Dish Network is Lost in Space
Written: Oct 28 '00 (Updated Dec 11 '00)
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Pros: Clear Crisp Stereo Reception
Cons: Customer Service Staff Have Been Given Lobotomies
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| jasonccusa's Full Review: Dish Network DishPlayer 500 Channel Satellite Syst... |
The following review was written prior to Dish Network resolving the problems in their billing. After several weeks of back and forth conversations my bill was corrected. I still subscribe to Dish Network but have reduced my subscription to their $29.95 program package. Picture quality and stereo sound remains excellent. Service quality is extremely reliable. Except for problems with billing I would recommend Dish Network if your cable leaves you disappointed.
I have been a Dish Network customer for almost a year. I subscribe to the Dish Network 100 Channel Package for $29.95 a month. I also subscribed to a pay-per-view channel on a monthly basis until just recently. I canceled this monthly subscription as a result of an ongoing billing dispute. My bill is paid in full; I owe Dish Network nothing. I have purchased a dozen or more "Dish On Demand" Pay-Per-View movies during this period. During this year I have had more than 10 billing errors.
Each billing error required me to spend 20 minutes or more on the phone. Most often the errors were corrected to my satisfaction. Two errors are still pending. What I have experience and learned during these episodes should make anyone considering Dish Network to think twice.
The Dish Network Customer Service staff should really be called the "Customer Aggravation" Staff! By in large everyone I have talked to are woefully ignorant of the services and charges Dish Network have. More humiliating is the fact that my problems "always" take second place to what my account balance is and when I plan to pay. Like I said before. I always pay my bill within 30 days.
Regardless, Dish Network has a plethora of problems in terms of billing, customer service and customer relations. For example, I can not receive "local channels" even though where I live qualifies to receive them. I was billed for local programs for two months. I called the Dish Network Customer Aggravation Department and spent almost an hour on the phone trying to explain that it is impossible for me to receive local programming because my dish does not point to the correct satellite!
Finally I asked for a supervisor. The supervisor had not been subjected to a Dish Network lobotomy and quickly realized I was right! Still, I was promised a corrected bill but even the supervisor was unable to give me an exact payment amount. I was told I would have to call back the next day to get that figure and that if I wanted to just pay the incorrect bill I would be credited the following month! NOT!
Currently I am fighting with Dish Network about two billing errors regarding Pay-Per-View movies. The total amount of the disputed bill is Only $12.98! This is what happened.
Pay Per View movies run back to back with commercials in between. I saw a movie I wanted to watch at 8PM so I clicked on the keypad and bought it at 7:45PM. I was immediately given access at the end of the finished movie and watched 15 minutes of commercials for upcoming events. At 8PM my access was ended and I was informed that I would have to buy the 8PM movie again. Hmmmmm....I was a little annoyed but I figured it was a technical issue.
Two hours later a different movie I wanted to watch was advertised. At 9:45 I performed the same function. Got to watch commercials for upcoming events and promptly at 10PM was shut off for the same reason. The message said I would have to buy the new pay-per-view movie again.
I wrongly assumed my bill would not be charged for these two movies considering I didn't see either of them. Only saw the tail end full of commercials. Wrong!
When I got my bill I called the Dish Network Customer Aggravation Department and was told that "they do not give credit on pay-per-view movies! Now I am angry! This problem has lingered on for over a month. My bill is still paid in full but Dish Network refuses to make good on a technical problem that charged me for service I never received.
Stay clear of Dish Network...They are Lost in Space!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 29.95
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Epinions.com ID:
jasonccusa
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Member: S Jason Metcalf
Location: Cape Cod Wellfleet Massachusetts
Reviews written: 94
Trusted by: 66 members
About Me:
I'm an electronics enthusiast interested in every new and important development.
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