https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-10-12/column-spectrum-billing-threat?_amp=true
Seems like blackmail to me.
“A well-established credit history will more likely allow you to qualify for lower mortgage rates, better chances for obtaining credit cards and approvals for home rentals,” the letter says, suggesting that Schklair’s finances could be in serious trouble unless he returns to the Spectrum fold.
“You have worked hard to build a great future for yourself and your family,” it says. “We look forward to welcoming you back.”
I read that article yesterday--its author, David Lazarus, is one of my favorites. I watch him on KTLA (the sister station of the LA Times), too, and he's really funny in person. I couldn't believe what I was reading! Unbelievable what some companies will do to strong-arm consumers.
@Save-n-Invest wrote:In this house that company is referred to as (Mod cut - not here please, @Save-n-Invest -- be mindful of the myFICO Forums TOS). All kinds of service issues. Automated basically tells callers to take a flying leap when service is out. "There are no reported outages in your area". Then follows a lot of bs troubleshooting things to do before you are disconnected.
We signed up with Time Warner Cable. It was a good service. Charter bought us and changed the name. Not enough lipstick in the world to put on that pig. Been a PITA ever since even on a month to month basis.
I ended up with Spectrum (for Internet, not TV) gradually. I had service through Earthlink FOREVER, but when I wanted to upgrade from DSL to cable, they had to route me through Spectrum (Mod cut - the myFICO Forums TOS User Guidelines apply here on your comments as well @SoCalGardener), i.e., I'd still have my Earthlink account and e-mail addresses, but billing and Internet service would now go through Spectrum. Then, around this time last year, they both notified me that they were ending their relationship. I had to decide what to do. My main Earthlink e-mail address is the personal, private, only given to very trusted people address that I've used for 25+ years--and receives virtually no spam. I didn't want to lose that. But Earthlink doesn't directly provide cable service. I had received links to sign up for a Spectrum e-mail address--but when I followed them, first of all, they took me to a Time Warner page, and anything I entered in the address box would've been appended with twc.com not spectrum.com as shown in my e-mails. I TRIED contacting what passes as customer service, and they were awful. AWFUL. Here we are a year later and I'm still waiting for the supervisor to call me, you know, the one who can create an e-mail address for me. *sigh* Anyway, I decided I didn't want to lose my Earthlink address, so I switched my plan with them to an e-mail only account, and pay the fee annually. For Internet, I buy my own modem and router, so all I'm paying for is the service itself.
As for your TV predicament, have you or would you consider using DirecTV? I've had it for almost 30 years and can't say enough about how awesome it is. I mean both in terms of the actual service (no outages, no problems) and their great customer service. Even with the plethora of other choices we have now, all those streaming services and cable and other satellite, etc., I have no desire to switch because DirecTV gives me everything I want and then some!
@Save-n-Invest wrote:@SoCalGardener , does DirecTV require a dish on the roof? We have a lot of zoning prohibitions in this burb.
I've asked around regarding providers. Friends with various services don't seem to be satisfied. Each seems to have it's issues. Maybe I'll check into DirecTV.
Yes, it needs a dish, but they're the little ones--not the huge giant ones of days gone by! It has to have a clear, unobstructed view of the southern sky, therefore its typical installation is on a roof. But I've also seen them on the side of a house or apartment building, and it may even be possible to put it on the ground.
I just can't say enough about how happy I am with DirecTV. 30 years and counting! Since moving back home to SoCal, I've never once had an outage of any kind (other than if the power was out!). However, and you should be aware of this if you're in an area prone to thunderstorms, when I lived in Dallas, AKA Tornado Alley, I would lose my signal to 'rain fade' when a storm or tornado came through. It's been so long now, it seems like a lifetime ago. I don't really recall how long a typical rain fade outage lasted, but whatever it was, it didn't sour me and make me want to go back to cable!
Speaking of cable, prior to DirecTV, I had cable, and it was awful. Continual outages, runarounds with service and technicians, slow service, etc. Every time it rained--which happens a lot in Tornado Alley--the cables would get soaked and the service would go out, as I recall for several days at times. I was SO FED UP with cable, and DirecTV was still quite new, but I wanted to try it, especially because of its sports packages. As a lifelong LA Lakers fan, not being able to watch every game was killing me; once I had DTV, I added its NBA League Pass and got to watch *all* Lakers games as if I were here (back home in LA), i.e., the local broadcast with the legendary announcer, Chick Hearn. That alone made it worth the extra cost! If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. 