Taking The Plunge !

[Piratefan98]

After considerable time reading, researching, and seeking out the help of many people here and at other web boards, I decided to make the phone call to DirecTV tonight ..... with the idea that I'd sign up under the right circumstances and comfort zone. I was really pleased with my CSR, and had most of my concerns eased by being able to bail out within 30 days (apparently, the number of days that you can get out varies from state to state. My state is 30 days). That helped push me to "try" DirecTV, knowng that if it doesn't meet my expectations, I can ditch it. Perfect.

I laid out to the CSR the various "deal breakers" that would cause me to cancel, such as not getting the HD locals as advertised, the specific RSN HD sports channels as advertised for my geographic area, the installation configuration that I want (i prefer pole mount rather than roof), and both HD and SD PQ. They bent over backwards, and I got a better deal than I expected. I was able to stack my AAA $10/mo discount on top of the national $18/mo. And, apparently the specifics of the AAA discount also varies by AAA geographic region .... so I was able to get 2 HD receivers at no charge (was expecting one free and one for $99). Also, no extention to the 24 months for having the AAA discount (had thought that I "might" need to sign on for an additional 12 months).

The installer comes out Friday morning, hopefully to set the pole, and do all the inside set up .... then Saturday to set up the dish. Will feed back after the install. I am very thankful for all of the help I have received here.

Jeff

 

[rad]

I'd try to get D* to give you that 30 day bail out in writing to help prevent any problems if you do decide to bail.

 

[JAG72]

The installer comes out Friday morning, hopefully to set the pole, and do all the inside set up .... then Saturday to set up the dish. Will feed back after the install. I am very thankful for all of the help I have received here.

They will do the pole and dish in the same day. The installers do not want to make a second trip.

 

[Piratefan98]

They will do the pole and dish in the same day. The installers do not want to make a second trip.

Well, that would be fine with me. I assumed that there'd be some concrete drying to take place, but if they can do it all in one day, that would be even better.

Jeff

 

[Piratefan98]

I'd try to get D* to give you that 30 day bail out in writing to help prevent any problems if you do decide to bail.

I've heard that from others too, and it really worries me. I mean, do I really need to go into this kind of a transaction thinking that I might be being deliberately mis-led by the CSR? My conversation with him was intentionally crystal clear. I expressed the concerns I had over both SD and HD PQ. I told him that certain aspects of the plan I was signing up for were absolutely "deal-breakers" (getting the advertised local and RSN HD's, etc). I told him these various concerns were problemmatic, because I knew that I was dealing with a 2-year commitment if I signed up. That's when he told me that I had 30 days to assess my system, and if any of my concerns weren't addressed, I could have DirecTV removed without any cost. 5 minutes later, I asked very directly the same thing ..... i.e., if I have any troubles with any of the areas we discussed ..... and he again reiterated that I would have 30 days to "change my mind".
At this point, nothing is in writing between DirecTV and myself, as we have only had a phone conversation. I wonder how I go about getting that commitment in writing?

Jeff

 

[rockaway1836]

You could try E-mail

DIRECTV - Contact Us

 

[Ronnie-]

At the very least I would have his name and worker I.D. and the date and time that you talked to him. Maybe you should call back and confirm this with another CSR (getting this information from him as well). If they will not confirm it you can cancel now with no penalty

 

[rad]

I've just seen too many posts from people that are told one thing by a CSR trying to make a sale and then once the hardware is installed nobody knows anything about the agreement. So whatever you can do to get written verification of the deal before hand will just help to eliminate any 'misunderstandings' in case there is a problem.

 

[Piratefan98]

Thanks to all of you for your help and suggestions.
As suggested, I emailed customer service yesterday, and sure enough ... got a reply back last night stating that they there was no mention of a 30 day cancellation policy with my order. Amazing! I replied this morning, and instructed them to cancel my install.

It's really weird that the sales CSR is able to do that. I mean, if I go to a car dealer, and work with a salesman on prices, features, warranty period etc., and then when actually signing the papers, find out that he wasn't authorized to give me a particular deal or rebate ..... I mean, that's beyond silly. In my case with DirecTV, that's exactly what happened.

Oh well,

Jeff

 

[Ronnie-]

Thanks to all of you for your help and suggestions.
As suggested, I emailed customer service yesterday, and sure enough ... got a reply back last night stating that they there was no mention of a 30 day cancellation policy with my order. Amazing! I replied this morning, and instructed them to cancel my install.

It's really weird that the sales CSR is able to do that. I mean, if I go to a car dealer, and work with a salesman on prices, features, warranty period etc., and then when actually signing the papers, find out that he wasn't authorized to give me a particular deal or rebate ..... I mean, that's beyond silly. In my case with DirecTV, that's exactly what happened.

Oh well,

Jeff

Sorry it happend, but I am glad you caught it also.

Perhaps you could try again and see what they will do

 

[Piratefan98]

I am continuing to read and learn as much as I can, but no doubt, the intentionally deceitful approach taken by my CSR leaves a bad taste. It's pretty sleazy telling someone they have 30 days to change their mind, when in fact, they have 24 hours.

Jeff

 

[Ronnie-]

I am continuing to read and learn as much as I can, but no doubt, the intentionally deceitful approach taken by my CSR leaves a bad taste. It's pretty sleazy telling someone they have 30 days to change their mind, when in fact, they have 24 hours.

Jeff

Also understand that some CSRs simply dont know. I dont know if the person you talked to was telling you a lie on purpose or just from a lack of knowledge (which in and of itself is bad). While it would leave a sour taste in my mouth also, I would try to remember that when and if I called them back.