Saturday, May 26: Called TWC and ask they transfer services from old house to new house with no changes to current service (basic cable and internet). Installation at new house is scheduled for Monday, May 28- tech to arrive between 1-3pm. Informed rep that previous owners had TWC and cable line remains, so it should be an easy hook-up.
Monday, May 28: Tech arrives and says cable line needs to be buried underground. He leaves and says a burial will be scheduled in the next 7-10 days. "Then will I have service?" No, after the burial is completed, then a tech will come back out to install service.
Called a rep later that day to have a tech come back out talk to me so that I could personally show him that the cable does not need to be buried, and that it already runs underneath the house. Rep is confused and says someone who can answer my predicament will call me in the next few minutes. 5 hours later: no call. Called TWC back to check on status of our.. "predicament"..Rep schedules a tech to return to the house Wednesday so that I could talk with him, and that they will arrive between 9am - 8pm. As a "courtesy," they will call me 20 minutes before his arrival.
Wednesday, May 30: No call from any tech. At 6pm, I arrive home to find existing cable line has been cut in half and is dangling from the side of the house. Called rep to remind them the purpose of this visit was specifically to show a tech that the cable runs underneath the house and does not need to be buried. She insists a burial is needed, and that they will come in the next 7-10 days, no more specific than that, it could be 7 days, it could be 10. "OK- so there's going to be an exposed cable dangling from the side of my house for the next 7-10 days?" "No (silly), they won't just leave it like that, they'll come out to remove it."
Monday, June 4: Exposed cable is still dangling from side of house and has weathered numerous lightning storms in the past 5 days. Called TWC to discuss with a rep when the cable can be removed. She says there is no scheduled appointment to cut the line, only to come talk to you.
"So he came out and cut the line unauthorized?"
"It's the tech's call what needs to be done. If he cut it, it was his call."
(I fume) "Give me the name of the tech who came on the 30th to vandalize my property"
"We can't provide that information. Our jobs are contracted out, and it doesn't show us a name of a specific tech."
"So how are the tech's held accountable if something goes wrong?"
*silence* "Someone can come out tomorrow to remove it, and also, it looks like the burial will happen tomorrow as well between 9am - 8pm."
"Will I receive a call? Because I was told last week I'd receive a call before the tech came, but that never happened."
"No- generally for these 'all day' appointments, they don't call ahead of time."
"Fine."
Tuesday, June 5: No call, no show.
Wednesday, June 6: Called TWC to remind them an exposed cable has now been dangling from the side of my house for a week, and that yesterday's appointment was a no call, no show. She says there is no record of an appointment scheduled for yesterday (I fume), but that there is an appointment for tomorrow to do the burial. Rep says a tech will come by between 1pm-3pm today to remove the exposed cable, and that I would receive a call before he came.
Tech calls at 12:30pm- "Hi, I'm on my way to remove the cable."
"Wonderful, it's right at the front left window of the house. Dangling. You can't miss it."
(I'm at work so I miss his next call at 1:45) "Hi, me again. I'm ringing the doorbell at your house. No one is answering the door so please call to reschedule this appointment."
(5 minutes after message was left, I call him back to return to the house and just remove the cable. There's no need for me to be there, the cable is on the outside of the house and he has full access to it)
I call TWC again to explain what has just happened.
"Let me speak with a supervisor please."
Denise- TWC supervisor: I explain that last week, I asked a tech be sent to my house so that I could talk with him and show him that a burial didn't need to happen, that it was already running through the basement of the house. Instead of receiving a call before he came, I received no call, and they took it upon themselves to cut the existing cable from the house. And that now, a burial really did need to happen. Now that someone has come out to remove said cable, he came and because I was not home (I'm at work), he left without removing the cable.
"Well, when a tech is requested to come out, someone has to be at the house to answer the service call."
*moment of puzzled thought* "But last week, I requested someone to come out, and I wasn't home, and they cut my cable in half UNAUTHORIZED." again I probe for the name of the tech who came out last week. She repeats this information can not be provided, and that the techs themselves don't even get assigned jobs until that morning.
"So the techs show up to work in the morning and don't know where they're going til they get there?!"
....
"It looks like the burial occurred on May 30th."
*even more moments of puzzled thought* "The same day the cable was cut in half?"
*exasperated supervisor* "Yes"
"Really? Because I've spoke to a number of reps since then, and you're the first person who's told me the burial has already happened. 2 reps have told me it was happening on Tuesday, and then tomorrow..."
"It's right here. May 30th- burial completed. It looks like you've called several times and spoke to several reps and you must have gotten them confused cus it says it right here."
sounds like I'm being accused and she's trying to elicit an apology out of me, "Ok....well the rep I just spoke to says there's an appointment to do the burial tomorrow."
"Ma'am, it looks like you didn't believe a burial had been done, so the rep must not have seen that it was already done, and scheduled it again for tomorrow."
"Well...yea..cus, no one told me it was completed. And it doesn't really look like anyone's been in the yard to d.."
*raised voice*"Ma'am, someone will be out between 5-7pm tonight to remove the exposed cable AND they'll come out tomorrow to double check and make sure the burial was completed on the 30th."
"Ok, wha.."
"And someone will come back out to get it hooked up on Saturday between 1pm-3pm. OK?"
"Umm, Ok..thank you?" *click* ..don't suppose I'll get a call before they come then.
Thursday, June 7: No call, no show ? But who really knows, they were coming by to simply "double check" my paranoia that the burial had not occurred. At least someone came to remove the exposed cable yesterday. They came before the appointment so I was not home when they got there...how come the first guy who came yesterday couldn't do it when I wasn't home? Whatever. It's sitting in my trash can.
Saturday, June 9: Tech arrives on time to install cable. After a few minutes in the backyard, he knocks on the door to inform me that it doesn't look like the burial had been done.
thinks, "Of course not." says, "OK, let me call TWC. Don't go anywhere."
"I need to speak with a supervisor."
Richard- TWC supervisor answers. I explained the entire situation..again..and gave the name of the supervisor (Denise) who stated the burial had been done, and that someone was supposed to come by Thurs. to double check it but, "I don't even know if they came. I never get a phone call."
"I see that the appointment Thursday was scheduled to check and make sure burial had been done... But it doesn't look like anyone came by to do that."
*no shit*
"...and I also do not see that a tech signed off on that burial on the 30th."
*very long pause, as I take the time to control my anger and steadily rising blood pressure* I will not yell. I will not yell. I will not yell.
yells, "So the supervisor...Denise..lied to me?"
"I can't tell you what she said."-sounding truly apologetic
Tech pops in to say he could do the burial AND hook up the cable today
"I can have the burial scheduled for the 13th a.."
"No, forget it. The tech here says he can bury the cable and hook it up today."
"Well, perfect!"
..as if the problem has been solved, and all wrong-doings are absolved
"Wait"
Richard reads my mind and promises that installation fees and next month's bill will be waived.
Tech finishes installing internet and we're signing the last few papers when I ask Stephen to check and make sure the TV works too. Tech says, "TV? The order was to just install internet."
*recalls conversation from exactly 2 weeks ago* "No, there should have been no changes to our previous service...cable and internet."
"OK, I'll climb back up and get that hooked up for you."
Minutes later, tech says should be good to go. I click the TV back on and scroll up, only to find we have only 13 channels.
"Uhh"
"No?"
"No. Previous services were 78 channels. Basic cable. ..And internet."
"Ok....*sweat pouring down his face* I'll climb back up and fix that for you. But they might charge you for that extra installation."
murmurs, "They're not gonna be charging me a damn thing."
At this point, I feel bad for the poor tech. He's gone above and beyond his call of duty. Anybody else would've left after saying the cable had not been buried.
He'd buried the cable himself, and climbed up in the heat twice already. I go out to give him a glass of water but still feel indebted to him. This man deserves food.
He finishes up, we have working cable, and working internet. Good man. I ask if he likes brownies. He looks up, grins, and shakes his head eagerly. I give him some brownies to take on the road.
I call Richard, the supervisor back, and let him know we have internet and basic cable, and we come to an agreement that all fees will be waived. I will receive a credit, and the bill will arrive June 30th with my credits applied.
Let's see if TWC can fuck something else up.
...to be continued
