Anyone have shocking bad Tivo customer 'care'?

[biosci]

I have been a long time Tivo subscriber and well... here's what happend.

We are moving from our condo to our new home. We are dropping down from two tivos (one from our bedroom and one from the living room) down to just 1 in our NEW family room.

So, I call to cancel the two Tivos and actually activate a NEW series 3 dvr.

The rep kept on pushing that I transfer my service rather than cancel my service and stay at a rate at $12.95 / mo or whatever he was telling me for 3 years.

I told him that I want to do a prepay and he STILL kept pushing me to just transfer the service. He wouldn't tell me WHY but he just kept saying that is what he would do if he were me. Now, if I'm correct, going with the prepay is saving me about $168 over the course of 3 years which is still good money.

He then told me that the 3 month gift subscription isn't good for the prepay but.. whatever. I asked him why he wanted me to transfer and he got defensive. He then asked if he could have my tivo service number for the new tivo to see if it was eligible for the 3 year prepay (otherwise I would HAVE to do the transfer). I told him that he was trying to force me to transfer rather than get the prepay and then he started saying that I was putting words in his mouth. I told him that I wasn't but that's what I feel he was doing. I mean cmon, so people who buy a series 3 aren't eligible to prepay? ARGH! He just ruined my day. Can't wait to deal with Comcast installing those cable cards in my tivo tomorrow (100% sarcasm here!)

Sigh...

Mike

[wolflord11]

Yes.

After waiting 5 Months, 5 phone calls later, I am still waiting for my promised rebate from Tivo thru the Bellsouth offer.

Of the 5 phone calls, 4 of the CSR's did not even know there was a rebate offer from Bellsouth.

Long story short, just another company that will take your money fast, but when it comes time to get a little back, you may as well kiss it goodbye

[funtoupgrade]

My guess is that the CSR the OP dealt with is just one of the typical CSR dorks and did not have any agenda. I would never ask one of them to figure out what would be the best deal. Figure out what you want to do and ask them to do it. If they balk, then ask for a supervisor. I have yet to encounter a dork supervisor but there are usually some of these in every company.

[Stanley Rohner]

Originally Posted by wolflord11

Yes.

After waiting 5 Months, 5 phone calls later, I am still waiting for my promised rebate from Tivo thru the Bellsouth offer.

Of the 5 phone calls, 4 of the CSR's did not even know there was a rebate offer from Bellsouth.

Long story short, just another company that will take your money fast, but when it comes time to get a little back, you may as well kiss it goodbye

Aren't you supposed to call the rebate company to check on the staus of a rebate ?

[rdrrepair]

Nope - never had a CSR problem yet!

[biosci]

I was just really irritated that he kept pushing me to just transfer my account. I forgot to mention that when I told him I was cancelling the two tivos, he was trying to ask me if I'd like to have one of them in another room. But in our new home we only have one TV that can accomodate a Tivo (Due to space - I can't have that tivo box in my kitchen! It'll be bigger than the tv!). He was nuts! I should have just been really direct with him (which I did after he wouldn't shut up about transferring).

[Sadara]

I only had one time I wanted to choke the rep and it was when he asked me if I was using a compatible wireless network adapter. I said, it's the tivo brand adapter and he asks me again, is it a compatible wireless network adapter. *blink* I said again annoyed, "it's the Tivo brand, are you telling me it's NOT supported?" He says, "I just asked if it was supported, yes or no was fine." excuse me for giving you more information than you needed! I then went in to a long store with lots and lots of technical terms about all the things that I had done to troubleshoot the problem on my own. He realized quickly I was already over his head and transferred me to someone else.

[ZeoTiVo]

Originally Posted by biosci

I was just really irritated that he kept pushing me to just transfer my account. I forgot to mention that when I told him I was cancelling the two tivos, he was trying to ask me if I'd like to have one of them in another room. But in our new home we only have one TV that can accomodate a Tivo (Due to space - I can't have that tivo box in my kitchen! It'll be bigger than the tv!). He was nuts! I should have just been really direct with him (which I did after he wouldn't shut up about transferring).

did you get the prepay? Was the rebate part of your S3 purchase? maybe the CSR was confused about doing a prepay along with the rebate?
The prepay for 3 years for 299$ is the best deal if you have the one TiVo and would pay 12.95 a month otherwise

If you could not do a prepay then transferring a current month to month to the S3 would mean you did not have to commit to three years to get the 12.95 rate and is your second best option after a 3 year prepay for an S3

[biosci]

Yes I did get the prepay. I love the Tivo 'way' (interface - how it works etc). I've been a long time Tivo user so 3 years is just a drip in the bucket for me... Guy was pretty upset almost to the point of shouting at me for me telling him to stop offering me the monthly 12.95, transfer, and keeping my other tivo units after every sentence I said.

Mike

[wolflord11]

Originally Posted by Stanley Rohner

Aren't you supposed to call the rebate company to check on the staus of a rebate ?

LOL.

Well first I was told by "Tivo" that I would get my rebate within 10 Days, the next phonecall it was within 2 Days. Then it got transferred to some other Department.

So, again I am still waiting.

And I have spoken to Bellsouth a few times about it. All they can do is say contact Tivo.

The rebate was pay for the first 3 Months service on my Credit Card, then get the 3 Months rebate back onto my Credit Card.

Still waiting...... 6 Months later...

[AFP1]

Originally Posted by wolflord11

Yes.

After waiting 5 Months, 5 phone calls later, I am still waiting for my promised rebate from Tivo thru the Bellsouth offer.

Of the 5 phone calls, 4 of the CSR's did not even know there was a rebate offer from Bellsouth.

Long story short, just another company that will take your money fast, but when it comes time to get a little back, you may as well kiss it goodbye

I know what you mean, but, Could it possibly be that Tivo is not responsible, or may not even be aware of the Rebate offered by Ordering through ATT/Bellsouths Combined Plans? They have a million different offers right now. I just listened as he went through all the picks when I only wanted Caller I/D added. They have a different plans for adding on Satelite, DSL, Long Distance etc.
Just a thought!

[AFP1]

Originally Posted by biosci

I have been a long time Tivo subscriber and well... here's what happend.

We are moving from our condo to our new home. We are dropping down from two tivos (one from our bedroom and one from the living room) down to just 1 in our NEW family room.

So, I call to cancel the two Tivos and actually activate a NEW series 3 dvr.

The rep kept on pushing that I transfer my service rather than cancel my service and stay at a rate at $12.95 / mo or whatever he was telling me for 3 years.

I told him that I want to do a prepay and he STILL kept pushing me to just transfer the service. He wouldn't tell me WHY but he just kept saying that is what he would do if he were me. Now, if I'm correct, going with the prepay is saving me about $168 over the course of 3 years which is still good money.

He then told me that the 3 month gift subscription isn't good for the prepay but.. whatever. I asked him why he wanted me to transfer and he got defensive. He then asked if he could have my tivo service number for the new tivo to see if it was eligible for the 3 year prepay (otherwise I would HAVE to do the transfer). I told him that he was trying to force me to transfer rather than get the prepay and then he started saying that I was putting words in his mouth. I told him that I wasn't but that's what I feel he was doing. I mean cmon, so people who buy a series 3 aren't eligible to prepay? ARGH! He just ruined my day. Can't wait to deal with Comcast installing those cable cards in my tivo tomorrow (100% sarcasm here!)

Sigh...

Mike

First, Can I ask why you were so shocked, or even mildly Surprised to receive inept Service from Tivo?
I once called and was told by a Woman to Unplug both Cords to Reset the Unit. I told here I already did that twice, but she told me I had to do it *AFTER she told me to, as part of their Service Documentation!! She would not give the next step! I hung up, called and got another Rep. who reasonably went to step 2!!
These are not Techs. All they are is low Wage people with "WHAT TO SAY IF" Books in their Lap! You may as well read a FAQ Page! I have never had any problem Fixed or even helped by Tivo, except for an address change, after 2 tries!!
Just be happy you can understand what most say! At least this Year anyway, Service is not located in India somewhere, unlike most other CO's!!

[wolflord11]

Originally Posted by AFP1

I know what you mean, but, Could it possibly be that Tivo is not responsible, or may not even be aware of the Rebate offered by Ordering through ATT/Bellsouths Combined Plans? They have a million different offers right now. I just listened as he went through all the picks when I only wanted Caller I/D added. They have a different plans for adding on Satelite, DSL, Long Distance etc.
Just a thought!

The first time I called Tivo, the CSR was not aware of the offer. But after talking to her Supervisor it was all sorted out. She left a note on my account if there were any other issues.

After that, each time I call they see the note, and then I get transferred to the Accounts/Billing department who always give me the same story of.... I will receive my rebate in 2-3 Days etc etc.

[AFP1]

Originally Posted by wolflord11

The first time I called Tivo, the CSR was not aware of the offer. But after talking to her Supervisor it was all sorted out. She left a note on my account if there were any other issues.

After that, each time I call they see the note, and then I get transferred to the Accounts/Billing department who always give me the same story of.... I will receive my rebate in 2-3 Days etc etc.

I see it getting very frustrating! Just from what I was told by ATT/Bellsouth when ordering Caller I/D, they have many Plans that differ, and the "Rebate" is a deduction comes off your 1st and/or 2nd Months Bill(s) depending on how much you owe them Ea. Month. But that regarded their Services, DSL Service and Satelite. What the Tivo arraingement was I don't know, as I never let him get that far, saying "I only want Caller I/D *Please"! But the more you add, the larger the "Rebate" is. Now if you ordered Tivo, a DSL and Phone Service, Tivo will not issue the Rebate $$ they state, as it has nothing to do with them in the other areas. ATT has to deduct the Rebate they issue from your Bills.
That was why I asked if maybe they didn't control ATT's Rebates??
But when I hear 2-3 Days Re: a Rebate, that normally never happens! Especially at Tivo!
Good Luck!

[wolflord11]

The offer was a $75 rebate check and 3 Months of Tivo for Free for the Bellsouth DSL offer.

The $75 check I got, the Series 2 ST Tivo I got, but the rebate from Tivo I did not get.

Bellsouth no longer have this offer. I was trying to find the webpage to give a link so people could see for themselves the offer terms. I am very good at following rebate terms, I deal with rebates on alot of PC parts nearly every day.

[PiaJr]

I would like to share my personal story with all of you. I'm sure you will find reasons as to why I was wrong, but I will accept that.

I have two Tivos. One for three years, one for one year. The one I had for one year stopped working. I was fine with that, things happen. I bought, against my better judgment (and the insistence of my wife), a refurbished Tivo. I received it, and everything was going great. Then two weeks later, it stopped working. Okay, no biggie, they would send me a new one, which they did. They sent me another refurbished unit and it did not show in color. All the channels showed in black and white. It was starting to get a little frustrating, but I love my Tivo and was still patient with them. This time, we paid $200 upfront for them to send us our unit right away and once they received the old unit, we would be refunded the $200. The new unit came and I plugged it in. NOTHING. The unit wouldn't turn on. To recap: we had four different Tivos that broke in a six week time span.

So, my wife called Tivo again. After a 39 minute hold, a rep came on the phone who offered to send us a NEW tivo (not refurbished) once we gave them $200. After we explained that that was not an option. They offered to send it to us once we sent the old unit back. My wife was okay with that. I was not and felt it was unreasonable to have to wait another 10 days when we have been so inconvenienced for so long. So, I called back and expressed that I was very unhappy with Tivo and would like something more than they were offering. The rep advised that he was sending me a new Tivo. I explained that I understood, but that I felt it was unreasonable to ask me to wait another 10 days (it's been 8 so far) for my new Tivo. He then stated that he was sending me a new Tivo and then, for some reason, decided to say, "I don't know how I can make that clearer to you!" I then asked (unreasonably, I admit) that my new unit, first be upgraded to the 180-hr unit and then to have it at my door in 2 days. The CSR then told me that it was impossible for them to send me a unit in 2 days as they only ship ground. Despite repeated protests that there was no way I was buying that, he said that that was all he way doing and that I was not getting anything else. I then gave him the option of either finding some way to make me feel better about all that I had been through or transfer me to billing so I could cancel my service. He decided to transfer me...I decided not to cancel (I REALLY love Tivo).

I have ALWAYS had good Tivo experiences in the past. I know he was just a bad apple in the bunch, but what a complete lack of customer service. And when we called back after that debacle, the CSR offered to send us the new unit next-day air!

I know it's long, but that's my story.

[ZeoTiVo]

Originally Posted by PiaJr

I would like to share my personal story with all of you. I'm sure you will find reasons as to why I was wrong, but I will accept that. .

actually I think one of the really bad decisions and a supreme weakness of TiVo is the third party customer support and 3rd party rebate processing. Neither is TiVo's core business and to save money and have a more even cost structure they subcontract them and neither is overly empowered to do much better than what is already scripted. Anyone good will be lost to churn as they find new jobs and it can only be hoped that the new people can pick up what is going on quickly. I have no idea what TiVo could do about this, though.

[Joey Bagadonuts]

I've only had to contact a TiVo CSR twice but each time, the call went flawlessly (I can't say the same for Dell, though!). The first time was much like another poster's dilemma - I had purchased a refurbished DVR from TiVo and when I fired it up, nothing happened. I called Tivo and I opted to do the $200 credit card thing. I think that phone call took about 5 minutes and I had my replacement DVR in 3 days or so. The other time was more recently and probably wasn't even TiVo's problem but the CSR helped me out anyway. I live in an area where Time Warner Cable took over Adelphia Cable and my channel guide was showing shows and times for the eastern time zone (I live in the pacific time zone). Bottom line, the Tivo CSR walked me through several different steps and we were finally able to get the problem corrected.
Both times, the TiVo CSR was polite, knowledgeable, and spoke and understood English perfectly.

[will592]

Nothing but amazing customer service from Tivo, ever. I have quite a few stories but they're the same as everyone elses. Just great customer service.

Chris

[Sadara]

Had my second bad Tivo CSR Experience yesterday! I called in, told the guy I needed to transfer my subscription fee from my old dead tivo to the new working tivo that was sent to me as a warranty replacement from Tivo. He told me I needed to go through the Guided Setup, if everything was working fine then I didn't need to do anything else. I repeated that I need to transfer the subscription fees. He repeated that I needed to go through the Guided setup. I got annoyed, it come through in my tone, and asked for someone who could actually help me! Lazy, lazy, lazy! Thankfully, the next person I talked to was able to help me get the subscription fees transferred!