Technology Company with Very Loose Handle on Technology

[SgtWinkhorst]

I recently called Verizon FIOS about a monthly charge I didn't understand. I was told that that option was no longer available, which didn't stop them from billing me for it every month. I was told I could sign up for a new plan and that that plan would save me money. I said yes, and I was told I would receive a new account number. I had already sent in the bill for October, due, according to the bill, on October 12, 2018. When I went to the website in early October, I was told I owed $107.47. I phoned up several times and eventually got someone with a thick Hispanic accent I had trouble understanding. I asked to speak to a supervisor and was transferred to someone who proceeded to subject me to what I can only describe as gaslighting. I was told that the payment was due on October 1, despite the bill saying it was due on October 12. The "supervisor" also claimed I had sent in the check without the proper coupon. Where she got that bit of fantasy, I do not know. The payment was received by Verizon on the 1st of October, eleven days before it was due. I eventually had to talk to "Financial Services" to have them transfer the payment from my old account number to my new account number. That, apparently, is not automatic.

In the meantime, I keep receiving emails that say: "We've received your payment investigation number PH_______________ regarding your Verizon account ending in XXXX in the amount of $107.47.

"In order to assist in the investigation we'll need additional information. Please fax Bank Wire / ACH / EFT Transmittal report to us at ______________ using the attached fax cover sheet."

When I called up to find out why I keep getting these emails, first, I was told they would transfer me to Financial Services. When I said they were closed, he said, Oh no, they are open till 8:00, when in fact they were closed because they are only open to 6 o'clock. When I called back to find out what was going on, the "support" person told me the computer was not responding and that he would have to reboot the system. Within a minute or so, I was hung up on. I called back again, just to make sure I didn't owe them anything. I was told that I had a credit and that everything was fine. In the meantime, I had concluded that their voicemail was acting erratically and asked him who I could contact to have it corrected. According to him, there was no one in charge of that!  I finally managed to wheedle the corporate phone number out of him, but he again denied there was anyone responsible for the voicemail system, at which point I began to laugh hysterically at him. I called corporate and left a message asking to be contacted by whomever is in charge of the voicemail system.

The overall impression I get is that this supposed technology company has a very loose grip on the technology they are selling and that there is a general corporate mindset that blames the computer for whatever the humans involved have managed to mess up and that no one, absolutely no one, in the organization is willing to take responsibility for their less than stellar performance. Tell me if I am wrong about that, but at the moment, I am convinced that this is a fairly accurate representation of how they operate.