My husband and I have DISH. We’ve had it for a long time now, well over five years. In the last three years I’ve noticed that the customer service has gone downhill really badly. I strongly urge you to choose any other possible means of television if you have the option to do so.
Today I waited for one show – LOST. I waited and I waited and I waited. I cleaned the house like crazy waiting for that stupid show to come on at 9. It was the season finale tonight – two hours. I checked at 7 to make sure it was set to record – it was. I checked after 9 to make sure it was recording – it was. About 50 minutes into the show I go to play the recorded portion (so that I can FF through the commercials) and it will not allow me to start from the beginning of the recording. So I wait for a commercial, stop the recording, re-start the recording and only then will it allow me to watch from the beginning. For some reason this stupid receiver will not allow us to watch recorded shows from the beginning when it’s still recording that same show. Used to let us – and sometimes it will let us – but apparently not tonight. But I figure I’ve got a work around so I settle in to watch the first 57 minutes that I’ve got recorded. I check to make sure it’s recording the final hour and yep, it is. Once finished with the first 57 minutes, I go to watch the second part, and guess what? It won’t allow me to start that portion from the beginning because it’s still recording the final 10 or so minutes. I wait for a commercial, stop recording, start recording and bam! No minutes next to the second recorded part. None. Zero minutes. There is nothing there.
I said a not very nice word at this point. Okay, I said some not very nice words…
I call DISH after reminding myself that thank you ABC! I can watch this episode online (never mind that it’s on my 14″ laptop screen and the actual program shows on about 5″ of the 14″ but beggars can’t be choosers). I get a customer service rep named “Angel” which she clearly is not. From the background noises, I’m guessing that I have interrupted an office party and she is none too pleased. Then she treats me like an idiot. As I attempt to explain for the fourth time what my issue is she says to me, “Ma’am I cannot bring back the recording you lost.” No shit Sherlock. I gently remind her that I’m not calling to ask her if she can do magic, rather, I’m calling to find out why this occurred so as to ensure that it does not happen again in the future. The future, you know, the only thing we have any chance of changing by course-correcting OR DO YOU NOT WATCH THE BEST TELEVISION SHOW ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET????
I swear she was screwing around with her speaker phone because the background noise would become very very loud suddenly and then recede again. This happened a few times. I ask her what is going on and she blandly says, “I’m sorry ma’am, I don’t hear anything.” What is this? Junior high? Is she playing pranks on me? She puts me on hold AGAIN and I decide to hang up.
DISH is going to get another letter from me – another letter that ohbytheway they will probably ignore – much like the last letter I sent about the lack of satisfaction I received with their customer service.
Customer service in general has suffered in the past few years with everything. Ok wait I take that back. If all companies could run like Costco then maybe there really would be heaven on earth. Our friends had such problems with Dish too that they switched to Cox. Which is not much better. Oh but how could we live without them. They know you are screwed either way.
Ohmygosh. Oh. my. gosh. SERIOUSLY. We switched from DISH after our dish was stolen. We called to find out why our service was messed up, and discovered that the dish was gone, and when we talked to them about getting it replaced, they wanted $200 bucks to replace it. Yeahright. This, after having had the customer-service-runaround several times before. So we switched to DirecTV and cancelled our DISH service, but they kept billing us. And kept billing us. And kept billing us! I called and sent letters, but it took six months to get it sorted out! And when I finally did? The person I talked to told me that they should have replaced our dish for free. *banging. head. into. wall.* Awesome.
Daaaaaaang. Someone steal our damn Dish! We HAD been faithful and happy customers of the DISH Network for over 12 years, until December of 2007, when we got a letter from DISH explaining that if we wanted to continue receiving our local channels that we needed a service tech to come out and upgrade our DISH antenna for free, and according to the letter this needed to be done soon. Okay. So, we call DISH to schedule for this free antenna upgrade, and guess what?! The earliest we could get it done is in March 2008! Outrageous, especially since the letter made it sound like we would lose our local channels after January 2008. So, we waited til our scheduled appointment in March and, guess what?! The installer calls and says they can’t do it that day, and it will have to be in May!!! Ok, whatever. May. This is still outrageous, but at least we still have our local channels and all the channels are working well. May finally comes and the service tech gets to our house late in the afternoon. Does the upgrade, but leaves before the switch installation verification is done, as it takes 35 minutes to finish, and says if there’s any issues to call him. Ok, whatever (that was my hubby talking there). Guess what?! 35 minutes later there’s an error in the switch installation with the middle transponder–WTF! Now, every other time we want to watch DISH, we have to wait for the switch installation verification–believe me this is getting old fast. We call the installer, and he says its probably an aiming issue and says he will come out and aim it right when he’s back in town in a couple of days. Ok, whatever. The evening after he said he’d re aim the antenna, still the switch installation verification must be done and the same error comes up on the middle transponder (is this DISH’s middle finger–I’ve got a finger for you too, DISH). We’ve called DISH customer service several times, as the installer can’t come out again to “repair” this without a service order from DISH–WTF?? Well, the installer won’t be able to fix it until the middle of July! Daaaaaahhhhmmmm! Just to get local channels?? This is really bogus. I really hate DISH right now, because not only did I have to sit through another stinking 35 minutes of their crappy switch install verifucation, now it doesn’t want to acquire a satellite signal at all. No matter how much I hate local cable, why, oh why is DISH pushing me to cancel their service and subscribe to crappy local cable??? Don’t push me too far, DISH, I’ll do it…. I’ll subscribe to crappy local cable, because right now I have NO SERVICE from DISH. I hate DISH!!!
I sold a house unexpectedly last July and Dish service was a nightmare! They refused to waive a $212 “cancellation penalty” even if I continue their service in a new location, they are still sending monthly bills even after cancellation, they failed to advise me that I must return equipment (even if the new owner subscribes to Dish), and are now threatening to charge my credit card “on file” up to $400 if I don’t return it (the new owner moved in months ago and the home is about 100 miles away); they refuse to disclose the exact amount or account they will bill.
Stay away from Dish!!!