Rant for the Day (keep it clean)

[angie_nrs]

I cancelled my Dish Network back in June. Of coarse when they charge the credit card every month, they get advanced payment for their service. When I got my statement this month, there was no credits, nor were there any credits last month. So I called, knowing full well I'd be on hold for a long time.....so I got some household chores done while listeing to the canned music. I finally got "Alan" on the phone with the thick Indian accent. I told him that I had not seen a credit on my bill after I did the math to figure out what it should have been. Actually he said it was about $1.50 more than what I had calculated......OK. So where is it then? He tells me that they don't automatically issue credits back to the credit card b/c they aren't sure if the card is still valid. What?? They charge the card every month and they don't know if it's valid?? Then he tells me that you have to call to get your credit. I told him it was funny that the rep who finally relented and cancelled my service in June didn't mention that. He said that they can't. WTH??? Long story short, after spending 30 minutes on the phone, I should finally get my partial payment back on my card within 7 days.

It begs the question.....how many people have paid for service they didn't receive from Dish when cancelling their service? I wish I knew a Class Action lawyer that could look into this. The rep basically admitted that they rob people. I'm so glad I cancelled. Oh, and he certainly didn't want to end the call without asking me if another rep had offered me a less expensive plan. I told him to save his breath......I was not interested.......I'm done with Dish! Goodbye Alan!

 

[Wingnut]

I hate that rigmarole... it's why I bought a 'streaming stick.' No more TV companies... ugh. I still remember getting ripped off by AT&T in Coronado.

 

[zannej]

They are required by their bosses to try to sell you another plan. There are certain things in their script that they *have* to ask/say or they can get fired. It really is a pain. A couple years ago a scammer somehow hacked our account (we think on Dish's end) and set up an appointment to have our units switched out to the Hopper thing. When the guy showed up I told him we hadn't called & had not asked for the "upgrade" but he checked with his supervisors and they said it was legit. It came with a DVR so we let them put it in. There was the fiasco with mom giving her cc # to a scammer afterward but I got that taken care of. They agreed to reduce the bill for a year bc we hadn't ordered the change. But it has gone up a LOT since then-- more than the original price. We didn't change anything, but they keep raising prices and the service loses signal when it rains. We have something called SLING which I don't even know what it is or how to use it. They charge $15/month for it and we've asked them to take it off but they say it is part of a bundle and we can't cancel that part. I told them a scammer ordered the bundle, not us but they don't care. DVR is almost full now though. Wish we could switch to fewer channels bc we only watch a few of them. Wish we could pick & choose what we want & get rid of the rest.

Meanwhile, our internet has continued to get worse. It has started going out or getting severe lag spikes during rain. Gets lag spikes during sunny weather too. Not sure what is wrong and tech support for it is non-existent. But its still better than Viasat and Hughesnet.

 

[Magus]

I hate that rigmarole... it's why I bought a 'streaming stick.' No more TV companies... ugh. I still remember getting ripped off by AT&T in Coronado.

We need a thread about free cable and satellite communications and how to abuse wi-fi hot spots.

 

[Cascadian]

We live in a town of under 10k with the nearest big box store 30 miles away. Naturally we try to support local small businesses. Our Ace hardware just pisses me off. I have had several heated conversations with them. A few years ago "you are on camera signs were almost every 10 feet in the store. I told the manager it made me uncomfortable. He said well it's a deterrent. I said yes it is it makes me want to shop somewhere else and I am not the only one who feels this way. Well I noticed there were fewer sign the next visit.
Sunday we went to get propane. The guy said can I get your license plate number. I said I am not even sure what it is. Why do you need that? He said well someone tried to drive off without paying. I asked him if someone was there to steal wouldn't they just give you a made up number. He looked perplexed. Anyway I went in and expressed myself to the manager. Again they are treating everyone like a thief because of a few. I can't imagine what it must be like to run a business with crime being ignored but give me a break.

 

[Patchouli]

@Cascadian i went into a local Ace recently. Both the males working I had not seen before, extra creepy. On checking out I asked when they would be getting the fall plants in, you know, veggies and flowers. He scornfully replied in a loud voice as if I were the town idiot, “we’re not getting that until the spring!!” I didn’t feel like badgering and realized he was the town idiot and must not know a darn thing about gardening in Texas in the fall with a second crop. Yeah, thanks for the help, buddy. I will return when I see the fall plants. Hopefully he’ll be gone, but if not…

 

[VThillman]

They are required by their bosses to try to sell you another plan. There are certain things in their script that they *have* to ask/say or they can get fired. It really is a pain. A couple years ago a scammer somehow hacked our account (we think on Dish's end) and set up an appointment to have our units switched out to the Hopper thing. When the guy showed up I told him we hadn't called & had not asked for the "upgrade" but he checked with his supervisors and they said it was legit. It came with a DVR so we let them put it in. There was the fiasco with mom giving her cc # to a scammer afterward but I got that taken care of. They agreed to reduce the bill for a year bc we hadn't ordered the change. But it has gone up a LOT since then-- more than the original price. We didn't change anything, but they keep raising prices and the service loses signal when it rains. We have something called SLING which I don't even know what it is or how to use it. They charge $15/month for it and we've asked them to take it off but they say it is part of a bundle and we can't cancel that part. I told them a scammer ordered the bundle, not us but they don't care. DVR is almost full now though. Wish we could switch to fewer channels bc we only watch a few of them. Wish we could pick & choose what we want & get rid of the rest.

Meanwhile, our internet has continued to get worse. It has started going out or getting severe lag spikes during rain. Gets lag spikes during sunny weather too. Not sure what is wrong and tech support for it is non-existent. But its still better than Viasat and Hughesnet.

Zannej, your story has heightened my, um, gladness that I quit watching TV several years back. There is zero reception here without Dish-like assistance; they raised their charge (again) and I 'raised' them out of my life.

 

[goshengirl]

Zannej, your story has heightened my, um, gladness that I quit watching TV several years back. There is zero reception here without Dish-like assistance; they raised their charge (again) and I 'raised' them out of my life.

Making the decision to “cut the cord” was the hardest part for us (well, for me, anyway). We’ve been without cable/satellite since Nov 2020, and haven’t missed it. I’m still surprised sometimes by how we haven’t missed it. But the truth is, it’s been years and years since there’s been anything worth watching.

 

[VThillman]

Making the decision to “cut the cord” was the hardest part for us (well, for me, anyway). We’ve been without cable/satellite since Nov 2020, and haven’t missed it. I’m still surprised sometimes by how we haven’t missed it. But the truth is, it’s been years and years since there’s been anything worth watching.

I missed the NFL and MLB for a year or so . . .

 

[Magus]

Just say the word admins, you'll have threads about sticking the man sprouting like ragweed in here!

 

[angie_nrs]

They are required by their bosses to try to sell you another plan. There are certain things in their script that they *have* to ask/say or they can get fired. It really is a pain. A couple years ago a scammer somehow hacked our account (we think on Dish's end) and set up an appointment to have our units switched out to the Hopper thing. When the guy showed up I told him we hadn't called & had not asked for the "upgrade" but he checked with his supervisors and they said it was legit. It came with a DVR so we let them put it in. There was the fiasco with mom giving her cc # to a scammer afterward but I got that taken care of. They agreed to reduce the bill for a year bc we hadn't ordered the change. But it has gone up a LOT since then-- more than the original price. We didn't change anything, but they keep raising prices and the service loses signal when it rains. We have something called SLING which I don't even know what it is or how to use it. They charge $15/month for it and we've asked them to take it off but they say it is part of a bundle and we can't cancel that part. I told them a scammer ordered the bundle, not us but they don't care. DVR is almost full now though. Wish we could switch to fewer channels bc we only watch a few of them. Wish we could pick & choose what we want & get rid of the rest.

Meanwhile, our internet has continued to get worse. It has started going out or getting severe lag spikes during rain. Gets lag spikes during sunny weather too. Not sure what is wrong and tech support for it is non-existent. But its still better than Viasat and Hughesnet.

Tell them that you want to cancel your TV service entirely. They WILL make accomodations for you. They'll get awfully concerned about what your issues are. Even if they don't do exactly what you want them to do, you will get some sort of credit or deal on your bill. Trust me.....they won't just let you cancel without a fight on their end. If you're truly afriad of losing service, tell them that you want the cancel date to be in 2 or 3 days so that you can always call them back and change your mind later if you wish. Still, I don't think that would be necessary.....they'll do backflips to keep you as a customer. I have a feeling they are losing a lot of business right now.

Making the decision to “cut the cord” was the hardest part for us (well, for me, anyway). We’ve been without cable/satellite since Nov 2020, and haven’t missed it. I’m still surprised sometimes by how we haven’t missed it. But the truth is, it’s been years and years since there’s been anything worth watching.

I agree 100%. I had things on my DVR that I wanted to catch up on before I cancelled. When my DVR went out (which was a blessing in disguise), that's when I cancelled. Now I can't even remember what was so dang important that I wanted to watch. We have the rabbit ears for free TV and also the kid's got us set up to watch pretty much anything we want. We're now watching movies and stuff we wouldn't have been able to watch before even though it might take us days to get to the end of a movie b/c we don't sit for long. Hubby found a new one called Meat Eater, which is a hunting show. I actually like my quiet time and reading so much more than the TV. This is one time I'm glad my equipment went to crap.

 

[Magus]

Do a seasonal shut down if your company allows it. you keep all the hardware and restarting is a normal cable bill ahead.

 

[Peanut]

I don't know about others but this inflation is starting to hurt me in a very real way. I'm on a fixed income with no flexability. Gas prices are still killing me and I've cut my driving in half.

Yesterday I needed the refill size of normal household cleaning type items. Most for the pantry, a few needed right away. Wally was out of everything (almost). I went to the big box store, they have industrial sizes (and prices to match).

These few items and the little totes were $180. $180 for cleaning products??? Sanity has left the building.

 

[Magus]

Ammonia and alcohol fix most things, bleach or peroxide for what they can't.

 

[havasu]

Just say the word admins, you'll have threads about sticking the man sprouting like ragweed in here!

Hey, I'm not the Po Po no more!

 

[zannej]

Just don't mix ammonia and bleach. Don't mix ammonia and acetone either. LOL.

I just saw a tv ad for Dishnetwork promising they never lose signal and that they will give credit if you do. I lose signal constantly. I might call them up and ask. I may try the threatening to switch to DirecTv approach. I once got AT&T's attention on Twitter by asking Verizon how much it would cost me to switch to them but AT&T (who had been ignoring me completely) suddenly started messaging me.

At least the internet I have now lets me watch stuff online. I can stream things. I have amazon prime so I can watch things like Midsomer Murders and other shows I like. I'll watch Forged In Fire, Holey Moley, various Food Network shows, etc but I don't think I watch more than 10 or 12 stations and a few of them are "local". I went for 6 months without TV in Guam and I went for an entire year without TV when we first moved back here. Most stuff I watch I could probably find online. With my previous ISP I couldn't stream anything but with this one (despite its drawbacks) I can stream.

Peanut, those prices are insane! And I need to get more cleaning supplies too. I got a few and need to get more. Need to clean out the truck. Also need to put some ant killer in the CR-V. Got bitten by fire ants last time I rode in it.

 

[angie_nrs]

I just saw a tv ad for Dishnetwork promising they never lose signal and that they will give credit if you do. I lose signal constantly. I might call them up and ask. I may try the threatening to switch to DirecTv approach. I once got AT&T's attention on Twitter by asking Verizon how much it would cost me to switch to them but AT&T (who had been ignoring me completely) suddenly started messaging me.

The only problem with that approach is that they know exactly what plans (and rates) their competitors offer. They also know that people don't really want the hassle of switching, nor do they truly want to cut the cord. If you tell them you want to cancel entirely, they'll be more apt to give you a sweeter deal. Even when I called to get my overpayment amount back from Dish, they tried (yet again) to convince me to come back. Of coarse, they didn't want their equipment back when I cancelled and I think one of the reasons for that is b/c it's much easier to get their customers back that way. Albeit, my equipment was fairly old. So, you could cancel and a month later (when you call to get your money back), they WILL make you an outstanding offer....and you'd likely still have your old equipment with your DVR's stuff on it. It's amazing what they will do when they know you aren't afraid to cut the cord......b/c even a big rate cut for them is way better than losing a customer and getting nothing.

For me, I wish they'd taken their crap equipment back. It's just one more thing I have to take to the recycling center now. I won't miss that pizzed off feeling when I check my credit card and see that $5 increase every 4-6 months, steadily going up without warning. Suck it Dish!!!

 

[Pearl]

I do a lot of things besides cleaning for many of my clients. I fix things, water flower beds, take people to doctor appointments, etc.! Sometimes people ask some really over the top things!! I lost a job years ago for not moving an exercise bike into an attic, yep, you read that correctly. Only for the woman to ask me back because her nephews tried and it didn't fit through the attic stairs, not to mention how HEAVY the darn thing was. I did NOT go back to work for her!!! So now I have a little older lady I REALLY like who needs her carpet cleaned. An outside drain didn't drain an water got in the house the other day. Problem is she wants me to move LARGE furniture BY MYSELF! Can't!!! Her daughter (total train wreck of a person), asks if my hubby would help (and get paid), Sure!! Little lady says no! So I'm not doing it, heck, I can't!! So we will see how this goes over today, update later!!

 

[havasu]

Problem is she wants me to move LARGE furniture BY MYSELF!

I flip over a rubber backed throw rug under the legs of a heavy object, and I can push it around the house with very little effort.

 

[Amish Heart]

I do the same...put something under heavy stuff and scoot it. Husband can't help and little granddaughter is still a weakling. Not fair, Pearl, you're being asked to do the impossible. Maybe the lady thinks you have superpowers?

 

[Peanut]

I'd hand her business cards for "2 Guys and a Truck". They move furniture.

 

[Pearl]

Lost a friend today! Found out her step son who owns the house had someone lined up to move the furniture. He gives her the money to pay me, she wasn't paying me all of my money for the past year!! A lot of other issues came out too today! Guess she really wasn't a friend after all!! Luckily was able to line up a new job in her spot!! Her daughter is freaking out because she does not want to deal with mom! Oh well!

 

[Magus]

Hey, I'm not the Po Po no more!

While we're talking about naughty things, are explosives and poisons cool too? Just asking.

 

[SheepDog]

Cool to have the knowledge and components but sharing that information can get you arrested.

 

[Chaosdawn]

@Pearl I'm sorry to hear about that, it sucks when you think someone's your friend then you find out they were just using you.

 

[VThillman]

Lost a friend today! Found out her step son who owns the house had someone lined up to move the furniture. He gives her the money to pay me, she wasn't paying me all of my money for the past year!! A lot of other issues came out too today! Guess she really wasn't a friend after all!! Luckily was able to line up a new job in her spot!! Her daughter is freaking out because she does not want to deal with mom! Oh well!

Looks like you didn't lose a friend, Pearl, you're right. She was a "friendly acquaintance". They seem to come and go, with changes in circumstances that may seem picayune to you and me.

 

[Wingnut]

Hey, there's a Picayune, Mississippi, lol... I love towns with odd names like that, there's a town named Peculiar up in Missouri which I always liked!

 

[VThillman]

Hey, there's a Picayune, Mississippi, lol... I love towns with odd names like that, there's a town named Peculiar up in Missouri which I always liked!

Peculiar! Hah! Yeah, I like that too. There are "things that can be done" with that.

 

[zannej]

Pearl, that is awful! I know what its like when someone you think is a friend just takes advantage of you. It sucks bigtime. You deserve better. Glad you found out, but wish you'd found out a lot sooner so you wouldn't have been ripped off on the $ the house owner was willing to pay you.
I'll have to keep that in mind about dealing with Dish. Just saying I want to cancel. Although, sometimes they want their equipment back. We upgraded (mandatory upgrade bc they phased out the old equipment/dish) & the installer hauled off the old receivers. Dish billed us for not returning them. I spent a good while on the phone explaining that the installer took the old units with him & they eventually confirmed it & refunded the $. Right now I want to get rid of the stupid "sling" thing they have and get the hopper3 (which apparently costs the same as the one I currently have but allows recording of more shows). I can hook up an external hard drive for extra dvr storage.

 

[Magus]

Cool to have the knowledge and components but sharing that information can get you arrested.

So sharing stuff that was published thirty years ago and is even in the library of congress is illegal?