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To CEO (Charles Ergen)

I have been a customer for 8 years. Before a year break with DTV I was a customer for 6 years prior. So total years customer for 14 years. I used to be proud to tell others of the great customer service of Dish Network. WELL NOT ANYMORE!

I would like to tell you my experience of the last few days in regards to my service and calls to Dish Net call center.

First off, I am a HD subscriber of $100.00 or so a month. I travel as a customer service training manager for a very large USA based company. I teach what it is to give and expect good service. Boy I cant wait to relate my expericance to the thousands I teach monthly!

With my travel away from home. There are times that my service has backed up and been turned off for late payment. I have never argued a thing as I promptly pay in full by credit card when arriving home and finding service temporarily discontinued. It is my fault and I pay whatever fees are involved and live to see another day with Dish as it comes back on immediately.

Well this past 1-4-07 My service went off. Within hours I paid it in full. Unfortunately for my unknown future frustration I choose to pay by my checking account as my check book was upstairs at my PC. I was reluctant to use this method as in August of 05 I paid this way and had thought I had entered a number incorrectly as my service was turned off again and NSF fee charged. I and the Dishnet rep (very nice back then) could not figure out the problem. My account never showed the charge at my banking institution and we chalked it up to most likely my error. I paid by at that time again by Visa and from 2005 till last week continued to pay by Visa.

Well I diligently made sure I entered all numbers without symbols as instructed on your web page. This is the string on bottom of my check as entered- 325ccxxxx 1ccccccxxxx 09xxx The first 9 numbers are my banks routing, the next 12 are my account number (actual account number is 522xxxx, on my checks it has the 109ccccccxxx) then my check number 09XXX (for security I left out on this email the last 3 of my check number, they were entered in your system)

The check payment was accepted and TV was back on.

Lets now flash ahead a week to 1-11-07, I arrived home to my Dish Network being turned off again. Bewildered as I had paid 250.00 in full I was more then upset! I immediately called 1800333-dish. I got a person who gave me his id as "Quin B 1". I told him my service was off again and he rudely said it was because my check had been returned with no money in the bank. I told him that was impossible. I at the same time unlike in 2005 brought up my account online to view as I was talking to CSR. Right away I caught an error on the systems part. I could see that not only was an error happening now. But in 2005 an error happened as well. I was relived as I knew it had not been my mistake back then and now I could prove it.

In looking at your systems online payment records it shows the last 4 of my bank account as "xxxx" when in fact it is and was entered both time correctly as "xxxx" I could see your system was taking the "x" from the start of my actual check number and putting that as the last digit of my checking account number incorrectly! So it was not my error either time. I was thinking WOW! I am confident this CSR will understand this and we will be back in business!

Well unfortunately this poorly trained CSR would not even listen to me. He kept saying "I can see you don't pay your bills and that's why your service is off" and "If you had money it would have went thru" I kept trying to explain it did not even get the opportunity to go trough as your system repeal is logging wrong number as bank account number. I also told him I pay my bills and my payment of all my bills is none of his business and I REAPETED demanded to talk to a supervisor. He kept ignoring my demand for a supervisor and putting me on hold for extended periods and returning and arguing with me more. I finally asked his name and for a supervisor. He said hold on and hung up on me.


I then called back and luckily talked to a very good CSR that could see what happened. He said he had seen this before and its a glitch with some obscure banks (mine is a small credit union) He said his system was such that unfortunately he could not tell it that it was not customer error. So in turn I would not be able to pay by check for 6 month. I told him after this I would never be paying by check again. He laughed with me and I paid in full on my Credit Card. He offered to waive the fees to accept phone payment and the NSF fee. This was the Dish service I remembered. Alls well and fixed.

UNTIL TODAY!!!!!!!!!! PART 2 of extreme RUDENESS!

Today after returning home from my children's soccer game I noticed my big TV was off. I had been recording a program. I thought it odd and headed upstairs to check other TV. What the heck, they say subscription needed. I am at this point confused. I go to my bank account online and see payment for $260.00 has been processed to dishnetwork. So I then bring up Dishnet online and check my account. It says balance "0" So What the heck is going on?!

I call Dishnet and get a CSR I calmly explain clearly that I have paid by credit card in full 2 days ago and something's wrong. She does not listen or appeared to not listen to a thing I said?! She says, "sir, your service is off for a returned check payment and you need to pay for it to go back on" I am like YOUR CRAZY ( I did not actually say that) I say, I DID PAY IN FULL on 1-11-07 and my service was restored immediately and fees waived.

She then pauses and basically repeats the same line to me about I need to pay before service is restored. I am pissed at this point and again ask for a supervisor. She like the first CSR keeps putting me on hold refusing to get a supervisor to help. She comes back and tells me now she sees there is a 260.00 payment pending and my service will come back on when it shows paid?

I again say this makes no sense. I paid in full 2 days ago and a credit card payment is immediately approved. So what the heck is she talking about?! She says again your payment is pending and your service was not on. I say, look lady are you calling me a liar? I paid and the csr that unlike you knew what he was doing and service was immediately restored. I own NOTHING! I WANT A SUPERVISOR NOW!

She again places me on hold and comes back and tells me I need to make my payment in Cash now and from now on for any service. I said, So your telling me Dishnetwork has just taken my 260.00 pretended for 2 days to give me service and now I need to send cash in the mail?? Your the most rude untrained CSR I have ever dealt with. I say for the last time I WANT A SUPERVISOR NOW! She again disappears and then comes back and says "We have restored your service as there was a system error"

So I say thank you for that. ( I am not a rude person so I thanked her) and asked for confirmation that this would not happen again 2 days from now and what happened.

She says she does not know what happened. I said what about this cash thing you stated, Am I able to pay by my credit card still. She says by computer I can buy not by phone any longer?????? I say, I have never paid by phone except 2 days ago so this should not be an issue as I pay by internet. She says sir YOU CAN PAY ANYWAY YOU LIKE. Then I say, Not to be rude ms.csr but you need more training as you have been very little help if any.


So there you have my terrible customer service experience. I as a long time customer (or any customer) should not have had to go thru this or get this upset. I would appreciate some kind of feedback assuring me my service will not go off again due to this issue. I would also like to ask why your CSR's will not get a supervisor on the line when asked.

In closing, this is now probably the worst customer service experience I have had ever. I would hope you would respond with a statement as to why I was put through this and hopefully roll this up to a customer service upper management person as I am sure I am not the only one that is concerned with the downslide of your customer service.

I will be posting this letter and any rebuttal on several satellite forums I have found. ( Satellite guys USA, and AVS forum ect ect)

Thank you sincerely
Jacqueline K