Poor Service

[yelraek]

Why does a multi-million dollar company have such a problem with customer service? I have a LOS problem that I have lived with for about two weeks because I was afraid I would lose half a days wages waiting on the tech. Well I bit the bullet and called Monday. Tech support set up a service call for today between 12:00 and 5:00. At 5:10 I entered into a tech chat on the web site explaining that the tech has not shown up or even called. The service rep checked into it and about 20 minutes later told me I needed to call tech support to resolve my issue. I called and the rep on the phone took about 30 minutes to trying to contact the people responsible for the service call. It ended up by the rep telling me that a manager or the tech would call me and explain why the tech was late. It's now 8:14. No tech or manager has called. I guess I will call tomorrow and try to reschedule. I will have to ask them to schedule the call on the weekend because I cannot afford to miss another half day at work.

My problem: My receiver is a 622 with a dish 1000. I am losing the signal on sat 129. I lost it completely for about a week. It was back today when I ran a check switch but the signal is only half as strong as 110 and 119. System info status A has: Error! Select "Details" The details show singal loss on both tuners. Box G has a red X in the signal box under 129. I suspect the lnb is going bad.

 

[popzezo]

the 129 is a VERY low satellite.. in Augusta, Ga the 129 is at 26 degrees... if you can, stand behind your dish and see what is to the right of it, could just be blocked. get them to put up a 500 for 110 and 119 then a 500 aimed at 61.5 and you will have 125 sig str if done right. 61.5 is at 45+ degrees for us down south, you may not like two dishes but you cant beat the signal gain, and the lack of no line of sight

 

[Jim5506]

Use a little initiative, get up on the roof and learn how to peak your own dish. there are many threads here and on the other two forums that explain indetail how to do it - I have written at least three myself.

First mark the current settings for azimuth, elevation and skew.

Skew is probably OK.

Have someone watch the point dish screen for you or turn the volume up so you can hear the tones. Set the satellite to 129 TP 30.

First loosen the azimuth bolts (clamp on the mounting post) just enough so the dish can be moves slightly left and right. move it one way and see what happens to signal strengthif it goes up leave it, if down go the other way. Find the best spot and retighten the azimuth bolts.

Repeat this proceedure with the elevation setting.

Look at 110 TP 11and 119 TP 11 and make sure they are still acceptable.

If you loose 110 and/or 119 - that's what the original marks were for. You can split the difference and maybe have both.

 

[boba]

ceo@echostar.com seems to work well if you really are pissed. So far I would say you really aren't concerned seeing you have waited 2 weeks before complaining.

 

[yelraek]

ceo@echostar.com seems to work well if you really are pissed. So far I would say you really aren't concerned seeing you have waited 2 weeks before complaining.

Hell yes I'm pissed. How can you say I'm not concerned? You missed the point. I live alone and cannot afford to miss half a days wages waiting on a tech to show up. They could at least have called to let me know that the tech might not make it. I could have gone back to work. If I thought sending a note to ceo@echostar.com would make a difference I would do it. But it seems it does no good. The poor service continues on......

 

[rickc]

Hell yes I'm pissed. How can you say I'm not concerned? You missed the point. I live alone and cannot afford to miss half a days wages waiting on a tech to show up. They could at least have called to let me know that the tech might not make it. I could have gone back to work.

He is exactly right! Someone from the company SHOULD HAVE CALLED!! I'm sure most, if not all of the install tech's have either cell phones or direct contact with their dispatch. It only takes a minute to accomplish this, and what a difference (in terms of good will) it makes for the customer.

 

[okiekevn]

i agree. the techs should notify dispatch and dispatch can call. im one of the guys in a call center who have to put up with the crap the techs create by not calling thier customers when they are behind. the the cust gets pissed at us, when we have no control over it. when we do call dispatch, dispatch will say we will call the customer. then we gotta tell the customer that.

 

[RandallA]

There's so much miscommunication at Dish Network right now that is not even funny. Techs blame the customers and the CSRs. CSRs blame the Techs and the customers. And WE the customers blame CSRs and Techs.

We as customers just want service, we don't care whose fault it is. Dish Network needs to get their act together.

 

[yelraek]

Update

I called the number posted on *E's website customer support page today to reschedule the appointment. To my surprise when I gave the computer my phone number I was told the appointment had been automatically rescheduled for Monday! WHAT!!! How could they do that and not notify me. The computer asked me if I wanted to change the appointment scheduled and gave me 4 other times, Monday afternoon, Tuesday morning, Tuesday afternoon, ETC or I could hit 0 and talk to a rep. Naturally I hit 0 and asked him how could my appointment be rescheduled without notifying me? He said someone called yesterday from my number. I told him that was me trying to find out where the tech was that was supposed to be there. He apologized to me and tried to set an appointment for a week day. I told him I could not afford to lose any more time off of work and he needed to set it for the weekend. He set it for Saturday 9/29 at 8:00 to 12:00.

I am in the service business myself and if I treated my customers this way I would soon be out of a job.

 

[Van]

I am in the service business myself and if I treated my customers this way I would soon be out of a job.

No you wouldnt, you'd get a raise and promotion to supervisor

 

[okiekevn]

well, think of it like this. you got a car with a problem, and its covered by warrenty. you can take it to the dealership and work around their times and let them take twice as long to fix your car, or take it to your own mechanic and pay him to fix it quicker. in other words, find a local retailer.

 

[wase4711]

No you wouldnt, you'd get a raise and promotion to supervisor

LMAO, Van!

 

[wase4711]

hey, in case anyone has been living under a rock for the last few years, MOST customer service, especially in the Telecom world SUCKS now a days...Its not just Dish; try calling Comcast or Vonage with a problem.....

 

[RandallA]

hey, in case anyone has been living under a rock for the last few years, MOST customer service, especially in the Telecom world SUCKS now a days...Its not just Dish; try calling Comcast or Vonage with a problem.....

Wow, really? I had no idea, thanks for telling us.

Dish Network service has gone down hill, period. I've visited the Satellite forums every day for the last 4 years and in the last year or so Dish Network customer service and installation services has gone from bad to worst.

 

[popzezo]

and customers have gone from good to high maintenance children..


that said, dont you dare lump us all in one bunch.. i may be cold or mean on here but thats here... real world im here to make your service right.. , if the job wasnt right before i got there it will be when i leave, on average i spend about 1.5-3 hrs fixing what the last tech didnt do or did wrong. rerunning duel messenger, grounding, weather boots, trenching cables, taching lines, home runs and no barrels(oh my god i hate a lazy tech).

im sick of all the bashing

 

[RandallA]

"on average i spend about 1.5-3 hrs fixing what the last tech didnt do or did wrong."

Do I need to say more?

Like I said in several different posts, the installers that visit the forums try their best and I know most of them work hard but there are some installers out there that are just plain hackers. You said it yourself, you go out there to fix problems because the last tech didn't do or didn't do it right.

If the shoe fits.......

and I'm not talking just about the installers, it's customer service and more.

 

[popzezo]

IMPO winback is a major part of the customer /vs/ tech problem... just like a retailer they tell the customer what ever they want to hear. even if its not standard or free it is now, then you get the tech who goes out and is blind sided. IF the tech makes it to the house that is. here lately im seeing alot of "the tech didnt show" posts.. maybe due to WB making our life/job hell

 

[mdwatt]

I see both sides of the argument. Yes, the customer should be called. And with the company that I work for, if this didn't happen, the tech would be fired. There is a system of checks and balances in place to where the CSRs follow each techs route and accounts for all jobs completed. If there is a job still open at toward the end of the day, then a CSR is calling the area manager to see where the tech is at. The tech is then located and ordered to go to the missing job. If he refuses, he is then fired and another tech or the manager himself must complete the job, regardless of time of day. Rarely are jobs rescheduled, ESPECIALLY without the customer's knowledge. IF a job is rescheduled, the customer is contacted BEFORE the job is rescheduled.

However, the flip side to the same coin is this: There are customers out there who expect you to give the the moon. They sign up and get free installation and free equipment, and yet they act like you're robbing them when you ask them to pay for an extra UHF remote, or a mirrored outlet not on your original work order. Not all, but most techs do a pretty good job with keeping up with their customers, and making sure that everything is squared away by the end of the day. There are a few exceptions though, as our original poster has discovered. It's unfortunate, but it happens...sometimes things slip thru the cracks.

Your best bet for resolution if your next service appointment is missed, is to call the number that comes on your bill and complain, and escalate your situation as far as possible. You might not only get your serivce call honored, but get something free out of the deal. Try to stay away from retailers if possible. I can't speak for the rest of the country, but in my area, the retailers we had around here were even worse about customer service and quality that anyone else. Before the retailers around here went out of business, all I did was clean up after them. I'm sure that most of it was due to poor training, but still. If you're in business to do something, then make sure you do it right. Your best bet is to call dish directly.

 

[RandallA]

I see both sides of the argument. Yes, the customer should be called. And with the company that I work for, if this didn't happen, the tech would be fired. There is a system of checks and balances in place to where the CSRs follow each techs route and accounts for all jobs completed. If there is a job still open at toward the end of the day, then a CSR is calling the area manager to see where the tech is at. The tech is then located and ordered to go to the missing job. If he refuses, he is then fired and another tech or the manager himself must complete the job, regardless of time of day. Rarely are jobs rescheduled, ESPECIALLY without the customer's knowledge. IF a job is rescheduled, the customer is contacted BEFORE the job is rescheduled.

However, the flip side to the same coin is this: There are customers out there who expect you to give the the moon. They sign up and get free installation and free equipment, and yet they act like you're robbing them when you ask them to pay for an extra UHF remote, or a mirrored outlet not on your original work order. Not all, but most techs do a pretty good job with keeping up with their customers, and making sure that everything is squared away by the end of the day. There are a few exceptions though, as our original poster has discovered. It's unfortunate, but it happens...sometimes things slip thru the cracks.

Your best bet for resolution if your next service appointment is missed, is to call the number that comes on your bill and complain, and escalate your situation as far as possible. You might not only get your serivce call honored, but get something free out of the deal. Try to stay away from retailers if possible. I can't speak for the rest of the country, but in my area, the retailers we had around here were even worse about customer service and quality that anyone else. Before the retailers around here went out of business, all I did was clean up after them. I'm sure that most of it was due to poor training, but still. If you're in business to do something, then make sure you do it right. Your best bet is to call dish directly.

Excellent post, I like it. I understand that there are customers out there that can also be a pain in the behind. They just want everything done the way they want it and they want it for free.

My point is that in general, customer service has been really bad as of late. In my opinion the problem is with management, poor training, total miscommunication and not setting realistic goals for the number of installations has lead to this debacle as of late.

 

[ruggrat007]

Ranting and raving customers.......? No way that could be possible. As the local retailer I see a ton of screw ups from the local DNS shop. I recive 6-8 service call requests a week from people that are tired of dealing with Dish directly. We owe it to the customers to do the job right the first time, and to educate them . But on the flip side everything is not free. You get what you pay for people, and we all know that to be true.