Help with DirectTV

[aussiesareforever]

I am trying to be proactive to see what the best course of action to take with DirectTV. I have read a lot of horror stories about them online and I'm trying to avoid my credit score getting affected.

In summary,I was lied to about the rate of their services during the second year of my contract and I want to terminate after the first year (March 2012). If I cancel, I will have to pay about $240 in early termination fees. I was violently opposed to paying that since I was lied to but I have recently resigned to paying it since it will still cost less than paying $60.99 a month for a year.

My biggest issue now is that I know DirectTV will charge my credit card without my permission for the early termination fees and the cost of their non returned equipment. Apparently, they send you a box to return their equipment in but they charge as much as $600-$900  before you even have had the time to receive the box they sent in the mail. And it takes about 3 months to refund the money. 

I reported the credit card I have on file with them for autopay as lost, so that number has been changed. I plan on paying my last two bills by Cashier's check so that they have no access to my new credit card number or bank account number. However I've heard that if they can't directly charge the "outstanding fees" to a credit card or bank account, they will send that account over to collection.

Is there anybody that has dealt with stupid DirectTV and do you have any words of wisdom. I don't want my card charged for a ridiculous amount of money but I don't want to have to deal with collections either.

[StartingOver10]

I have dealt with DirecTV.

When I cancelled their service I sent in the equipment immediately. However, they only sent one box instead of sending two and you can only put one piece of equipment in each box. So I had to order another box. The second box took a long time to come in. Before I actually got it, it was getting too close to the return date required by DirecTV so I packed the box up in my box and brought it to a UPS service center.  I sent it and had the receipt. I even paid the delivery myself to avoid that equipment charge.

I then followed up with a phone call giving the delivery date and confirmation number. Naturally, I kept a log of the transaction and who I spoke with.

They did not charge me for the returned equipment because I had it there on time and a record of the receipt. This was in May 2008 and I have never had them charge me retroactively either.

I was very careful because the DirecTV rep that I spoke to originally stated that they will go back on every form of payment you have ever used on the account to charge their fees. I clarified with them, they maintain a record of each payment - cr card, debt card, check etc. It doesn't matter if you changed the card number recently, they still have the old info in their database.

In short, return the equipment, keep your records and don't give them the opportunity to charge you more by keeping the equipment.

[aussiesareforever]

Thanks StartingOver10,

I've only ever paid with a CC (which is now cancelled). Never paid with a check so they don't have my bank account number or anything like that. I intend to send their equipment as soon as I get the box back but I have actually spent a lot of time online (including their Facebook hate page) and there are tons of stories about people who have had ridiculous charges applied even though they returned their equipment on time. Granted they could be lying but I don't want to take any chances. I will be sure to get delivery confirmation when I send the box out.

I just got off the phone with them to remove another  $10 charge they randomly put on there since I paid my last bill. I regret the day I signed up for their services.

[guiness56]

I returned their equipment in the box they sent.  To this day they said they never received it.