DirecTV -a good company to deal with - sometmes. [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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emaidel
01-07-2009, 05:05 AM
I guess this is the right place to post this thread. About a year and a half ago, I would have rated DirecTV as one of the worst companies to ever have to deal with, given the ridiculous amount of time I spent on the phone with them trying to just reschedule an installation appointment. I had moved from Colorado to South Carolina, and made the appointment for a given date that seemed to be OK. Unfortunately, as there were major delays in my move, I needed to reschedule that appointment as none of my possessions would have arrived yet - including my TV.. Not only was I placed on hold for 45 minutes (really!), no one had any idea how to do what I asked. Clearly, as this wasn't rocket science, I was stunned at the overall level of ignorance and stupidity of the individuals I'd been speaking to. I was ultimately able to resolve the issue by going online, and I even got a discount off my bill for my inconvenience. The bill was another matter also, as it included service for the time I didn't have any equipment installed! Eventually, everything was worked out.

Recently, my DVR was acting up and a call to DirecTV resulted in a service call to my house. The problem was misdiagnosed by a smartass individual who tweaked around with the dish and left. Then, I made yet another call to them. This time, I dealt with a very intelligent and helpful young man who explained that the DVR was failing, and that a new, improved model would be sent to me, at no charge, in two days. To my amazement, it arrived the very next day, and installation was a breeze.

Not only does the new DVR work, but it works far better than the older one ever did: the picture's razor sharp, and often as I watch TV, it's almost as if I just bought an HDTV since the picture's so good.

Unfortuntely, when I received my monthly bill, there was a $49.95 charge for the service call. Again, I called DirecTV and had that amount deducted from my bill. Since I shouldn't have been charged in the first place, they're giving me a $5/month discount for the next three months too.

So, while sometimes DirecTV is a real PIA, at other times they've been quite helpful. The product is wonderful, but the people in the company can either be the most helpful, or totally useless individuals anyone's ever had to deal with.

Woochifer
01-07-2009, 11:14 AM
In my 10+ years of dealing with Directv, I've never had any issues with their customer service. The only problem I had ever had was trying to navigate their website to schedule an installation. I gave up and talked to a live customer service rep, who promptly set everything up.

I know from reading the various message boards around the web that Directv had big time problems with their first generation house-branded DVRs. Doesn't surprise me that they would send a replacement unit out to you -- in the long run, it's probably cheaper for them to upgrade your hardware than to constantly diagnose and update a DVR model that has a history of reliability issues to begin with.