Anybody else getting screwed by Qwest?

[elucidator]

So, I get my phone bill. Rather large, thinks I, better check this out.

Very next day I get a disconnection threat. Nonplussed, I pay at once.

Next month, same routine exactly!

So I called. I'll spare you the agony (..if you are pissed, press one. If you want to take it out on some poor putz we hired to suck down abuse, press 2...)

I'm asking about my deposit, you see. Had to post deposits on two seperate occasions, $200. When I get money back, I ask. I've been good.

Turns out the rules are: if get my money back if I don't get a disconnect threat in 6 months. If the disconnect threat is unwarranted, no difference. They keep my money, and no doubt will take it with them when they are flushed down the crapper.

Anybody else getting this kind of crapola from Qwest?

[Smeghead]

Not like that specifically, but I once had DSL through them. Every time I called them - and I did a LOT - I ended up slamming the phone down shaking with rage. They suck. When I dropped them to go to a cable modem and cell phone, they asked if I wanted to get my cell phone service through them. I laughed out loud, right into the phone.

I was so glad to hear they're getting investigated by the authorities.

[truthbot]

Qwappy service from QWest?? Perish the thought!

I have severed all ties with the evil entity. Despite paying for every durn 'enhanced' service they were hawking for blocking telemarketing calls (including an unlisted #), I continued to receive calls from telemarketers unabated. That's one bone of contention.

The straw that broke the dromedary's back, however, was a mistake on QWest's part. About 8 months ago, I received my phone bill as per usual. I dutifully sent off a check, putting my account # in the memo section of the check, as per usual. The next month, I receive two notices from QWest. One was a statement, showing a credit against a previous balance of $0.00. This was puzzling, but hey, a credit is always a good thing! The credit was for the amount I had paid the previous month. The second notice was a bill, with a previous balance for the amount I had paid, and the current month's services due. Hmm, previous month + current month=big ass bill!

On one hand, I had a credit, OTOH, they were saying that I now owed for two months' service. I called the [deadpan] customer service center [/deadpan], pushed enough buttons to launch nuclear warfare against a hapless enemy, and eventually reached a hooman-type person. I explained my perplexosity of the conflicting statements, and she virtually patted me on the head and told me "not to worry about it, it would be taken care of." "It must be some glitch, it will be reconciled." So I send off payment for the current month, and live in la-la land until the next billing cycle.

Then I receive the next month's statement(s). Mein Gott in Himmel!, it is a replay of the previous month. One statement gives me credit for the last two months' payments, and the other statement now shows I owe for three months of service! 1-888-*BEEP**BIP**BOP**DOO-DEE-DIP-D00* I call the customer service center again. Push the appropriate buttons to let them know that I won't be trifled with, and get handed off to a smart-ass CSR.

It turned out that QWest had sent out my bill with the last digit in the account # incorrect. And that meant there were now *two* accounts. Every payment I sent them (with the *phantom* account # attached), got credited to the *phantom* account. And my real account got zip da-nada in the way of credit. Easy enough to explain, I can see where that happened. But when the smart-ass CSR yelled at me, and said "Couldn't you see that the account numbers were different!! That's not our fault!!" I got a little pissed. I mean, have you seen how long the stream of numbers are for a phone company account? Sheesh, they're long enough to give a male Blue Whale penis envy! And only the last digit in the account number was different. Excuuuuse me all to hell if I didn't notice.

And the bottom line was, I had to send them payment for the equivalant of three months worth of service (or face disconnection), and wait for them to take their sweet time to send me a refund check from the *phantom* account (it took seven weeks to get back my over-payments.) It would seem that they can't take a freakin credit from one account, and apply it to another account.

QWest has been pounding sand at my hearty bequest for over five months now.

[Atreyu]

I'm pretty sure Czarcasm has a few choice words to say about them...

[Ashtar]

My beef with Qwest right now extends only to sheer dislike of how often they look for excuses to charge different service fees..
When our account went past due, we lost service--and so when we eventually paid it back up, they charged us a 100 dollar 'activation fee'.

That was about...ooh..two weeks before my roommates and I got a new apartment.

They were able to move our phone service over just fine--we even kept the same account number and phone number..but they took the opportunity to charge us -another- 100 dollar 'activation fee'.

Plus this month's 'activation fee' for getting our DSL service turned on..

For someone living week-to-week with his expenses..these 'activation fees' are a huge pain in the wallet. :P Well..I suppose I can go a -little- longer without doing my laundry..

[Measure for Measure]

A friend of mine in MN was given services she did not request by Qwest. She got that resolved, luckily.

I suppose you are aware of the news, "Qwest shares drop on criminal probe."

http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/020710/telecoms_qwest_12.html

Caveat Emptor.

[elucidator]

Well, actually, that was my original drift, Flow

I'm wondering if the scramble for bucks with the wolf gnawing on the doorknob is motivating a general pressure to get as much from the billable side NOW as they can.

Not thier perfidy on an ongoing basis. That's a given.