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My 2 recent experiences with Incompetence

Posted by $ rockymountainpirate 10 years, 3 months ago to The Gulch: General
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I recently had two instances where I ran into what I consider incompetence.

1. Charter Communications required me to turn in my old cable box for a new one or have no TV at all (not that no TV would be bad, but.....). The new ones will be free for 1 year, then afterward there will be a fee. An UNDISCLOSED fee on their printed documents. The employees issuing the boxes were unaware the fee wasn't on the paper. I went the last day. No one asked what the fee was or why it wasn't printed in all that time before I got there? Charter was incompetent, or deceptive in not printing the fee.

2. I am renewing my Passport. I have the printed 6 page DS-82 08-2013 document. It states you must submit the fee. Nowhere in these 6 pages does it tell you what that fee is. I had to look it up online, and not only that I had to do a search to find it. The fee by the way is $110. Incompetent not to print the fee on the form.


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  • Posted by $ allosaur 10 years, 3 months ago
    A couple of years ago Charter downgraded my basic cable service. Some channels I liked to look at disappeared. They even took away the TV Guide station and I noticed I missed sacrificial lamb slaughters for Alabama football that would appear on backwater ESPN2
    I eventually switched from Charter to DIRECTV as it's spelled. As quick as I had a working dish on the roof, I called Charter to tell them to quit sending bills. A Charter lady fell all over herself offering a free upgrade to the downgrade they had inflicted on me.
    "I have ESPN2 now," I said.
    "We will give you ESPN2," she said.
    "Sometimes I like to watch an old Turner Classic movie like I used to."
    "You can have Turner back."
    "But I have a two-year contract with DIRECTV," I said, thinking "Tee-hee, take that."
    Since then Charter keeps sending mail I throw away and making phone calls that make me want point at my caller ID and giggle.
    Retired old dinos with time on their hands.likes to see incompetence waste its time spinning its wheels.
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    • Posted by bassboat 10 years, 3 months ago
      DirecTV does the same thing, they are all sugar and spice when you leave. Why don't these morons get it? Treat everyone the same.
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      • Posted by $ allosaur 10 years, 3 months ago
        Why am I not surprised to read this? Thanks, bassboat.
        I've been thinking of going to AT&T Cable when the contract is up a year and a month from now. Now I want to do that just to see how DIRECTV acts. I also want to see if they'll downgrade my basic at the end of the contract like Charter did, though I never had a contract with Charter
        Come to think of it, I suddenly recall that AT&T bent over backwards to play nicey nice with a neighbor when she had a complaint.
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  • Posted by Kilroy 10 years, 3 months ago
    The reason Charter recalled your old box is because the old one doesn't have the spy-ware in it that the NSA is paying them to put in the new one. Beware!.

    Disclaimer:
    All the above is IMHO, of course. :-)
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  • Posted by $ Abaco 10 years, 3 months ago
    Hahaha...look at you, being so silly. Everybody knows that the actual dollar amounts are trivial these days.

    Reminds me of the time I snagged a protein bar at a convenience store and when I went to pay for it it was way over-priced. I turned around to put it back on the shelf and told the clerk, "You should have the prices on your merchandise." (they had no prices anywhere) He just gave me a blank stare like I was nuts. What use is price when the drug-addled masses just swipe their card?
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  • Posted by LetsShrug 10 years, 3 months ago
    I think it's becoming the norm that people don't scrutinize paperwork OR charges. People just pay what they're told...don't THINK to question.
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    • Posted by $ 10 years, 3 months ago
      You are correct. The couple who came in after i did and heard my question and the answer were surprised. It never occurred to them to ask, and they have 4 or 5 tv's that will all get the fee in a year.
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  • Posted by $ arthuroslund 10 years, 3 months ago
    I have a New Upgrade Comcast Cable TV box that I received in error and has been sitting in my office for about six months. I do not have Comcast TV but only Cable Internet. I have contacted Comcast twice and each time they say they will send labels for the return but I have yet to receive them. I must say that the IRS is worse. I am going to have to see my Congressional Representative to try to get some help resolving a problem that I believe is both unfair and incompetent on the part of the IRS. The IRS is very penny wise and pound foolish for having the employees spend time on a relatively small amount of money.
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    • Posted by Robbie53024 10 years, 3 months ago
      Talk about foolish - a local school district (not mine, thank God, but the one just north of me) has spent $140,000 in legal feeds on a dispute over $8,000. Worst part is, the dispute is with a member of the same school board (not in his capacity on the board, but his property). It's cost the board member about $65,000 and now the board wants to drop the suit, but the board member wants reimbursement of his legal expenses, so this could cost the district even more.
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    • Posted by hattrup 10 years, 3 months ago
      Thank-you for getting a number of IRS personnel to spin around looking at pennies. Very inefficient for you - but likely benefits a lot of others (very inefficient for the IRS). Hopefully your representative will get a useful education from the experience (humans are so hopeful, regardless or actual experience/history. I am sure it helps with survival).
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 3 months ago
    Charter is a royal pain.

    I'm in one of Delta's sky lounges at this momement. They're at the opposite end. They provide a nice place to work and/or goof off when travelling.
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    • Posted by $ arthuroslund 10 years, 3 months ago
      So, what does this have to do with the price of corn? Are you on the Delta sales force?
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      • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 3 months ago
        "Are you on the Delta sales force?"
        No, I just like their lounges. It's the opposite from dealing with Charter. I use Charter for residential and business. Charter has a difficult phone system and hard-to-understand reps on the residential side. The business side is better, but they send offers for new services almost daily.
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