NewUnhappyCustomer

Aaron62

What does their customer service reps say? That's why it always pays to get those installers to give you everything you want the first time. After you've had them come by, and sign the agreement, they've got you locked for 2 years regardless of how happy of a customer you are.

clarisya

Yeah actually. My cousin also experienced worse customer service from them. Didn't take his receiver though but his having problems with what he got and their customer service was totally horrendous.

1inxs

I believe you are obligated to activate the extra receiver. You cannot have them ship the receiver and then turn around and resell that receiver. So if you don't intend on activating the receiver I would accept directv's decision and enjoy your new system. I believe the satellite company's require a Credit Card on file for installation. If you don't get satisfactory results from customer service at directv contact your Credit Card company and ask about the possibility of filing a dispute for a product not 100% fulfilled. Contact directv and escalate the complaint to a manager. Ask directv to give you a courtesy credit of $178.00 for the receiver or send the receiver. Let directv know they have this last chance to make the correction and inform them of your intent to file a dispute. Good Luck and I hope this helps. Please post back and let us know how it all went.

ShowMeRon

We dropped directv in January. In December directv contractor(LMAO) installed a twin LBN to the dish I installed 10 years ago. They ran the new coaxs thru the garage then straight thru the wall to the living room, very unprofessional.

CadDad

Was it a subcontractor of DirecTV? Sometimes I wonder if their employees or subcontractors have any training with Dish installs other than mounting a dish.

Bernielj77

My dealings with DirecTV were these:

The installer came, right between the two times the company stated that the installer would arrive, installed a new cable going to my bedroom and put new ends on the cable that was going to the livingroom.

He then hooked things up, and with the TV in the livingroom, he disconnected the cable from the way I had it, to "his" way, which seemed to work at the time, so I said nothing.

The installer checked the signal strengths and I thought that he had adjusted the two satellite dishes, which were there when we moved in, from a previous tennant, so he didn't "dig out" the new satellite TV dishes and used the old ones that were already there. He did remove the "splitter," or whatever their name for it is, and replaced that with a new one and he told me the reason why.

The previous tennant had left a receiver here, which the installer took because it was an older receiver and he had a newer receiver for us.

I also had an older receiver from the first time I had DirecTV, and the installer stated that it could no longer be used and that he'd take it from me, but I had told him that I had paid money for that receiver, and that it wasn't "free of charge," like if I signed a service contract with them, like I was doing, and the installer stated that in that case that I'd get credit for the old receiver, since I actually had purchased it the first time in a "kit."

I have never received any credit for that old receiver.

The installer then programmed the DirecTV remote to operate the TV in the livingroom.

The installer stated that he'd program the second receiver's remote to operate the TV in my bedroom, but I told him that it wasn't necessary to program it to operate the TV because the TV in my bedroom didn't have remote control capability.

Of course I have since purchased a new TV for the bedroom that does have remote control capability.

I noticed that the installer took with him anything that came with the two receivers, that weren't being used here in the installation, even the extra cabling that came in the receiver's box, which I felt wasn't really right or "kosher," but since I didn't need that extra cabling, I was ok with it.

However, after I was finished watching the TV in the livingroom, I went to the end table where the remote control was sitting the last time I saw it, and noticed it was gone.

I looked high and low for that remote and didn't find it, so I concluded that the installer may have misunderstood what I stated when I told him that I didn't need the remote control programmed for my bedroom TV, and I figured that he took that remote control probably figuring that I didn't need the remote control or something.

Shortly after the installer left, maybe a half an hour or so, DirecTV called me over the phone to ask me how the installer had done with the installation, so since I didn't notice anything "major," I said that the installer did an ok job.

I also told them about the installer taking the remote control for the second receiver along with him, and I was supposed to get that remote control replaced, but they never gave me one. I almost bought one used off of E-Bay but I never did. I just used it without the remote. A little inconvenient but since it was in my bedroom I was able to work it ok without the remote.

I also noticed that the installer had connected the wires or cables to the livingroom TV backwards, the input to the output and vice-versa, and even though I was getting a picture on the screen, I found out that I was actually receiving the signal from the satellite TV converter box "over the air," meaning like if the satellite TV converter box was transmitting a TV signal on TV Channel 3, like they do, and like I had been using a TV antenna to pick up the signal from the satellite converter box, instead of a "direct connection" to the TV. In other words I was receiving the signal from the satellite converter box like I would a normal local TV station using a TV antenna, instead of directly through the cabling, if you know what I mean?

I also noticed that when I moved the two satellite dishes back and forth, and maybe a little up and down as well, I got around 20 "units" better on the received signal strengths.

Maybe I'd make a great satellite TV system installer ??? Ha ha ha.

I do not remember what the contract was like, but at that time I don't think that I had to sign up for two years, but I may be mistaken about that, and I did need to show a credit card, but I had gotten rid of the two I had some time before that, but I was able to get the installation by showing them the bank's debit card, the one that allows you to access your account, and that worked for me.

They must have changed things over the years because the first time I bought a satellite system, Dish Network, I paid cash for it, maybe $200.00 or so, and I also paid an extra amount, maybe $50.00 or so, for the installation kit that I could use to put the dish up myself, so I guess they don't allow "self installations" anymore, even though I do just as good, and even better most of the time, than the installer does in installing satellite dish systems.

After an installation by the installer, I'd check the system out and I'd make any needed changes including adjusting the satellite dishes themselves for best signal strength, and when I put the first system in myself, the Dish Network one, they had markings on the mounting bracket, degree marks, where you'd "plug in" your latitude and longitude to get the number of degrees of "elevation," which you set on the mounting bracket, then you'd use the inclosed compass, or your own compass, to approximate the direction to point the dish, then after mounting the dish, you'd just move the dish back and forth and up and down slowly, until the signal strength, and signal, came in, and I'd either take a small portable TV outside to see the signal strength on the screen, or I'd set up one of those Family Radio Service, or FRS, walkie-talkies, or HTs as Ham Radio operators would call them, the one where the walkie-talkie would go into transmit if it picked up any sound coming into the microphone, as it had VOX or Voice Operated Relay, capability, and I'd place that by the TV in the house and take another one up to the roof where I had the dish mounted, then I'd listen to the "tone" of the satellite TV signal and would just tune for the "highest pitch" of the tone, and that worked just fine.

Finally I will say this, I lost my job, so I couldn't pay the satellite bill, so it was shut off, and I was able to pay that bill a few months later, but they then sent me another bill, for another month, but I told them that it had been shut off and that I wasn't getting any signal from them, but they insisted that we had "minimum service" going all of the time, but I told them that it was shut off and was never turned back on and that I hadn't received any signal from them since it was turned off, so they kept trying to bill me for a month of service, and I think it was actually more like six weeks if memory serves me, that they kept trying to bill me for, service I had never received.

I still haven't paid them for that "extra month," or "extra six weeks," of service that they say we received when we didn't recieve it and thought that it had been turned off for good.

All I know is that I'd check every few days and there wasn't any signal, oh I'd get "something" on the screen telling me that the frequencies or channels were pay channels or whatever the words were, and/or in order to view them that I'd have to pay for them, or however it was worded, but I wouldn't see any picture. They were "blocked out."

I may get either cable TV, as their subscriptions or costs are actually dropping as they were too expensive, or maybe Dish Network as I used to have that and personally I think they're a little better than DirecTV. I even liked their "super station" package, where instead of only having WTBS and WGN, they'd also have a Denver station and 4 others, one in California I think, and at that time it was only about $5.00 extra or something like that.

Anyway, that's about it, and sorry for the long post, but I wanted to address some of the responses to the original post, along with responding to the original post.

Have a Great Day,
Bernard

Bernielj77

The installer asked me where I wanted the cables to be routed, like through the wall, through the floor underneath the home, etc., but I just told him to run the cables right where the old cables were.

The cable in the bedroom was replaced with a new cable, and the one in the livingroom was in good shape, but he put new ends on them anyway.

1inxs

Don't sign the installer release until you are 100% satisfied. You could contact directv or dish network immediately with your concerns while the installer is still at your home. If you are not 100% satisfied, you don't need to sign the agreement. You shouldn't have to feel intimidated, they are working for you. I used to own a company that sold and installed satellite receiving equipment. I did all of my own installations. My goal was to conceal everything between the dish and the receiver. I've seen many installations that looked like those described here. Cables hanging and holes drilled where they shouldn't be. That's why BASIC INSTALLATION is stated in the original contract. But it states "basic" not unprofessional. Regarding the installations where the installer took receivers, remotes and other hardware. That's plain theft. It sounds like the installer is going to offer the stolen items for sale on eBay or something. If I found out an installer stole equipment from me. I might go as far as filing a police report. With enough action from consumers, service and quality will get better.

Jay

Great post, reminds me when I ran into a few problems with AT&T about 5 years ago when I shut off my service, and I couldn't prove that I had actually cancelled service. We argued for months over a $85 bill, and instead of settling with me after I had sent in my phone records showing the date and time of my phone call to their offices, they sent my bill to collections dinging my credit...for $85.00.

Lesson learned...I now ask for name or ID# and a confirmation email from anyone that I cancel service with. If I don't receive something from them within 2 hours, I call back and ask for it again.