No longer a Verizon Wireless customer
Written: Nov 17 '05
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Pros: I no longer have to deal with Verizon
Cons: Lots of buck passing among employees. Complete lack of regard for customers. Representatives not knowledgeable.
The Bottom Line: Worst customer service ever! Good riddance!
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| mary_perren's Full Review: General Reviews of Verizon Customer Service |
I changed service from T-Mobile to Verizon in January of 2005 because T-Mobile's network was inadequate in Tennessee. Several friends had recommended Verizon, so I ported my number to them as soon as my T-Mobile contract was up. At that time, I purchased a new LG VX6100 camera phone, which the salesman at the Verizon store assured me was the top-of-the-line product available, and said that he and all of the other employees had the same phone and absolutely LOVED it.
Several times while traveling on major interstates I would be without service for several minutes or would drop calls. As a woman who frequently travels alone, this was a concern, and I conveyed this to Verizon. I was told to call them whenever this happened so they could troubleshoot the problem. I patiently told the girl that I can't call if I don't have service, and she told me in an exasperated voice to call from another phone. I told her, with slightly less patience than before, that none of the Interstates I travel are equipped with pay phones on the side of the road, or this would not be as big of an issue. She also told me that I should still be able to get a call through to customer service when I don't have service. For the record, that's not the case.
The problems worsened in October when I began having frequent dropped calls and/or complete lack of service in my house (which I was told was 5,000 feet from a Verizon tower). The first time I called to report this, I was told that I hadn't upgraded my software (which I was never told I needed to do) and that I would need to take my phone to a Verizon store for a software upgrade. This was a Sunday, and I was told that there weren't service technicians available in stores on Sunday. She told me to call back if this didn't fix the problem and my phone would be exchanged. At that time, she advised me that Verizon and other carriers were having dropped call problems with the LG VX6100, which is why the software had been upgraded (to my knowledge, customers were not notified of this via phone or e-mail. I never received any communication from either party and only learned of the "problem" when I called Verizon Customer Service.
The following day, I went to the Verizon store, where a rather unfriendly technician told me that I would have to leave my phone with him for about 45 minutes while it was updated, but "there's no charge for that." I hope not!
Fast forward two weeks, and my phone started having the same problem, only this was worse. The phone would ring, but I was unable to answer it without the call dropping. I also missed several voice mails because I did not get voice mail alerts. I also became so frustrated with dropped calls in my house that I gave up on using my cell phone to make or receive calls and started using my home phone instead! I called Verizon customer service again on Monday evening, November 14, 2005 and explained the problem. The customer service representative was able to pull up my account and see where the update had been performed. He advised me that I needed to have my phone checked by a technician again before Verizon could replace it under my warranty. He also told me that Verizon customers had a long history of problems with that particular model of phone, and that neither Verizon nor LG could figure out why. He added that the phone had been discontinued because it was so problematic.
The next day, I noticed for the first time that the keypad felt lopsided, as though the keys were loose or something. I had to work that morning, which included a two-hour round trip on the Interstate, much of which was made without any phone service. An attempt to contact a colleague was a disaster, as my phone kept dropping our call.
Anyway, I returned to the Verizon store (the one where I bought the phone in January) around lunch time on Tuesday, November 15. On my way back to the service department, I was intercepted by a salesman. I gave him a brief overview of the problems I was having with my phone and told him that I had been told to come in and check it out. He took my phone, looked at it and said in a very sarcastic voice "No wonder it's not working, you broke it." That was the first time I noticed the crack in the side of the phone. I'm not disputing the fact that it was broken (I don't recall dropping it, by the way, although that explained the keys not hitting correctly), but I had been having problems with the phone long before that.
I told him that, and he told me that I couldn't prove it, so there was nothing Verizon could do for me. He stopped short of calling me a liar and accusing me of trying to defraud the company! I was willing to extend my contract and pay the difference on a different model phone for credit on the phone, leather case, charger, etc. I currently had, but I was told that wasn't an option. He said my only recourse was to file an insurance claim (thank goodness I bought the insurance on the phone), pay the $50 deductible and have a new phone overnighted to my house. He said it could not be exchanged in the store because it was an insurance claim, but he told me that if I called the 800 number he gave me and reported it by 1:30 p.m. central the phone would arrive the next morning. More on that in a minute.
I also asked him about Verizon's admission that the phone had a lot of documented problems, and he told me he knew nothing about that. He swept his arm around the store in an exaggerated gesture and told me that "all of the people who work here" and "a bunch of my friends" have this phone, I sell this phone every day, and I've never heard of anybody having problems with it. I asked him why two different customer service people, who aren't paid on commission for selling phones and accessories, had told me differently, and he replied that "they were just covering themselves."
I had also been told by customer service that a repair technician or other associate could pull up my account and read a detailed history of the problems I was having. This guy never offered to pull my records and told me "it wouldn't matter anyway" when I asked him about it. By this time I was furious and on the verge of losing my temper. The other sales associate in the store (one customer came in while I was there and told him she was just looking) just stood in a corner and made no effort to help or intervene in any way. I picked up the original guy's card from his kiosk and told him that I was going to call Verizon and replace my phone and call customer service how I had been treated and give them his name. He smirked at me and told me to "go right ahead." At that point I left before I said something I would regret, which prompted the other salesman to tell me "have a nice day, ma'am."
When I called the 800 number to file an insurance claim on my phone, I was told that the replacement would be sent via FedEx and would arrive "sometime between 8 and 5" the next day. I told the person on the phone that I had been promised it would be delivered the next morning, and she said they have never made any guarantees of delivery time and could not do so. Frankly, they were more interested in my $50 than they were in helping me at all. Unfortunately, I told them to go ahead and send me the ____ing phone, at which time I was told I would be getting an "improved" model because the VX6100 had been discontinued.
The insurance lady, realizing how angry I was, did transfer me to customer service (which she said they normally don't do). I talked to three people and was given three different versions of the runaround about how this was my fault and Verizon had what amounted to plausible deniablity that there had ever been problems with my phone. I was also told that I should have taken it in for repairs sooner had I really been having problems. I replied that I was told there weren't service technicians available on Sunday, and was told that they're available in some stores. I also asked them what they were willing to do to make this right, and was told that they couldn't do anything because my phone was broken. I also told them about my bad experience in their (company owned) store, which I was told would be noted. The alleged customer service supervisor was so rude that I finally asked her how much it would cost to get out of my contract. $175. I told her I would happily pay that if it meant I would never have to deal with Verizon Wireless again. She asked me if I wanted her to cancel my service then, and I told her no, that I would do it myself because I wanted to port my number elsewhere (I use it for business as well as personal calls).
I also asked if she had a boss I could speak to and tell him or her why I would no longer be a Verizon customer. In a very annoyed voice she told me "He's not available." I asked if I could hold, and she said in the same exasperated tone "He's IN a MEETING." I asked for his voice mail, and she put me on hold for 15 minutes before transferring me (I timed her, and I was determined to stay on the phone until someone picked up). I left a brief message with my name, home, work and cell numbers and asked for a return call, which I have yet to receive. It's two days later, and he has yet to call me back (or hasn't left a message if he has tried to reach me). Honestly, I'm not expecting him to. Sadly, that underscores my entire awful experience with Verizon customer service. Avoid them unless you have a very high tolerance for shabby service and lots of buck passing.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 150/month
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Epinions.com ID:
mary_perren
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Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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