Gift of a TiVo--NOT

[Dmontgummy]

I recently received a new TiVo as a gift. The person purchased it along with a 3 year subscription and had it sent to me. I set it up in my house and have been using it and enjoying it. Only problem is I can't access it under my account on TiVo.com but the person who gave it to me has it on her account. So last weekend the person who purchased called and talked to TiVo to see about switching the name. We were on hold for 30 minutes till we finally talked to someone. Then that person put us on hold for 20 minutes while she talked to her supervisor because she did not know what to do. Then she tells us that she needs to transfer us to a different department because she cannot help us, but we would be on hold again. We were already late for an appointment so we gave up and decided to call again during the week. We called midweek and talked to someone who said she made the change and there should be no problems. Today the TiVo is still not showing up under my account so I called again (this is the third call in less then a week). This time the person told me that it is not possible to put it in my name because it has already been activated. He said that the person who ordered it has to call and cancel it and put switch it to my account. He was not clear on whether this will affect any of my recordings (I have been using it for a week now) or if it is going to cost money to switch it. I do not understand why TiVo is making it so difficult for us? On the order screen on the web it gives a billing address and a ship to address. My address was the ship to address and the billing went to her. There was no other section on the order form. Now I will have to bother the person (AGAIN) who gave me this gift and get them to call (AGAIN) to try (AGAIN) to transfer/cancel the service. I am not new to TiVo. This unit is replacing a Series 1. However, if I was new to TiVo I would right now pack it back in the box and send it back. I was planning on giving my old Series 1 to my sister. Going through all this trouble with a new box makes me think it is not worth being nice and giving it away. I have no other TV to put it on (and am not buying a TV just for this!) so maybe I should just leave it in a closet to collect dust.

I am really unhappy with TiVo service right now...this should not be such a complicated matter.

[bpurcell]

It's a little late for this, but the person giving this as a gift should have gone through the Gift Subscription link instead of just buying one on their account and shipping it to you. For normal Tivo purchases, the billing name is the account, not the shipping name. But if they bought a Gift subscription, you could've activated it on your account when you received the box.

Normally contracts can't be changed to a different account, but if you explain your situation (it was meant as a gift), I have a feeling they will be willing to be flexible. But the CSR is right, the account holder would have to be the one to make the change. If you simply tried to do it, they might just cancel the old account (charging any termination fee to your friend) and try to make you start a new contract.

And I'm pretty confident changing accounts will not affect your current recorded shows.

[funtoupgrade]

Unfortunately more than a couple of the TiVo CSR's are lame. Part of the problem may be that the 3 year subscription is being paid monthly rather than prepaid. If this is the case, then transferring the unit to your account may not be possible because of the cancellation fee associated with the subscription. If the subscrription had been prepaid then there should be absolutely no problem. When you start getting the run around from a TiVo CSR just stop them and ask to be transferred to a supervisor. You can trust whatever a supervisor tells you regarding the situation, and in your case you may be able to convince them to make the switch.

[Dmontgummy]

Thanks for the replies. I think the thing that makes me the most upset is the fact that we have called THREE times!! And three times been told different things. They should really put the Gift subscription link on the main ordering page!! This is making things way too difficult! Imagine if I lived in another state than the gift giver!

[SnakeEyes]

I ran into this very same problem with no resolution. The box is still under the wrong name because of the cancellation fee. CSRs say there is nothing they can do about it.

[mick66]

Tivo has a 30 day guarantee. If it's been sub'd less than 30 days, there is no cancellation fee and all money paid for service will be refunded.