Posted on 06/12/2008 2:36:12 AM PDT by Las Vegas Dave
Several TV stations and local newspapers are urging caution about signing up with DIRECTV because of the satcaster's controversial early cancellation fees.
The FCC has scheduled a hearing tomorrow on early termination fees imposed by cell phone companies. However, consumer advocates are pushing the agency to investigate other companies, including TV providers.
The recent media glare on DIRECTV's cancellation policy could help force the FCC to comply with those requests.
DIRECTV requires subscribers to extend their service agreements for two years when it issues a replacement receiver, including an HD DVR. However, the agreement's fine print states that if you cancel your subscription before the two years are over, DIRECTV will charge you with an early termination fee.
The fee sometimes runs more than $300.
For years, DIRECTV customers have complained at Internet message boards that the fee is unfair because the new receiver is often a replacement for a set-top that no longer works. The anger was particularly intense a year ago when DIRECTV's new HD DVR experienced several software issues, causing the satcaster to issue numerous replacements.
The satcaster, however, has maintained that the cancellation fee allows it to issue a replacement at no additional up-front cost.
But in the last few weeks, local TV stations and newspapers in Phoenix, Sacramento, Raleigh, North Carolina, Naperville, Illinois and Seattle have reported that their residents are hopping mad over the cancellation fee.
For instance, KTVK-TV in Phoenix reported this week that one local resident was charged $313 after she tried to cancel her subscription.
"All I did was order a new part to receive their product," the resident told the station.
A Raleigh, North Carolina resident told station WTVD-TV that DIRECTV charged her $160 as an early cancellation fee -- and another $200 when the satcaster said it didn't get the DVR she had mailed back a few months earlier.
"A DVR she returned and had the FedEx receipts to prove it. She called DIRECTV and wrote a letter disputing the charges, but the charges continued to add up and she got turned into collections. That's when Marianne e-mailed (WTVD)," the station wrote at its web site.
In the Raleigh case -- and several others -- DIRECTV has told the media outlets that the fees are valid. However, the satcaster adds that it will credit their accounts, something it's not known for outside the media spotlight.
"Carolyn (the upset customer) has been with us a long time and we hope to have her back at some point in the future, so we have credited the early cancellation fee," DIRECTV said in an e-mail to KTVK in Phoenix.
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Las Vegas Dave
I’d be happier if they focused on signal quality and adding more options to their receiver boxes. (I’d like to control color output over HDMI, please.)
I left DirecTV years ago due to their unfair billing practices, and their inability to admit to making mistakes.
STILL to this day, I get weekly “begging” letters asking me to come back. Nope; I’m now happy with DishNetwork.
I send their Business reply envelope back loaded with pea gravel!
I tried signing up with them but by the rates increased significantly from the time I signed up to the installation day. Free equipment at signup. Same equipment would have cost me $200 at installation, and they wanted the equipment back if I canceled.
Rotten company IMO.
I’ve been a happy camper with DishNetwork for 5 years.
Thanks for posting this and the heads up. Verizon just strung fiber optic down my back yard about 6 weeks ago and I’ve been considering switching away from Time Warner Cable to Verizon’s FIOS, their TV is, however, DirectTV. I will want to read the deal carefully before switching.
I’ve had DirecTV since 2000, I guess. Except for the HD DVR, which I bought, they’ve always kept me current in receivers and dishes. This spring, they had to move my dish along with the upgrade.
I’ve been a pretty happy camper, which is more that I could’ve ever said when I was a cable customer. But now I’ve got FiOS for my Internet access. Hmmmm.
I let go of DirecTV this year....using OTA digital now with 24 channels....I miss some of the programming at times, however, they just kept going up on their service only adding shooping, reality, and fag channels.
Verizon FIOS is Direct TV? no its not I have FIOS and its much better.
Word on the street is the Verizon FIOS is the cat’s pajamas. Check broadbandreports.com
I have Direct TV, but I do not yet have HDTV service through them. I own my hardware and none of it was branded Direct TV. I think they took a big step backward when they started branding their boxes and went to leasing. Basically, I am waiting for FIOS, or something similar.
We’ve been with DirecTV for several years now as well, and we’re fairly happy. They made a step backwards when they offered their own equipment rather than TiVo, in my opinion, but it’s still all right.
We “bought” three of the latest HD DVRs from them, and are now “leasing” them. That we spent hundreds of dollars on equipment that we don’t own makes no sense to me, but that’s what we’re doing....
Thanx for posting — useful information. I’ve been with Dish for about 6 years, and had no problems. We’ll soon be upgrading to HD, so I have spent a lot of time studying user reviews, etc. online.
What I have found is that it appears that the Dish Network hardware is considerably more reliable than the Diret TV hardware. My own experience is that the Dish hardware has given us no problems whatsoever in 6 years, none, so I think I may stay with Dish when switching to HD. I don’t need hardware problems plus billing hassles.
> Verizon FIOS is Direct TV? no its not I have FIOS and its much better.
The Verizon in my area has a deal with DirectTV that’s all this is.
Four years ago we moved to San Diego area and got local package. Directv grandfathered our network feeds. So we can still get programs from the four majors from the east coast 3 hours earlier for about 8 bucks a month. Love it!
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