Drunk Technicians?

Aerochick

Member
Original poster
Jan 22, 2006
8
0
(I posted this to DBSTalk but wanted to share with you all, too...)

Well, there I was... (a good beginning to any story)

Like others, I had an appointment on Saturday but was cancelled (family "thing"--yeah right, Labor Day weekend) less than an hour before he was to show up.... was rescheduled for Tuesday.

Tech called, and in slurred speech says, "I need you to show me your house."
I say, "Excuse me?"
(he repeats his statement and laughs)
I ask, "Do you need directions?"
He says, "Oh, I'll find it and call you if I get lost" and hangs up.

20 minutes later, he barrels down my driveway in a beat up old pick up truck. Two ladders hanging out the back, and miscellaneous boxes banging around in the bed of the truck (all opened and unprotected/unsealed). Instead of coming to the front door, these two guys walk around the side of my house.

I go outside, they ignore me. I ask one of them if I could help them, and he doesn't speak English. He says "Dish" and points to the other guy. I approach the other guy, and he ignores me. He and the first guy talk back and forth in Spanish and laugh like they have some hidden secret. I ask him for the paperwork from Dish--he shows me an invoice that simply says "622 receiver". I told him that they were supposed to install a 1000.2 dish, 622 receiver and all new switches, etc... he says "It's not on my invoice" the guy who ordered it screwed up. Both men speak in Spanish and laugh again.

Well, since it was the Executive Offices at Echostar that actually ordered this for me, I called this guy directly--and he talked to the tech. The techs blew him off and laughed--and got on their radio with "dispatch". The Executive said to me that they were calling their dispatch to get the dish brought to them, so they could complete the job.

I went out and talked to them--they said "Didn't dispatch call you?" I said "no." They get back on their radio, and I get a "beep" on the phone... I put the exectutive on hold, and take the call from dispatch.

No sooner did I say "Hello" than the guys jumped into their trucks and flew out of my driveway like a bat outta h*ll, spinning tires and dust everywhere. I was stunned--I had been standing not 2 feet from their truck--and the dispatch person said "I told them to leave". I was so shocked, I told the dispatch person that I didn't want these two men here again. She said, "Fine." and hung up the phone on me.

The call switched back to the executive. I told him what happened--he was very upset. Said he'd call back.

I received a call from someone who represented himself as a "Dish Network Representative" a few hours later. Turns out he was not a representative of Dish, but the "boss" of the two men who were at my house.

When I told him what happened, he said, (get this) "Things happen. So what if they had a couple of beers before coming on a service call? You have to understand that things happen."
When I told him that I didn't appreciate the way his technicians treated me, and that I felt that their behavior was aggresive, and told him how they sped out of my driveway, he said "I find that hard to believe--they don't even go in the driveway." LOL! Yeah, I made it up. What-ever! He said that since they speak Spanish, they couldn't have said anything to me that was aggressive--because they couldn't talk to me.
During the call, I heard him in the bathroom, the toilet flush, etc. Wow, what professionalism!
I asked him if these guys were insured and bonded. He told me that it was none of my business. He got confrontational with me, demanding to know if I ask for Southern California Edison's insurance and bonding papers when they come out for a service call--I told him that I trusted that company, and I had no trust in his now--so he had to earn it back. He told me that he would not supply any insurance papers/bonding papers for his technicians. Again, he said it was none of my business. I told him that it was not only my business, but my responsibility as a homeowner to be sure that subcontractors/contractors are licensed, insured, and bonded before they set foot on my property. He did not understand what I was talking about.
He tried to pressure me into making an appointment to have the job done by him. I refused.

Now I sit and wait again. I have no appointment. I have no DishNetwork. DishNetwork was supposed to call me last night, but they didn't.

All I want is my stupid tv to work.

If this sort of technical support is acceptable to DishNetwork, then I wonder what they are thinking??? They don't "allow" people to install the systems themselves (my husband is an aerospace engineer and had to set it up last time because the techs had NO idea how to do it) but they send out drunk technicians? Where is the sense in this???

What should I do????

I can't believe DishNetwork isn't busting their hump to make this better--to make it right--and make ME happy. I am this close to calling the local television stations to bring their consumer people on this.

Thanks for listening to me rant

(I did email ceo@echostar.com with a more detailed description of what happened, but have had no answer.)
 
Wow. Ok, I usually am the one playing devils advocate when it comes to customers complaining about installers, but...wow. That's horrible.

Well, like it has been suggested on here several times, you might want to look for a local retailer to do the install. If that is any indication of how that particular company operates, I doubt they'll be in business long.
 
Welcome, Aerochick! I'm sorry your experience with the those installers was so bad. I've been with Dish for 9 years now and have never had anything even remotely close to that happen (except with a Dish CSR on the phone once who kept telling me that what I was telling him couldn't possibly be happening).

If you're getting Dish Network for the first time, I'd suggest finding a reputable retailer in your area, but don't deal with that other company again.
 
Yeah well we are stuck with LinkUs. The subcontractor, RSG, was the one that sent and defended the guys yesterday.
Here is the latest:
Okay, well I never did get an answer to my email, but I found the name of the VP in charge of technician/installations and called. I got (of course) an Executive Assistant, but she was really nice and appalled at my story.
She got in touch with the parent company that subcontracts out the installation jobs (LinkUs) and made an official report against the company that came to do the installation (RSG)... and then made arrangements for a Sr. Tech from the parent company to do our installation (with repeated swearings off of the company that they sent initially). They will be here on Friday. Then she offered a year of free HD programming or essentially "whatever" we want--just let her know on Friday, when we call to confirm that things went smoothly at the installation.
We have no choice about LinkUs--are they really that bad? I am eternally optimistic that they really didn't know about these guys they hired to do the Tehachapi (Teh-hatch-ah-pee) area.
If they are the company that did our installation upgrade to HD equipment 2 years ago, then we might be in trouble. The guys they sent out didn't know how to install HD stuff, nor how to point the dish. They left after 4 hours of trying, saying they had another installation to do. It didn't work when they left... my husband (aerospace engineer) did the installation after they left. We never complained (I was just happy I had an able husband to do the job) but perhaps we should have--we might have spared ourselves this headache.
Thanks for everything, I'll update you all as things progress.
 
DISH Network and their Sales Partners like me are only as good as the Technicians assigned to do the Job.

I would seriously take this to the Top, and email Charlie Ergen personally about this one!

If they did this to you, how many other people did they do this to where the customer simply cancelled the work order?

#1 Never Arrive Drunk
#2 Have atleast 1 technician who speaks english
#3 Don't park in the driveway unless there is no parking spots infront
#4 Front Door first, unless there is a sign telling you to go to back door!
 
We have no choice about LinkUs--are they really that bad? I am eternally optimistic that they really didn't know about these guys they hired to do the Tehachapi (Teh-hatch-ah-pee) area.
If they are the company that did our installation upgrade to HD equipment 2 years ago, then we might be in trouble. The guys they sent out didn't know how to install HD stuff, nor how to point the dish. They left after 4 hours of trying, saying they had another installation to do. It didn't work when they left... my husband (aerospace engineer) did the installation after they left. We never complained (I was just happy I had an able husband to do the job) but perhaps we should have--we might have spared ourselves this headache.
Thanks for everything, I'll update you all as things progress.

They ARE that bad up here. Screwed around with them for more than a year, they sent folks out here without ladders or peaking meters that could not hit a bird with a shotgun from 15 feet.

They sent folks out here whose vehicle leaked oil all over the drive, they sent guys out there whose last job was obviously making large rocks into smaller ones for the State.

They sent folks out here that YOU WOULD NOT WANT IN YOUR HOME.

I would never let them on my property again.

Your best bet is to find a trusted experienced local installer that has been around since the c-band days and fork over the $150. I did and Dish credited it back to me. Or do as you did and do it yourself. You can learn all you need to know with the help of some very knowledgeable folks on this forum.
 
They don't "allow" people to install the systems themselves

How do you figure?

I've never had an installer at my house. DirecTV, Dish, and DirectPC...two houses...did them all myself.

The only one that HAD to be professionally installed was WildBlue, but that's an FCC rule. I made sure to order it direct from an installer friend of mine, so I wouldn't have this problem.
 
Update (Thursday lunchtime): WOW, well my email found its way to the VP's offices and I have received 2 calls so far this morning from the offices of the VP in charge of the Executive and the VP in charge of Installation. They are mortified and launching a HUGE investigation into the company that sent the techs (checking everything from insurance to drug and alcohol testing). They have asked me to call them directly for any and all concerns for now and the future--as long as I'm a Dish Network customer, and gave me direct lines into their offices and cell phone numbers.
As I write this, the phone rang again--Dish Network Quality Assurance--now they are sending someone out in-house from Los Angeles tomorrow morning 8am.
I never expected them to be so on-top of things like this. I am pleasantly surprised, I must say. It's like someone sounded the alarm--and they are heeding it.
So--that email really did work.
I'll update as things progress.
Thanks for all of your support!
 
Update (Thursday lunchtime): WOW, well my email found its way to the VP's offices and I have received 2 calls so far this morning from the offices of the VP in charge of the Executive and the VP in charge of Installation. They are mortified and launching a HUGE investigation into the company that sent the techs (checking everything from insurance to drug and alcohol testing). They have asked me to call them directly for any and all concerns for now and the future--as long as I'm a Dish Network customer, and gave me direct lines into their offices and cell phone numbers.
As I write this, the phone rang again--Dish Network Quality Assurance--now they are sending someone out in-house from Los Angeles tomorrow morning 8am.
I never expected them to be so on-top of things like this. I am pleasantly surprised, I must say. It's like someone sounded the alarm--and they are heeding it.
So--that email really did work.
I'll update as things progress.
Thanks for all of your support!

I gave my tech's beer. They done a really nice job. Just because someone drinks dosen't mean they are drunk. I don't know what you people expect with the petty wages they are paid. You're not going to get any brain surgens istalling systems. Most of them can't even afford Satellite or cable tv