this one is for DSL techs/customer service people

[zig-mover.livejournal.com]

I just had someone get pissed at me because I wouldn't give her a refund. Their DSL line is all set up, and would work fine if it weren't for what looks like a short on the internal wiring. User claims she won't pay an activation fee for a service she never even used. My argument was that the service was working fine on our end, and it was her responsibility to repair her wiring.

My question to you: should the $99 activation fee be waived, as well as the first months' charge for the service? What are your company policy or personal views?

Comments

[zercool.livejournal.com]

Your local electrical company's responsibility ends at the meter box outside your building. If you burn down your house with a shorted wire inside, do you sue them for providing the electricity in the first place? Of course not. If you are on vacation and using no electricity, you still have to pay the line fee.

My personal feeling: activation fee stands. First month stands. Given them a voucher for a free month on the end of their contract. Or something like that. Hope they lose the voucher. :-)

[thecrazyfinn.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's past the demarc for the Telco.

Depends on where the demarc is for the ISP, we demarc at the router, but we also provision a seperate line for the DSL, so we don't have this issue.

[azraelsdaisy.livejournal.com]

I third that. You (read: your company) are responsible for the line up to the DMARC, the rest is the customer. AND when she signed up for the service, she agreed to a contract that said that. Just because she didn't read the contract before agreeing to it doesn't mean she is immune.

[inahandbasket]

well, from a customer service standpoint, I'd say that she should pay the activation fee, but if she's canceling the service I'd waive the monthly since you can confirm that she never used it.

[ex-prunesnp.livejournal.com]

I'd say waive it and look like the good guys.

[jahbulon.livejournal.com]

I agree.. If its anything like our ISP, you guys get charged that $99 by the telco?

Waive the first month due to non-usage but recover costs by enforcing the activation fee.

If you're feeling nice. If not, refer her to her terms and conditions, which, if anything like ours, will guarantee only that your company will take money out of her account on a monthly basis.

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

Mmm. Activation fee stands - work was done. The first month - waive, or give credit, as she never got any actual service out of the line during that time, and that is verifiable.

[winterlady.livejournal.com]

I say the activation fee stands because work WAS done. However, as with any refund - I think the monthly fee should be waved. After all - it's not like it's ever been used.

[kalidor.livejournal.com]

Well, i guess the question is did anyone follow up after the first week to make sure their service was working? The only reason I ask is becuase I had the exact opposite problem with one of the places I worked. DSL was capable of working fine, but I had a hell of a time getting it activated becuase the DSL company's tools kept testing the line as bad. They couldn't get any loopback whatsoever. Heck they kept telling me the phoneline wasn't hooked up, even tho it had dialtone. Once it was connected up I got my full 1.5Mbits up/down.

I guess what I am trying to get across here is I would classify it as their fault if someone had called back a week after it was setup, checked if it was working, and had told them at that point that there seems to be something wrong with their wiring and they need to get a phone tech to look at their house.

But that is just my opinion.

[funkybenn.livejournal.com]

hmm i recon. if she had the service installed, then she agreed to the t&cs, full disconnection fee plus minimum monthly charges times her total contract period.

I may seem like a Nazi, but hell its legallity.

and dont let no one tell you that the t&cs are too long, because they said they agreed to them.

damn people.. not wanting a good dsl service .. damn mother fu.. *mutters off into the night*

[liquidmercurial.livejournal.com]

NO REFUND!! If people are not willing to take the time to READ ANYTHING ABOUT THEIR DSL like the contract or how it works etc., then they don't deserve special treatment. As the DSL provider, you are only responsible for everything from the CO or RT to the NID. If it's a problem with the inside wiring, that's not your problem, it's the moron contractors that wired the house's problem. If the customer would actually have researched something before buying it, then maybe she wouldn't be bitching about something that is STANDARD with any DSL.

[gravito.livejournal.com]

You can tell how long someone has been doing technical support based on this type of question. The correct answer is waive the first month, apologize and say that's all you can do.

Any other answer and you risk losing a customer forever. I went from staunch DSL supporter to cable advocate. Believe it or not, I do not own a phone and have convinced several others to not own one either. One person can mean a lot.

[zig-mover.livejournal.com]

I've been doing tech support for this company for a little less than 2 years, but I don't often deal with billing problems.. Whenever there's something like this I'm told to just open a ticket for a billing supervisor to look at. But depending on what my opinion on the issue is, I can sway the billing guy's final decision, or at least influence it a bit.

Anyhow what I said I thought we should do was waive the first month charge, but still charge the activation fee. I think that's what ended up happening.