Mystery Solved...I Think

I got a voicemail today from somebody at Verizon explaining that the problems I've been experiencing are "known issues" and that a software patch scheduled for January will solve my problems.

Apparently it wasn't "known" to all of the customer service reps, the supervisor, and the technician who came to the house twice. When somebody from Verizon called later in the day, I expressed my frustration about having this go on for a month while this was a supposedly "known" issue. She insisted that the customer service people had to go through procedures to rule out other problems, and that the problem I'm experiencing is rare. After going back and forth with her for a few minutes about how they really ought to let their own people know about "known" issues, I gave up and thanked her for calling.

I'm looking forward to more fat credits on my bill.

Finally Geting Somewhere...I Hope

After yesterday's box freeze-up, I traded voicemails with the "Customer Advocacy Office," who promised that somebody would call me by the end of the day today to help me with my problems.

And after dinner this evening, I got a call from a very nice guy who seemed to know what he was talking about. He asked thoughtful questions about my situation and puzzled over them a bit. He said he wanted time to review my situation and consult with some colleagues and was it OK for him to call me back.

I told him it was more than OK. Finally, it seems, somebody is taking ownership of this disaster.

He also gave me his full name and email address so I could contact him to follow up.

Image that.

Another Freeze-Up

Looks like the DVR "reset" didn't solve the problem. The box froze up again this afternoon. This time, I had to power cycle it twice to get a picture.

I grow weary of this...

Verizon = Keystone Kops

After I left a message with the "Customer Advocacy Office" this morning and got a call back within an hour. The woman passed me off to another woman who said that she couldn't help me, and she connected me to somebody else who could.

The person I spoke with "reset" my box.

That's it.

Doubtful that this is going to fix anything, I asked if I could call him back if this doesn't fix things. Just call back customer service, he said. I told him that this is what I had been doing and it hasn't worked. Sorry, he tells me, that's the best he can do.

So much for customer advocacy.

Strike Three

Guess what happened when I tried to tun on the TV for my kids this morning? Set-top box #3 locked up! In less than 24 hours, the new box that was supposed to solve my problems started giving me problems. At least with the last two boxes, it took a few days for them to start malfunctioning.

So this morning, I called a number that I was given last time I spoke with a customer service representative that turns out to be something called the "Customer Advocacy Office." When I tried to reach them at 9:15 this morning, I got a recording telling me that nobody is available to speak with me and to leave a message, which I did.

Let's see how long it takes for them to get back to me...

Set Top Box #3

So when I spoke to the customer service supervisor yesterday, he said that he believed that my problems are being caused by a bad connection somewhere and he scheduled a service call for Sunday morning.

The tech came by Sunday morning as scheduled. Turns out it was the same guy who previously visited to give me a new box. He dismissed the idea that a bad connection was the cause of my problem (and I agree with him that it's a stupid theory) and instead gave me another new box. He was very helpful and gave me the name and number of his boss if I need help in the future.

We'll see if this fixes my problems.

In any case, we now have three theories from Verizon as to what the root of my problems is:

Theory #1 from the tech that came out today is that many of the the set-top boxes are bad and I had bad luck in getting two bad ones in a row.

Theory #2 from the tech support person that called me Saturday morning is that the software is somehow flawed and can be fixed remotely.

Theory #3 from the supervisor I spoke with yesterday is that there's a bad connection somewhere in the house.

And then there's my theory...

The stupid DVR software does not let you specify a specific episode to record. So when a show you want to record is on several times per day, you have to record all showings. Now, most of the shows I record are for my kids and they are on several times per day. So I've got about a dozen shows and most of these shows are on several times per day. I only save the latest episode of each show, so the DVR records the same show over and over again every day. This can't be good for the hard drive, which must get fragmented after all of this.

I'll bet if they let me record a show once per day, that'd solve these problems.

The Supervisor

Not satisfied with my conversation with the FiOS person this morning, I called the main customer service number and asked to speak with a manager or supervisor. After waiting about ten minutes, I was put in touch with a supervisor.

The supervisor patiently listened to my story and I asked him how we can actually get the situation resolved, who was ultimately responsible for getting it resolved, and how can I go about getting compensated for my troubles.

He readily agreed to give me a month credit on my account.

He said that it sounds to him like my problem could be inside the house and that he'd have a technician visit tomorrow between 8 and 12.

He couldn't really answer the question of who is ultimately responsible for fixing my problem. But he gave me a number to call if the problem is not resolved. Sounds like it's some kind of central customer service center for poor souls like me who get lost in the system.

He saw no note in my account of a pending call or any notes about somebody remotely reviewing my software, and he wasn't even sure what that meant.

We'll see what happens with the visit tomorrow.