DirecTV review: directv sucks 820

DTV customer service is the absolute worst! Here's the letter I'm sending:
Mr. Chase Carey, President & CEO of Direct TV
2230 East Imperial Highway
El Segundo, CA 90245
chase.carey@directv.com

After a year of Comcast’s low quality reception, poor service, and exorbitantly rising prices, we began looking for alternatives. Over a two-week period we spent hours on hold to talk to Direct TV representatives. We gave them all of our information including our town name, Brunswick, which we even spelled for them to make sure they had it correct, and zip code. At first, DTV sent us an e-mail saying they did not provide service in our area which they had listed as Birch Island, Maine. (There is no city or town named Birch Island, Maine – Birch Island is the name of a housing development in Brunswick.) Once again, we spent hours straightening that out and convincing DTV that it did, in fact, provide service in our area. When we asked about bundle options, we were told by DTV that they did not offer internet in our area and had no bundling partners here. We asked about Fairpoint Communications options. The DTV representative had never heard of Fairpoint Communications. (It is interesting that yesterday’s local paper carried a nearly full page ad about DTVFairpoint bundling offers in our area.)
We decided to go with DTV for television service anyway and made an appointment for Friday, Sept. 3 when an installer was to arrive between noon and four. I rearranged my work schedule to be there. Fifteen minutes before noon, the installer called to tell me he had been in meetings with his supervisor all morning and was being required by the supervisor to do his morning installations in the afternoon and would I wait for him to get to us between 4 and 8PM. That didn’t work for us. We talked to a DTV representative about our dissatisfaction with their planning abilities but were convinced by repeated promises that it wouldn’t happen again to reschedule installation for Saturday, Sept. 4. We cancelled weekend plans and agreed to be home between 8AM and noon. Saturday mid-morning we received a call from a DTV supervisor telling us that the installer would not be coming because he didn’t feel well. (That story later changed to his wife being pregnant or something.) Since it was mid-morning, we couldn’t un-cancel our original plans and our Saturday was largely wasted.
Once again, we spent hours sending e-mails and on hold making phone calls to DTV to express our frustration and to complain about the way we being treated. We were called by a field supervisor who, against my better judgment, convinced us these things would never happen again if we rescheduled. He gave us his direct cell phone number and told us to call him personally of anything went awry again.
Yet again, I rearranged my work schedule to be home from noon to 4PM on Friday Sept. 10. At 1PM, a DTV representative called to make sure I was there (I assume to make sure the DTV installer wouldn’t be inconvenienced or wasting his time). The representative assured me that the installer would be there soon and would call en route. I waited over three more hours and no one ever showed up or called. At 4:20PM, almost three and a half hours after a DTV rep had called to make sure I was at home for DTV and well after the 4PM “latest arrival” time for the installer, a DTV rep called again to tell us the installer wouldn’t be coming because he was still working in Harpswell on his first call of the day! We were incredulous. When asked why DTV did not call us earlier, the rep told us that the installer’s cell phone battery was dead and he couldn’t be reached. (Which is at odds with the rep’s story that the installer had just called him – I guess his cell phone battery magically recharged itself for outgoing calls. It is also at odds with the fact that the DTV installer’s truck was seen driving past my neighborhood coming from the direction of Harpswell around noon. In an earlier conversation with a supervisor, we were told that part of the problem in our area lies in the fact that there is only one installer for Brunswick, so please don’t go to the “it might have been another installer’s truck you saw” story here.)
We tried to call the supervisor who had given us his personal cell phone number to call if things went wrong again. There was no answer and the voicemail box was full so we couldn’t even leave a message. We tried another number he had given us and it didn’t work. We called DTV and after being on hold for 35 minutes, spoke with a representative who then kept us on hold for another 20 minutes or so while she tried to connect us to a supervisor. At one point, she said she’d located a free supervisor but that we’d have to wait longer while she “pulled up our account” and immediately switched us over to Muzak for another wait.
We finally did get someone who claimed to be a supervisor and we related our tale of woe. All we got in return were comments like “DTV is number one in customer satisfaction.” Incredible. She never once admitted that DTV had done anything wrong or offered anything even resembling a solution. At one point out of sheer frustration we offered that hard as it might be to believe, DTV had actually made Comcast look good. To this the supervisor replied, “I’d like to welcome you to the DTV family!” More that incredible. Was she even listening? More likely, her “supervisory” duties entail nothing more than reading from some prepared script aimed at placating customers.
In sum, DTV’s service is the worst I’ve ever encountered. It is worse than I could have even imagined. DTV has been alternately incompetent, untruthful, arrogant, uncaring, and rude. Needless to say, we will not be joining “the DTV family” anytime soon. What we will be doing is spreading the word as far as we can. Our DTV experience will be shared through letters to the editor, blogs, e-mail, word-of-mouth – any way we can get the word out so as to spare others from being treated this way. I teach at a university and will certainly use my experiences a case study in poor service for the hundred-plus of students I have each year.
You should be embarrassed and ashamed both corporately and personally.

The same exact thing is happening to us right now. The guy came to install mid morning on 9.7.10 (TU), he had a hard time with the mounting, he explained to my husband what to do for him (the DirecTV) guy to get the dish mounted and that he (Dennis-the DirecTV guy) would be back sometime around 3pm in the afternoon. We agreed. Dennis (the DirecTV guy) called us around 3:17 pm and said that he was on his way, he finally arrived sometime around 4pm or so. Dennis had great demeanor although he was obviously frustrated as the night set in and he was unable to provide service on our Main television set in the Living Room. We were friendly offered Dennis beverages and dinner, he only accepted one drink and never asked to use the restroom once, he always took his shoes off while walking inside our home. Dennis said that he would be back asap in the morning and he was very apologetic for disrupting our television viewing pleasure, we had also panic a bit when we lost our internet service for more than a few minutes... we have a home business. ///// On Wednesday, 9.8.10 Dennis and a DirecTV senior installer located the issue with the connection with the Main TV set, they finished the installation of the equipment, quickly packed up without checking the picture quality. Once my husband and I settled down to watch our after dinner TV program from 7pm (PST) to 8pm (PST) we realized that the picture was so fuzzy/blurry/out of focus that we could not read much of the text, the quality of the picture was so poor that both of us suffered eye strain and headaches, we are seniors. We immediately called customer service and then the merry-go-round, hand off, stall, put-off and lying began... a bunch of run-around endless phone calls and unfulfilled promises of cooperation of service, a quick and satisfying solution within hours, a call back that will deliver the solution promp-tu... we just had the system installed and we can't even watch TV and DirecTV has not even made a Service Appointment with us Yet... they keep giving us the run-around and trying to sell us $150.00 of upgraded equipment for our HD tv, another guy said it would cost $10 more per month, but said nothing about additional equipment installation, I was on the phone with Angela (employee of DirecTV) for at least 25 minutes to no avail, she kept trying to sell me an upgrade and pretended she had no idea how to resolve the issue. Finally we ended up on the phone with tech service and we were told that we would get a call back. When the call came in and we could see that it was just another run-around call, we verbally REQUESTED IMMEDIATE TERMINATION as per CALIFORNIA law. We were than immediately transferred to another staff member who threatened that DirecTV has many lawyers and we will end up paying a minimum of $400 for early cancellation. My husband told him come and get the equipment and terminate our service, we hereby rescind the lease due to bait and switch tactics, failure to perform as per promise. Keep in mind that request for cancellation was made verbally on 9.7.10 Tuesday at 8pm or shortly thereafter to two staff members who put us off with sales pitches.

Contract is ending soon and we're canceling it. Too bad cuz we were loyal customers since 2000 but with increase in price, too many changes in programming packages, we've had enough. I'm sorry for those who've had bad experiences with tech and customer service. I hope that they send the boxes so that we can return the receivers and don't continue charging us fees.

Am I entitled to compensation for lost work, aggravation & damage to the house besides Direct TV fixing the damage?
This was installed 2 years ago. It's been leaking for 2 years and has caused mold.

Yeah, and their commercials state that they have hundreds more channels in their base package than Dish...without revealing that it's because DTV considers it's base package to be Choice, which is 60.00 while Dish's basic package is 34.00 (both at regular price). Yeah, if you pay double, you will probably get more channels. LoL. But if you compare them side by side, you'd see that even the package that lines really lines up with Dish's basic (it's called DTV Select) has fewer "real" channels like Lifetime and Syfy and more informercials...plus theirs is 39.99, so you're still paying more for less. DTV is sneakier than most places, I agree. I tend to think of them as having the mentality of a used car lot. I'll never go back to them once my contract expires; however, I still think a lot of issues (not all, but a lot) could be prevented with some proactive measures taken by customers.

I have my own issues with Directv. They claim to have hundreds of channels. What they don't tell you is that most of the channels are the ones NO ONE watches. They do have hundreds of channels, but most of those channels (like 90% of them) are infomercial channels and home shopping networks. When I called to complain about it, I was told that the only option I have is to block those channels because they can't remove them from a package, and they NO packages without infomercial channels.

My complaint is about trying to get Direct TV installed! This all began because our hardwire cable company's bundled service for telephone, internet, and digital tv (no pay channels) got to be $200 a month! I saw an add for AT&T and when we talked to them, it sounded like quite the deal. First AT&T came and installed the phone, then the DSL line (which we have had so many issues in the past 5 days). The first technician that came out for Direct spent 10 minutes, without stepping one foot off of our driveway and said, there are too many trees to get a signal. He called his boss and his boss was a jerk to my wife and agreed. My wife asked the tech, what limbs we would need to trim so we could get service and he was nice enough to tell her. We paid over $100 and had them done last weekend. On Wednesday, they sent a totally different tech back that apparently read the notes and said, there was not way he could install. He spent less time here than the first tech according to my wife. I then called a private installer in a nearby town and he and his wife both told me that they average 6-8 installs a week where Direct TV installers tell the customer they cannot do it. Anyway, I found the new CEO's name as well as another Executive Officers name and wrote them both. Within 20 minutes, there was a call from the Customer Advocacy Department, Office Of The President of Direct TV. I told this guy about what had already happened and he was shocked. I told him that I have been without any TV for two weeks and that the private installer would be out Monday or Tuesday and if in fact he does get the install without any problems, I would be VERY upset. He asked me if I would be willing to let him schedule a supervisor to come out between Noon and 4 Saturday. He told me that would be the only job that he was on and that he would have several years experience. Today is my wife's birthday. I agreed. Noon came and went and finally around 2pm a tech, not a supervisor, arrives. He tells me proudly that he has been doing this for 2-1/2 years. Then he says that he is not sure that he can get it in! He does call another tech and they both come back around 3:30 p.m. This other tech has almost 18 years experience. We walk around the house and finally, he said, we can do this, as long as you make sure to keep the trees trimmed in the future (2-3 years down the road). So my wife and kids are extremely happy because they are going to get television. About 30 minutes later, there is a knock on the door. It is the original technician. He tells me his boss wants to talk to me. Come to find out, it is the first guy that was out here BEFORE the trees were trimmed. He asked me, "Why is my technician out at your house, I told your wife we could not do the install!" I was shocked! We went back and fourth. I gave the phone back to the tech and called the Advocacy line back. Funny thing was that the guy I spoke to was supposed to be there all day Saturday and to call if there were ANY problems, and then he requested the day off! Anyway, I spoke with another nice lady and she wanted to speak to the technician. She told the tech that she wanted to speak to his boss and for the boss to call her. The technician was scared of being fired so he left. Now, I still do not have ANY television. This is just par for what America has become. Empty promises and lazy people that do not want to do their job, much less go the extra mile to get the job done. That is why alot of the jobs are now overseas and the remainder are giving to illegal immigrants. I swear, if there was anyway to get my cable TV and internet back without a huge reconnection fee and a lot of mess, I believe I would just do it. I am thinking about just going with Dish Network as there is already a Dish Network dish on our roof. I have ruined my wife's birthday for these jerks and still no TV!

Can someone provide information on my following issue with DirectTV. I have NEVER had service with this company. I made several payments on-line with my bank card for a relative. Little did I know that if the person on the contract did/could not follow through with their contract I would be held accountable for the account. I have just been deducted over $600.00 dlls from my checking account and DirectTV is refusing to refund me. As I've been arguing with their customer service and so on had I been adviced of this I would have NEVER made payments for a ELDERLY person as a favor. Isn't there a state entity that can help with this type of fraud from DirectTV?
Anybody with any ideas? Now, I'm over $75.00 in late fees for payments I have to make!

DIRECT TV IS A PIECE OF [censor], THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO CALL THEIR CORPORATE OFFICE BUT THEY WANT TO TRY AND INTIMIDATE YOU, SPOKE WITHA MISS ROSE IN LEGAL, TRYED TO SAY IWAS HARRASING THEM, WELL I WOULDN'T CALL IF THEY GOT THEIR [censor] TOGETHER, IF MY SERVICE WORKED, MY REMOTE WORKED, AND THE CUSTOMER SERVICE PEOPLE WEREN'T [censor], BUT HERE'S SOM NUMBERS YOU CAN CALL, [protected], [protected], [protected]-, [protected], I GOT THESE BY JUST MAKING UP EXTENTIONS AND CALLING AND WOUND UP CALLING THE RIGHT PEOPLE, SO GOOD LUCK, AS FOR ME I'M DONE WITH THESE [censor]S AND IDIOTS!P.S. THE CEO IS NEVER IN HIS OFFICE OR THE VICE PRESIDENT, THEIR TO BUSY IN EUROPE AND HAWAII MOST OF THE TIME!

Direct T.V. is the worst, I have read everyones complaint that is posted this one tops it all.I have been trying to get service with these people since End of June 2010, the first appointment was set on the July4, 2010 no call or no show from Direct T.V. OR Installer appointment was set for8:00-12:00, Next appointment was set a week later between the hours from 12:00-4:00 well the installer call me 5 min to four o'clock to tell me that he would be another 35min coming I had something else schedule so I had to cancel and rescedule to another week later the this appointment was schedule between 8:00a.m12:00 the installer called me at 7:45a.m. to9 tell me that ghe was not for sure if he could do the job because he did not have the equipment for the set up he was driving all the way from Texas to Louisana to do the job still did not have the equipment so that appointment was cancelled and reschedule then when was reschdule after I was then told I could not receive service because my last name and account was contected to somebody else and that he left a bill that I had to be paid and I was going to have to pay it, the even went so far to tell me that me and theis person was in relation and it was in public record, so weeks went by and then some one call me to say they looked off into it and that we were not in relation and I could get service with them so, after all that I decided to give them one more try but little that I know I was making the wrong mistake again, I set up the appoint again was schedule for Aug 21, 2010 between the hours of 8:00 and 12:00 tech no call or show again, the resdule for the Aug 22, 2010they finally showed and still could not get service was told no signal would be able to come thur because of trees and the HD-SATELLITE WAS TOO BIG.So if you planning to get there service you better not you just might have this type or close to it hassel, with the service they have given I would say not or use a local retailer with they own people.

I have been a customer of Direct TV since 2002 and have had to recently cancel service. I have returned all equipment and paid all outstanding account balances, including a hefty cancellation fee (which resulted from an upgrade in our service with you)

Direct TV holds a credit card number, which they acquired through the rental of a movie. They indicate that in using my card, I gave Direct TV the right to hold on to the card number for further charges. I have asked, since my dealings with Direct TV are over, that the card information be expunged. They are intractable, insisting that they will remove the records after two years (I assume this is the end of the contractual agreement).

My attorney and a representative from the Florida Attorney General’s Office have advised me that, since I have satisfied my contractual agreement (through return of equipment and payment of cancellation fee) there is no reason for Direct TV to hold on to any credit card information, whether it be provided voluntarily or tacitly (in this case).

Any ideas?

First Mr.Carey is no longer there, I found out by calling corporate. I just got [censor]ed with a unauthorized with draw for $188.00 for the stupid box. They never sent me the return box and 2 months later they take this money out of my acct and now I have crap bouncing all over the place. The emai for mr carey is no good either, but the phone number did work, a person with a brain, after the first person who answered who spoke no english, just clicked me over when I asked for mr carey, I spoke with a lady named Shannon. I was not going off like I did before with their regular cust support phone #, she was nice and tried to help. The most she could do is make sure the return box is sent to me fedex, then once I get the box, (if I get it this time) I call her back and give her the tracking # and then she can give me my money back. That still could take weeks, I am disabled and on a strict income so this devistated me and my account. They might or might not pay me back for the bounce fees they cost me. I was a loyal customer for over 10 yrs. and never had a prob until I moved and had no line of site, now they have been screwing with me ever since. Saying to suspend my acct and not close it. Ya then they try and charge you if you dont re hook with them, I would not suspend your account, I would just cancel it completely. I have had nothing but problems with Comcast billing the time I had them, but now DTV takes the cake on screwing you on billing. Funny they never billed me for the box this whole time, now they decide to bill me for it. They are the ones who sent it to the wrong address, not me. So I have to pay for their screw up. Thats fair, NOT. I wish it was like the old days with antenna's, those were the days. all these cable companies have us by the balls to have tv. Its so not right. And I am going to write to every media I can think of to tell people to stay away from them, they will screw you one way or another. I wish I had the money to get an attorney, cause I would have a field day with dtv. Let as many people know as possible how screwed they are. I am disable and barely survive as it is, and this [censor] happens to me. Not as bad as when my bank decided to close my account and not tell me, talk about a living hell, screwed my credit and yet no one at the bank seemed to care who was the person who did this to my account. I have still not fixed all the problems that caused, that was in January. So sick of crooks. DTV is lucky they don't have local offices like Comcast, cause I would go postal on their [censor]. Good luck getting someone who speaks english, thats even a bigger joke.

Stay away from Direct TV! They are scam artists and they did the same thing to us. They quoted us one price over the phone and our first bill was triple (3X) the price they quoted over the phone! When I called them they told me I should have read the contract. When I asked "what contract", they said the one I signed after the installer completed the installation. I told them I thought it was a work-order they said I should have read the fine type on the back. I was then charged $450.00 for early termination. That was over 2 years ago and I am still receiving phone calls and letters from Collection Agencies. My credit was over 800 points before this incident and it has since dropped over 100 points because of this one issue with Direct TV. Stay away fom them unless you have extyra money to burn.

We all need to go to the Texas AG's office and file a formal complaint against Direct TV. They are obviously ripping off customers right and left and totally getting away with it. We were promised a 29.99 rate for 2 years and now we are getting a bill for 100.00/a month.
When we complained, they claimed that we had a 2 year contract with them, and to get out would mean paying $20.00 a month for the remainder of the time left. This would be basically a $400.00 early termination of contract fee. I am hearing similar stories again and again about this company which is exhibiting thuggish and totally unprofessional behavior.

Direct TV is the STUPIDEST t.v. service you can EVER buy. Never bur Direct TV. I wish my parents would just swith back to Time Warner Cable like we used to have, but guess what? We can't switch back because "we get a discount" and "it's cheaper." Yeah ok, whatever. Direct TV is sooooo stupid they can't even count. How pathetic is that? The channels go like this: 1 2 3 4 10... Horrible. Stupid Direct TV! Never EVER buy!

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5645446/directv_high_pressure_sales_and_the.html?cat=46
Yes! that's what I've been saying.

Direct TV has been the worst company I've ever had to deal with. I'm running out of patience.

After leaving my husband in 2008 he had incurred (in his name) a balance of over $500.00. Finally, after a lot of work and rebuilding I was able to move into my own home. I order DirectTV over the internet and paid the $300.00 Deposit asked for (this was in my name). The never called, showed up, sent equiptment or even sent an email other than the ones that told me what was on a TV that I couldn't watch. Installation was set up on Friday between 4pm and 8pm. At 8:30 pm I called. My order was cancelled due to "fraud"...WHAT? But, of course, the office that I needed to speak to would not be open until the next day at 9am. Called the next day, because of my Ex's service being delinquent they would not give me service. I could despute this but that office would not be open until Monday... I asked to speak with a manager and she was RUDE! I wanted to know where all my hard earned deposit money went to... no one in the fraud department knew and that the office I needed would not be open Monday also (guess they wanted to make sure it cleared the bank before they told me the next shocker). I called another number listed for Direct Tv and they "happened" to be open (the number to sign up for service, imagine that). Finally after over an hour of sitting on the phone the representative came back and told me the the Deposit money that I had paid in good faith to turn MY service on had went to pay some of my EX's bill off. THANK YOU FOR CALLING... I again asked to speak to a manager...I cannot find a nice and appropriate word for him, so I will not say what I think... I imagine that those who have had dealing will this "wonderful" company can fill in the blanks. Told me that my "personal" problems were not the problems of Direct Tv... WHAT? and wanted to know if I had any more questions for him, if not then our conversation was over. That's when I filled in the blanks for him. I could still have Direct Tv service in my house if I wanted although I would have to finish paying off somebody else's bill and come up with another deposit, another $500+. Um, let me think about it...NO. All this was not because my name was anywhere on my ex's account, but because when I lived there I had paid the bill with my debit card... "associating my name with his account". But they got the right one, because I plan on contacting who ever will listen (TV, Radio, BBB, ETC.) and telling my story. This may not do any other good but satisfy the high blood pressure that I experienced this weekend... BUYER BEWARE. Welcome to my house Dish Network...

You are going to seriously complain this much about talking to people that barely make any money and work there because they have to not because they want to. You should be happy your talking at least to americans, how many other companies actually employee their own countries citizens? Think about that the next time you have something to complain about. And by the way directv has over 18 MILLION customers! Do you think by posting on this board they are going to go out of business!?! They definitely will not when people like you call in all the time to keep CSR's employed and nobody really gives a [censor] if you can't watch your pathetic little hockey games. For every one else complaining about their bills... you get all pissy for completely legal acts of busines.s it's your fault for not reading your agreement you ignorant fools!

I totally agree with all of the comments. I moved and sent my reciever back and started up with them again at my new residence and now 2 years later they sent me a bill from an attorneys office stating I owe them over $600.00. I am so pissed off! They are purposely trying just to get money any way they can. I had called to continue service immediately when we moved out of state and informed their customer service of this and they stated they would put a temporary hold until I got into my new place. Now they are saying I never returned the old receivers and I broke their contract. I even have bills showing the service was continued within 1 month, but they don't care. I contacted one corporate office in Colorado(they have several corporate offices) but they insisted I owe them and were very rude. I am now in the process of contacting the California corporate office. If I don't get satisfaction here I will contact my local action news and file a complaint with the attorney Generals office.

Ehh, I've been with Direct TV for a few years now, and never had a problem with them personally.. But it sounds like most of the trouble lies in their cancelation and collection policies, so if I have to cancel, ima have to be careful.

They tell you, you can cancel at any time - no charge - until it is acivated. Duh!

Please stand up together we can make a right thing
We will open a campaign to force Direct TV to provide their services to consumers rightful and Direct T V should obey the fed or/and state regulation that should protect consumers. Direct TV, They are running a big scam right now by giving out misleading information and flyers all over Medias. By many and many scams from Direct TV’ false advertisement, wrong billing, poor and incompetent customer service, Unauthorized over charge, cancelation fee and 24 hours only policy for cancelation, Harassing calls, scam selling, property and roof damage and more to notice. It is ridiculous for consumers that are allowed only 24 hours to cancel the services from the first day installation if consumers are not satisfied.
We need stand up together to ask our Congress representatives, our senators, our local force law force, our State General Attorney to sent a clear and strong message to Direct TV. We want State and Federal open investigation on all over Direct TV misleading services to our consumers for many years. We should not allow this happen in our society today.
We will collect all the problems you have, are facing with Direct TV and we will sent letters to all official agencies and Congress. Please have your name and address if applicable.
Best Regards
Kent Phh
[protected]
Student6991@yahoo.com

Please help Please help Please help
Where can we file a complaint about Direct T.V who is running a big scam to consumers, a cheating flyer with 29.99 flat fee a month every medias right now.?

Thank you,

Kent phh
[protected]
student6991@yahoo.com

DIRECTV is nothing but a much of liars. I called & was told by one of their idiots that the payment agreement that I made was fine. That was 2 weeks ago. Today I get home & sat down to do my check book online & fine out that they had taken money out of my checking account. I called & talked to someone & imformed them that I wanted to talk to a supervisor. They told me they would have one call me back. 45 mins later someone from DIRECTV called & when I answered they hang up on me. I now have 200.00 dollars in bad checks thanks to their lying. THEY COULD CARE LESS IF YOU TELL THEM THAT YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE THEM TO COURT.BECAUSE ALL THEY SAY IS THAT ACCORDING TO YOUR CONTACT WE CAN DO THAT. AND WE WILL INVESTAGATE & FIND OUT WHO TOLD YOU THAT YOUR AGREEMENT WAS FINE. ALL THEY DO IS GIVE LIP SERVICE AND DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THE CUSTOMER.

By the way they also told me when I signed up that I'd only be paying $39.99 a month for the first 12 months and never told me I had to go online and submit a rebate form beacause in reality the service is really $79.99 a month. The only reason I even fond this out was because when my first piece of [censor] receiver broke I called and they told me my account balance and when I asked why it was so high the person informed me that I needed to fill out this rebate online and because I was never told I never knew that. So then they couldnt go back and credit me even though they never informed me so I sat there arguing with a supervisor for another half hr because he wouldnt give me the credit and said it wouldnt even take effect for 2 more months so basically I was charged an extra $160 for the 4 months and who knows how long that would have went on had I not called! No matter what you cant win with these people they dont give a [censor] about their customers or customer service that shyts a joke to them. They stick to being right and having all the answers and if the customers (US) dont like it they basically tell us to take a walk and it pisses me off! I even had one guy tell me he'd issue me a replacement receiver as a one time courtesy and then get a call 20 minutes later from a lady saying it never happened and id have to pay $200 and sum dollars for it. Talk about LIARS!

Yes Direct TV are total [censor]in rip-offs not only are their customer service people rude, lying idiots, they're also complete scam artists! I've never heard of such a thing, entering into a verbal agreement because of them replacing their own faulty equipment. I never signed anything saying I wanted to renew my contract. I called in because I was paying for insurance on a receiver and the receiver malfunctioned so I called to get a replacement. They asked me if the receiver had been dropped or something and I said "no, not that I know of" and they said because I was unaware of whether the malfunction had been caused by me or not that I would have to pay for another one. When I told them that I had insurance that I was paying they informed me that insurance only covered equipment failures and not anything accidental. I argued with this person for 45 minutes explaining that the guy who came out asked me if I wanted to get insurance and that it would be a good idea having kids and all in case of accidental damages. I said "why in the hell would you make yourcustomers pay for insurance in case your [censor] equipment failed!? If thats the case you should replace that for FREE! I shouldnt be paying insurance in case your equipment is faulty". I told the idiot on the phone that people pay for insurance to cover accidents and mishaps not equipment failures. I dont insure my car because im worried about it breaking down, I insure it in case of an accident or if a damn tree falls on it or a tornado comes through! If its equipment fails I take that up with the person or place that sold it to me or the manufacturer! What the hells the point in paying for insurance then if it doesnt cover [censor] except for equipment failures? Does that make any sense!? When I tryed to cancel my service they told me if they sent me a new receiver my contract would be renewed and I said well im moving someplace where they dont have direct TV so thats justifiable cause to break my contract. When they asked where I was moving to I told them PRISON! Because obviously if im incarcerated they cant hold me liable for a contract because they cant provide me service in prison right. HAHA

Look at how are supervisors are representing our company. This is why we get treated so poorly.

Video one, this guy did this for an extra day off! you will see two supervisors in this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN1WdKA-n8Y

This video just has one supervisor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-Ywwy__pxo

They are both our supervisors and both miss treat most of their employees and both have wrongfully fired many great techs. If you want more info on this situation please reply, although i dont expect a response.
thank you for
your time.

Hello all, I want to let you know first off, I feel your PAIN with direct TV...right in the butt! My wife and I had direct TV for 2 and 1/2 years and LOVED the Service! In the fall of 2008 we started having issue with our local channels and our kids ended up watching some programming from IFC on our local FOX channel. I called and they send out a tech. 5 min after the tech left, the problem started up AGAIN. Called customer service and was told we needed the HD reciever to get our local channels and that we would need to have another 2 year agreement. We signed up again and got the new box installed immediately. A week later NO SERVICE, called the customer service and was told it would be about 2 weeks to get it fixed. After a few hundred more calls and screaming, the scheduled and appointment..tech never showed! To make matters worse, the tech had quit and they wern't even going to tell us, they set another appointment for the middle of march...in DECEMBER. needless to say, we told them to f*** for it and went with cable. They sent it to collections so on and so forth. My wife missing the line up convinced me to sign up with them this year and actually called to see what needed to be done. They revirsed the early disconnect fee and offered a great deal, we got it installed (brand new from roof to TV) and had our service...well kind of..didn't get on demand, few minor issues, etc. but we were ok with what we had for the price we were quoted. Mind you, we have only 1 tv hooked up and it should have run aprox 45 a month for a year after taxes etc.. Our first bill...$141 calledn customer service spent 2 hours fixing the bill actually paid 35 and some change, nest month $102 called again, spent more time on the phone got it fixed and it cost $58. Our next bill...141 again. I called them and told customer service I wasn't paying the bill until they get it right. I got an email from them this morning saying they are disconnecting and I owed $600! I called the office in California to speak with the CEO. I explained all the issues I had with them and their billing and unfortunately if she wouldn't be able to fix it TODAY I would be calling the attourny general. I currently owe NOTHING. She could tell in her records that we had repeated service issues and a ton of billing issues and apoligized repeatedly. I told her that being in the customer service industry I would fire anyone who spoke to customers the way there people spoke with me. A few pieces of info for those of you still fighting the fight 1)don't give up, stand your ground and remember, they are in breach of contract with you and there for liable. 2) read your bill-when I signed up this year my first bill had 4 extra recievers I was being billed for...the recievers I recieved the first time I signed up 5 years ago! 3) in my city and state, the local channels are only available thru an HD reviever, that doesn't mean you need to pay for the HD service or should pay for it unless you WANT it. 4) if you have the protection plan, you should get service as fast as if you were paying for the service call, That comes from their corperate office and that is the reason we all sigh up for it...to avoid extreamly high service calls.

Lastly, remain calm, it sucks that you will spend a good part of your life trying to get things fixed with them, but the pay off is there. If there is a clear cut case of over billing and lack of service, the will let you out of the contract and do the right thing. As crazy as it sounds, we were VERY happy with the service when it worked and are more than willing to go back with them after our contract with cable is complete, but will get EVERYTHING in writing before I even have them come out. I have seen every single issue mentioned here as well as 100 others, good luck and hang in there,

ADAM L.

I have been a DirecTV customer for over 5 years. They have always been helpful and courteous in trying to find the right package to fit my needs. I hope that you will one day give them another chance because I love DirecTV and would recommend them to anyone.

I was misled twice and lied to by your saleswperson. I am totally discussed with your company!

1. The DTV lease agreement, which was sent out to you when you signed up and any additions and changes were mailed out with your bill, states that activating a new, leased box puts you into another contract. Why people never read this stuff when it comes in is beyond me. No wonder we all get scr@wed over by credit card companies and the like. We need big daddy government to step in and protect us from ourselves and our laziness.

2. Jen, you need to educate yourself. Directv is a carrier company. They IN NO WAY influence what is shown on these different channels. So you if plan on canceling and going to someone "better" in this regard, you're going to be in for a pleasant surprise. Got a problem with reruns, here's a novel idea...try contacting the actual station who decides what to air.

3. I have DTV. The service is about the same as Becky. It goes out when it rains. But I knew I had 24 hours to test the service and it was fine. Granted, no rain during that testing time, but I don't live in Seattle. At most, it's an uncommon nuisance, and I know now that once my contract ends, I'll move onto someone else. Big whoop. At least I have a choice in the matter. My electric company has so many flash outtages that I don't even bother programming any electronic clocks on my appliances anymore, and I can't even switch from them. It's not like it's costing me some huge amount of money. The new customer offer more than compensates me for an occasional outtage, which rarely happens right as I'm watching or recording a show. These events stand out vividly b/c we're upset when they happen, but if you compare it to the times you watch your program without interruption, it's so small a percentage as to leave you looking petty in the end. Once my 2 years expires, I'm heading over to Dish...as is my right as an informed consumer...but though DTV wasn't a good fit for me, I'm not going to demonize them.

Any what is up with people thinking that any form of payment is ownership? It's leased. Do you go on a car lot, pick out a leased car, and pay nothing for it ever? A lease fee is usually cheaper than a purchase fee. So unless you spent around 500 dollars for that sucker, it was leased. Why is it so expensive? It might be a piece of crap, but fact is that these things are mini computers. I'm not fond of them. Too much lag when changing channels or pulling up the menu. Badly designed or not, I do realize they cost a little bit of money to make and then there's the overhead of faulty, lost, damaged equip and such...

There are some people on this board that were really messed over by DTV...IMO, this isn't the case here. Every problem you mentioned would have been prevented by reading your customer agreement. And if yours got misplaced, you should have asked for another one to be sent. I'm not admonishing you b/c I look down on you. I just navigated myself out of a huge financial mess with a CC company for the same reason. We all know about fine print. It's not exactly a secret that companies use this method in order to include the ugly side of their business or because there's too much info there to include in every call to cover every situation. As such, every customer in the US should make it their mission to read it. If they don't, whatever befalls is their own fault.

This just happened to me on May 10 and 11, 2010

For anyone out there with these complaints with Directv you need to report this to BBB so they can take actions for you. There is not enough people going through the BBB letting them know what is going on. What they dont know they cant take care of . So people please when looking for results go to BBB.

I enrolled with DirecTV thru a package deal with Cincinnati Bell for 12 mos..only to find out after the fact that DirecTV stated I entered info a 2 yr contract with them...this was never told to me by Cincinnati Bell...I am still in the process of talking to Cinti Bell and trying to resolve this thru them...but in my 2-3 hr telephone call with dircet TV which netted me no useful help and no useful info I was told to call Cinti Bell as they are the one who misrepresented this offer, I encountered a "supervisor" named JAKE who was the nastiest, most useless person I have EVER talked to. He talked over me and I couldn't get a word in or be heard over his screaming before he hung up on me! Shame on DirecTV for not only employing such a person as JAKE but for promoting him to the position of "supervisor".

i hav been with directv for about 10 years and now all of a suden i have no tv at all and want to know what the h has happend at 125.00 a month wy am i not getting tv. i want a refund that i just paid and they can come and get there equipment and i will find someone else to provide my tv service. i have had no problem in the past but this is beyond my understanding. i hav tryed to call them and got noresponse and i have been out of tv for 48 hrs. and i want something done. asap. S.C. MARTINSON look in your files. in richmond va.

Cox and Comcast Cable is no better. Cable sucks these days and is very expensive. It's not even worth having. I went back to regular TV and much to my surprise got 30-40 extremely crystal clear Hi Def. TV. All I had to do is buy the box (about 40 bucks on E-bay or in Best Buy, etc.) and a decent antenna. No more monthly fees! I checked into the basic for Cox and it was like 50 bucks more EACH MONTH! It's ridiculous. Even the basic limited you only get like 15 to 20 channels. If you can do away with the little extra channels like SciFi (which I like but don't really need it), I definitely recommend it. It's not at all like the old analog TV. The key is to do a little reasearch on both the antenna and the box. I got the antenna in the attic and hooked it up to my coax which was previously used for my cable and runs through the house. My antenna is a Terk and it's amplified. My boxes are Zeniths which are very good, but my Philco's weren't bad either. Just do a Google search for reviews on both. There are tons of people who have given opinions and ratings.

I'd try The Attorney General. In my opinion BB is a waste of time. Here is some information straight from an email I received from DTV after I canceled (my 18 months was up.)
"Please call us at [protected] between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM daily. When the system asks for a Personal ID Number (PIN), enter 1553 (this PIN is good for five days). There may be a way for you to request a PIN of your own. The person I talked to was a WORLD of difference from the main number. No BS and you go to a person that can actually help you. The phone number is Good but how you get a PIN number is not so clear. DTV sent me one. But then I was canceling and they wanted me to stay. I stayed but only Month to Month. BB I'll never waste my time with again. Once they could or would help but not anymore. At least that has been my experience. Of course you do what you think best. At least you can file at no cost. Me, I'll go with the Att0rney General. They are working on my complaint as I type this. BB did nothing.
patrickpat1947

My name is Ralph Maliczak and my acct. # is [protected]. This is the second time I am trying to get my billing correct. @ months ago when I started with Directv I was told to go on line to get a $29.00 credit each month for one year. When I tried it would not go thru and some lady from Directv then tried and she said her computer would not allow it to go thru so she had a supervisor try on her computer and I was told everything was now ok and I would get the monthly rebate. I ha ve received 2 bills and the monthly rebate of $29.00 is not coming off of my bill. I want to have this problem taken care of so I don't have to waste my time on your billing.I would like to see your company do what they say they are going to do. My next step will be to contact the Better Business Bureau to solve this problem. I would hope that people that work there would do what they say they are going to do. Thank you, Ralph Maliczak Phone number is [protected]

I completely agree. ### DIRECT TV.

The TV was good, but their business model, billing tactics (and errors) and their customer service is ###. ### 'em.