verizon to tell you guys I apparently need a new battery. I was told the battery is "out of warranty" and if I need a new  battery I'll have to pay for it.

WHAT? This isn't my equipment. I didn't buy this from Verizon, I pay you a fee every month to RENT it from you. I've paid for that battery a hundred times over by now. If something that you own, that I'm renting, stops working, I expect Verizon to replace it. I can assure you I'll rip out your equipment and leave it in the front yard for you to pick up before I'll pay a penny to maintain seomthing you own. It seems Verizon is still locked into the old monoploy phone company mentality, when it didn't have to worry about competitors. I can assure you Cox will be happy to come out and replace your equipment, at no charge.

As if that's not bad enough, the tech support person I spoke to had a "procedure" that should fix the problem without having to replace the battery. This procedure required to to climb on a ladder, get my clothes dirty, figure out how to open the battery backup unit, pull out the battery,  and disconnect and reconnect it. Again, your customers should not have to do this to fix YOUR equipment. What would you have done if I were an 80 year old woman, tell me to hold on to the ladder tightly? 

If simply disconnecting and reconnecting the battery resolves the alarm, then the equipment is defective. It shouldn't be indicated a battery failure when there isn't one. And you shouldn't be putting your customers at risk maintaining Verizon equpment. Had I fallen off the ladder, you can bet Verizon would be hearing from my lawyer.

All in all, this is a pretty sad state of affairs. I had Cox for some 15 years before getting FIOS, and never once did Cox expect me to fix their equipment, or fail to repair their equipment without charge. I'm seriously considering switching back to Cox after this experience. I'll be spending time this afternoon comparing Verizon and Cox pricing.

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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
meyerweb
Enthusiast - Level 2

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Everyone reads every line of those multi-page legaleze TOS policies, don't they? And Verizon certainly made an effort to explain that they would refuse to maintain their own equipment, didn't they? I wonder if the FCC and my local government know that Verizon won't maintian E911 service when the battery fails?

All I can say is that Verizon is the ONLY service provider I've ever used that expects their customers to pay to maintain company owned and leased equipment. When I had a problem with my Cox equipment, I could drive it over to the local Cox outlet and they'd swap it out at zero cost. If my electicity goes out, or my electric meter breaks,  the power company doesn't charge me to turn it back on / fix it. Ditto for the gas meter and water meter. The comparison to a portable radio is absurd. If I buy the radio, I'm not paying a montly fee to keep it running. The radio is mine, to do with as I want. I don't think Verizon would be very happy if I sold their property on Craigslist.

 The battery, and the box it sits it, belongs to Verizon. They won't let me do what I want with it. It's not like a car that I own and can sell. Their policty is like me renting an apartment, and the landlord telling me that if the roof leaks I have to pay to fix it. It would be different if Verizon sold me the equipment, but they're charging me for that battery backup as part of my monthly fee every single month I use their service. I've paid them enough to buy me a lifetime supply of batteries by now.

If this battery ever does die, my answer is simple. I'll switch back to Cox, they'll come in and hook up their equipment for fee. Verizon can leave their equipment screwed to the wall or come get it as they see fit, but they can't charge me for service I'm not using.

The stupid thing is that I could switch back to Verizon a month later, and they'd come out and install all new equipment for me, again, at no charge.

. They haven't even bothered to responde to my complaint here, or the one I made directly to them. It's clear they still have the old phone company mentality, and don't really understand a competitive environment. Oh, and their Facebook support was anything but good, completely ignoring my complaint. Do you guys work for Verizon?  You must, to defend this ridiculous policy.

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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
armond_in_nj1
Master - Level 1

@meyerweb wrote:

 ... the battery low indicator came on a few days ago, and the fool box started beeping every 15 minutes ... I called Verizon to tell you guys [sic] I apparently need a new battery. I was told the battery is "out of warranty" and if I need a new  battery I'll have to pay for it ... I can assure you I'll rip out your equipment and leave it in the front yard for you to pick up before I'll pay a penny to maintain seomthing you own ... your customers should not have to do this to fix YOUR equipment. What would you have done if I were an 80 year old woman ... ?


Regardless of your age or gender, did you read the TOS prior to subscribing?  It covers battery replacement, and I'd hazard a guess that there's something in there about "ripping out" VZ equipment and throwing it on the lawn (yours or anyone else's).

The ONT battery replacement issue has been beaten to death with alarming regularity on these forums.  In essentially every instance users are somehow "surprised" that replacing the ONT battery is on their dime.  That's Verizon's story, and believe me, they're stickin' to it.

Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
beetlejuice2
Specialist - Level 1

@meyerweb wrote:

I have FIOS TV and Internet. I've generally been satisfied with the quality of service, but I'm definitely not happy with Verizon's customer support.

My setup has a battery backup. (I'm not sure why, since I don't have phone service, and if the power goes out so does my TV and internet, but that's Verizon for you.) But the battery low indicator came on a few days ago, and the fool box started beeping every 15 minutes. So a few minutes ago I called Verizon to tell you guys I apparently need a new battery. I was told the battery is "out of warranty" and if I need a new  battery I'll have to pay for it.

WHAT? This isn't my equipment. I didn't buy this from Verizon, I pay you a fee every month to RENT it from you. I've paid for that battery a hundred times over by now. If something that you own, that I'm renting, stops working, I expect Verizon to replace it. I can assure you I'll rip out your equipment and leave it in the front yard for you to pick up before I'll pay a penny to maintain seomthing you own. It seems Verizon is still locked into the old monoploy phone company mentality, when it didn't have to worry about competitors. I can assure you Cox will be happy to come out and replace your equipment, at no charge.

As if that's not bad enough, the tech support person I spoke to had a "procedure" that should fix the problem without having to replace the battery. This procedure required to to climb on a ladder, get my clothes dirty, figure out how to open the battery backup unit, pull out the battery,  and disconnect and reconnect it. Again, your customers should not have to do this to fix YOUR equipment. What would you have done if I were an 80 year old woman, tell me to hold on to the ladder tightly? 

If simply disconnecting and reconnecting the battery resolves the alarm, then the equipment is defective. It shouldn't be indicated a battery failure when there isn't one. And you shouldn't be putting your customers at risk maintaining Verizon equpment. Had I fallen off the ladder, you can bet Verizon would be hearing from my lawyer.

All in all, this is a pretty sad state of affairs. I had Cox for some 15 years before getting FIOS, and never once did Cox expect me to fix their equipment, or fail to repair their equipment without charge. I'm seriously considering switching back to Cox after this experience. I'll be spending time this afternoon comparing Verizon and Cox pricing.


You can view this page. http://www.verizon.com/support/residential/internet/fiosinternet/troubleshooting/connection+issues/q...

and you can see where it says, "You are responsible for purchasing and/or replacing the battery in the BBU. Much like you would need to replace the batteries in a portable radio from time to time, periodically the BBU battery must be replaced."

 

Instead of being surprised, reading the TOS which has everything in it, just doing some easy research on google or a search engine of your choice to silence the alarm which is easier then opening a door or since this is a peer to peer forum just asking someone for help would have prevented getting worked up over nothing.

 

Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
chabbyd
Enthusiast - Level 3
Absolutely! 1. Verizon customer service us the absolute worse I have ever had to deal with. That's if you can ever get a hold if them. Don't use their email support they only tell you that you have to call and we all know how that goes. 2. I also only have Internet & TV and have no idea why I need that phone back up. 3. I just posted a question about set top box rental fees and why I have to keep paying rental fees for something I'm sure I have paid enough to purchase outright.

Thanks for letting me vent, because that seems to be the only outlet for Verizon's customer support. I guess we should be thankful that Verizon has been so accommodating to us by providing us this forum! LOL!!!
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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
beetlejuice2
Specialist - Level 1

@chabbyd wrote:
Absolutely! 1. Verizon customer service us the absolute worse I have ever had to deal with. That's if you can ever get a hold if them. Don't use their email support they only tell you that you have to call and we all know how that goes. 2. I also only have Internet & TV and have no idea why I need that phone back up. 3. I just posted a question about set top box rental fees and why I have to keep paying rental fees for something I'm sure I have paid enough to purchase outright.

Thanks for letting me vent, because that seems to be the only outlet for Verizon's customer support. I guess we should be thankful that Verizon has been so accommodating to us by providing us this forum! LOL!!!

You don't need that phone backup. They are required to provide a battery with the ONT's which is why you have it. If you don't need it you can easily remove it and move on. Their facebook customer service is really good. Always help me if needed. Phone can go either way, but would avoid their chat service for sure. I've never been able to get an answer out of them for anything on chat.

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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
meyerweb
Enthusiast - Level 2

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Everyone reads every line of those multi-page legaleze TOS policies, don't they? And Verizon certainly made an effort to explain that they would refuse to maintain their own equipment, didn't they? I wonder if the FCC and my local government know that Verizon won't maintian E911 service when the battery fails?

All I can say is that Verizon is the ONLY service provider I've ever used that expects their customers to pay to maintain company owned and leased equipment. When I had a problem with my Cox equipment, I could drive it over to the local Cox outlet and they'd swap it out at zero cost. If my electicity goes out, or my electric meter breaks,  the power company doesn't charge me to turn it back on / fix it. Ditto for the gas meter and water meter. The comparison to a portable radio is absurd. If I buy the radio, I'm not paying a montly fee to keep it running. The radio is mine, to do with as I want. I don't think Verizon would be very happy if I sold their property on Craigslist.

 The battery, and the box it sits it, belongs to Verizon. They won't let me do what I want with it. It's not like a car that I own and can sell. Their policty is like me renting an apartment, and the landlord telling me that if the roof leaks I have to pay to fix it. It would be different if Verizon sold me the equipment, but they're charging me for that battery backup as part of my monthly fee every single month I use their service. I've paid them enough to buy me a lifetime supply of batteries by now.

If this battery ever does die, my answer is simple. I'll switch back to Cox, they'll come in and hook up their equipment for fee. Verizon can leave their equipment screwed to the wall or come get it as they see fit, but they can't charge me for service I'm not using.

The stupid thing is that I could switch back to Verizon a month later, and they'd come out and install all new equipment for me, again, at no charge.

. They haven't even bothered to responde to my complaint here, or the one I made directly to them. It's clear they still have the old phone company mentality, and don't really understand a competitive environment. Oh, and their Facebook support was anything but good, completely ignoring my complaint. Do you guys work for Verizon?  You must, to defend this ridiculous policy.

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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
armond_in_nj1
Master - Level 1

@meyerweb wrote:

 ... Do you guys work for Verizon?  You must ... 



Actually I retired when you were in high school.  Then I sailed my own boat around the world without incident.  Great trip, by the way.

But anyway, thanks for asking.

Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
roaddogg1
Specialist - Level 1

@meyerweb wrote:
It would be different if Verizon sold me the equipment, but they're charging me for that battery backup as part of my monthly fee every single month I use their service. I've paid them enough to buy me a lifetime supply of batteries by now.

Wrong. You dont pay a monthly fee for any battery, the battery does not belong to verizon (it belongs to you) and if you think otherwise oh well. For some reason it seems you can't grasp that. Facts are facts though. The FCC does not require a battery backup. Fact. Almost all providers that have battery backup units are now charging for replacements. If Cox doesn't now, they will soon. I guarantee it.

Next time read the terms of service so you aren't surprised later. It's very simple. It's only your fault if you fail to or choose not to read it.

Your talk about roof leaks, water meters and gas meters make 0 sense because none of those include batteries that are given to you.

Good luck to you.

Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
MelNYC
Newbie

THE WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE I'VE EXPERIENCED FROM A CABLE COMPANY. I'M SO GLAD I LEFT AND WENT BACK TO CABLEVISION. THE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR THEM HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE OF POLICIES AND JUST TRANSFER YOU FROM DEPARTMENT TO DEPARTMENT TO INDIA AND BACK! I'VE BEEN TRYING TO PAY MY FINAL BILL AND CAN'T EVEN DO THAT. I GUESS THEY DON'T WANT MY MONEY OR WANT ME TO DEFAULT UNTIL I REACH COLLECTIONS!

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Re: Ludicrous customer service policies
jeffloos
Newbie

OMG... verizon has the WORST customer service of all time. ive had the worst 2 days ever trying to deal with this company. they are impossible to get ahold of and when you do they completely shut down your issue and give you robotic answers and basically tell you to {word filter avoidance}. I've now been on hold for over 20 min for the 2nd day in a row (all i'm trying to do is get my phone to work that i've paid for for over a year now) so I'm now going to shift my focus to blogging and reviewing about the company in all this hold time. my guess is I'll get a lot accomplished before someone corrects my issue... anyone looking to go to verizon be ware. worst customer service you will EVER experience

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