When the United States Senate decides to step in on behalf of the consumer, you know there’s a problem. If you are one of the many people who has begrudgingly called your CableTV or Internet service provider only to end the call in a state of utter stress and frustration, you can breathe a sigh of relief. The United States Senate conducted their own investigation and can you guess what they determined to be the most common complaints?
Not only do consumers strongly feel that they’re taken advantage of when it comes to pricing, but it definitely gets more specific than that. Some consumers felt like they fell victim to false advertising, being promised one price and then ending up with another when the bill arrived. Other complaints include expiring promotions without knowledge, additional hidden fees and miscellaneous charges, and overall dissatisfaction with rising prices (as much as 33%). It’s no wonder people are so upset!
Customer service is a whole different issue when it comes to cable and satellite providers. If we asked a room full of people to raise their hand if they have had a bad customer service experience with their provider, we’d surely see a sea of hands!
We’ve been reading complaints of representatives trying to upsell customers when they call with a complaint about something else, difficulty in canceling service, and having service issues that were representatives told customers they were unable to resolve. This is incredibly frustrating and, given how much we pay our service providers, grossly unfair!
What happens now? Cable and satellite providers are working on the outlined issues above and have publicly acknowledged them. According to providers, plans to take much-needed action are in place. Some of the companies have made promises and plans to hire more customer service agents and representatives, improve online help, provide better service windows when service calls are needed, assist in helping consumers understand their bills more clearly, and ultimately more transparency.
We’re sure you’re just as excited as we are to see these changes take place in (hopefully) the very near future!