Comcast –
Read the small print!!!!!!
I recently
received a marketing brochure in the mail address to my address from Comcast. Typically I just throw these marketing
materials away, however, I decided to take a moment and review the
material.
On pages 8
and 9, there were 4 different packages I could choose from ranging in price
from $69.99 to $109.99. The packages
included TV and internet and I decided to call and talk with a sales
representative. I was interested in a
package for $89.99 which included 220+ digital channels plus XFinity on Demand
(FX, MLB, ENCORE, NBA TV, NFL Network), X1 DVR Service included for 12 months,
HBO and STREAMPIX included for 12 months, Internet with download speeds up to
50 Mbps. All of this for $89.99 per
month for 2 years with a 2 year term agreement.
With Direct TV, I was paying considerably higher for 12Mbps internet and
128 channels. So I thought it was time
to change.
Then I
learned a few things.
First it was
going to cost me $24.95 a month to cancel my internet with Century link. I had 3 months left on my contract which I
did not even know I agreed to, so I would spend $75 dollars canceling my
internet with Century link. It would
cost me an additional $20 dollars a month to cancel my Direct TV contract which
I did not even know I had a contract.
Apparently when I moved into my new house, I signed a two year contract
with Direct TV and I still had 5 months left on my contract, so I would be out
another $100 dollars. Then I would have
to pay $100 dollars to install Comcast.
So to switch over, I would be out of pocket $275 dollars.
I wasn’t
aware of the following. Did you know
that with Direct TV if you are under contract and it seems as though you are
always under some type of contract that it will cost you $20 dollars a month
until the end of the contract period to break the contract. They call this a deactivation fee or early
termination fee. When you sign up for
Direct TV, ask what their early termination or deactivation fee is and ask what
the contract period is. Did you know
that with Century Link if you deactivate early you will pay whatever the
monthly amount is left owing until the contract period expires. I wasn’t even aware I was under a
contract. I was paying $24.95 a month on
a promotion program through the end of April.
Had I cancelled I would still be on the hook for the $24.95 through the
end of my contract. If your contract is
$50 a month, you will be on the hook for $50 a month until the end of the
contract. So whether or not you it
through the end of the contract, you must pay them through the end of the
contract, unless you move and move your service to your new address.
Comcast was
exceptionally deceptive in their sales practices. When I was talking to the Comcast sales
representative, he failed to mention the following.
There would
be a $10 a month modem charge.
I would be
charged an additional $19.95 a month for my HD receiver after the first year of
the contract.
What they
did share with me was that I would be contractually obligated for 2 years to
pay $89.99 for my TV and internet service.
I would pay
$10 a month for each additional receiver.
I would
incur a $10 a month deactivation fee for each month I canceled prior to the two
year period. I must say, this is much
better than Direct TV or Century Link.
Their deactivation fee is outrageous.
The bigger
for me is that they left out the fact my bill would increase $20 dollars a
month after the first year. I was
equally incensed that they did not tell me there would be a $10 dollar a month
modem rental fee. I would have gotten my
first bill and it would have been $10 dollars higher than I thought and if I
would have liked to cancel because I thought they were unethical and deceptive,
I would have to pay $230 dollars to cancel my plan which I would not have
done. I would have really been mad when
I found out my bill went up another $20 dollars after year one.
By the way,
Century Link and Direct TV play the same type of games.
Here is what
you should be aware of and ask.
What is the
exact cost of the products or services I am agreeing to purchase after tax? In
other words, what will my bill be?
What is the
period of time I am agreeing to?
What is the
early termination or deactivation fee?
What is the
cost of installation?
What is the promotional
period I am agreeing to?
What is the
cost of the TV or internet product I am purchasing after the promotional
period?
Is that the
best you can do? In other words, is this
your best offer?
Know this,
internet and TV cable companies have new offers on a monthly basis. It would not hurt to call them every month
and see what their latest and greatest offer is. The other thing to know is
they can’t go off script. If the offer
doesn’t show up on the sales person or retention person’s computer screen, they
can’t offer it to you, in other words, they can’t just give you a deal. They
are mindless robots who can only read what offers the company is offering at
that time.
Century link
and Direct TV offer you a $5 dollar a month bundling discount, don’t be
fooled. You will only get this discount
if you purchase the Choice package with Direct TV. If you purchase the lower
cost entertainment package, the discount does not apply. The discount only applies for one year.
I ended up
committing to a new internet package with Century link which will give me
40Mbps service for $19.95 per month, a $10 dollar discount on their $29.95
rate. In one year, the cost will go up
and if I decide to early terminate, I will have to pay $29.95 until the end of
the contract period, not the $19.95 per month I am paying.
The other
thing to note that they never mention is there is a download speed and an
upload speed. I had a package I was
paying $24.95 per month for 12MB download and 896K upload. They do have different prices for packages
which increase both the download and upload speed of your internet. The new package I bought for $19.95 per
month, $5 dollars less than what I am currently paying is 40MB download and 5MB
upload. Considerably faster for less
money, now that is what I am talking about.
Too bad it is for only one year.
Lastly, I
think it worth noting that Century Link is the absolute worst of the three
companies I have mentioned in regards to answering the phone. In the multiple phone calls I placed to Century
Link, each time I called I was informed the wait time would be in excess of 10
minutes. Well they were right, I waited,
39 min, 37 min, 15 min and 32 minutes each time I called them. Really, you are going to make a customer wait
that long just to answer the phone? Are you kidding me? Hire more people. Both Direct TV and Comcast answer their
phones within a few short minutes. Why are they able to answer their phones so quickly
and Century Link takes in excess of a half hour most times?
It is important
to remember, the customer/sales representatives of these organizations WILL NOT
be forthcoming with you. They will give
you as little information as possible in order to retain you as a customer or
get to as a new customer. When you
commit to a program, you don’t have to sign anything and they don’t send you
anything to sign. You may not even know
you are committing to a full year or two, in fact, you probably won’t
know. Most programs offered to you are
for 3, 6, 12 or 24 months and rest assured the price of the program WILL GO UP,
NOT DOWN! Sure you can call and you should, but they are banking on the fact
that you won’t call and complain and just pay the higher price.
Update: So I decided to upgrade to Century Link’s new
internet service which was suppose to give me 40MB download speeds and 5MB
upload speeds. Well, as you can imagine,
this is not the case. After several days
of monitoring the speed on my internet connection, the results are in. I am averaging around 14MB download speeds and
1MB upload speeds. So much for
purchasing a 40MB connection. Isn’t it
amazing that Subway can get sued for the length of their bun being 1 inch
short, but Century Link can give you 80% less than what you purchased and no
one says a thing. What a joke!
