at the beginning of this week i went to shaw to ‘plea’ my case and try to get a worth while package which should include high speed internet and an hd box. prior to this i did go by telus and got information on their latest offer (free basic hd for a student for a year, $10 off dsl internet, free hd box rental for the duration of the 3 year contract and $6 or $5 per package depending on the number of packages you get on top of the basic cable). well, this seemed a bit cheaper than what the regular price shaw had…but shaw has stepped it up a notch – they’re offering no contracts. so, on monday i went by the shaw tower (the only location in vancouver…) and decided to test the waters and see what they would offer me. to my surprise i didn’t really have to plea anything as they essentially threw a package at me that i just couldn’t refuse (yes somewhat of a godfather reference, but no guns). the offer, free 2 months full hd and high speed internet, and then $20 for their service for the next 10 months, with free rental of the hd box. i didn’t quite have a comeback or any desire to try and decrease the price.
the beauty of shaw is the fact that you don’t have to sign a long term contract, make the commitment in order to get the sweet deal. well, if you live in vancouver you most likely know that shaw is pretty much the only provider that offers this. by far the worst company to deal with when it comes to contracts is rogers wireless. at this point they are the only providers of a wireless service that uses sim cards (yes i know fido does too…but fido is rogers little b…., so your money still goes to rogers). anyhow, bell is bringing (or phasing i should say) this particular service in by the end of the year (i can’t wait). anyhow, long story here’s what happened.
first, a bit of background. i’ve had a rogers cellphone for about 7 years now. i have three lines on my account and i’ve had three lines for the last 3 years, and the previous 4 i had 2 lines. more or less, what i learned about rogers is…as long as you’re under contract you are just a little number to them and you won’t get any attention. that includes disrespectful customer representatives and lack of care. about 3 weeks ago i went by one of their retail locations (and if you’ve ever been to one, you know that it’s useless if you’re a customer already as those little pawns are useless. so, i decided to call customer service and ask to add a fourth line on the account, just offer me a better deal that a new customer would get (given i’ve been with them for 7 years). now, i have roughly 1 year to go on each of the three lines i have with them. so, the first customer representative that i got pretty much told me to ‘fuck off’, because i’m already getting a sweet deal which i shouldn’t be getting from them. essentially a few years back after my contract was done i called and tried to cancel because bell offered me the same place for $10 cheaper, so rogers matched it by giving me a $10 credit per phone per month on the account. after this, i told him the offer bell gave me 2 days earlier…even cheaper than i’m paying rogers right now (which would included 250 daytime minutes, called id, voice-mail, 250 txt, free bell to bell, weeknights from 7pm and weekends free all for $32/month which included the system access fee and tax…sweet deal). so i asked rogers to match, so that i don’t have to get bell at this point. the customer rep shortly told me no, we can’t, you’re getting a good enough deal, plus we have the best network service available, implying i won’t switch. i inform him that their network does fail quite frequently…at which point he states…it’s due to my phone because it’s 2 years old. it’s two years old…if the phone wont’ work properly after two years…then why have a 3 year contract…
anyhow, called again and talked a new rep. he was more helpful…and to some extent had a bit more professionalism in his approach. however, he offered me a plan at the price for a new customer…stating that in a few months i can call and ask them to change it by stating i have 4 lines and i’m loyal, so please decrease my payments (they won’t do that now…doubtful they will when i have a plan which has just under 3 years left). anyhow…i pretty much said thanks…i won’t get it.
so, i call again on friday august 21st. i talked to a rep, an incompetent arrogant fool, so i asked to be transferred to a supervisor. he transferred me, the only thing is that he pressed the ‘hung-up’ button rather than the hold button (i’m assuming it wasn’t ‘intentional’). anyhow, i called back and demanded to speak with a supervisor right away. however, the new rep decided he can help me…of course quite useless…so after wasting 10 more minutes he did transfer me to the floor supervisor. the only thing the supervisor was saying was…we can’t and we apologize…so i asked if there is anyone that has the power to change my account or make an actual decision. so, the supervisor from sales transfers me to the customer relations department at 6:30pm pacific time. i wait on hold for 15 minutes, after which i decide to call back later.
i called 30 minutes later and asked specifically for the customer relations department, at which point i was informed they are closed and have been closed since 6pm pacific time. apparently the sales department stays open till 8pm pacific time, but not customer relations….one can surely see what their biggest priority is. anyhow, i essentially got hung up once and the second time i got transferred to a closed department by a supervisor. if she doesn’t know what time the other department closes in her own company (nor was she willing to check prior to sending me there) how is she even capable of managing the floor…
anyhow, i called again on august 24th, to inform them that i am quite unhappy with their service, lack of respect and professionalism. the customer rep realized he won’t be able to actually calm me down, so he states i will get your information and you will get a supervisor contacting you tomorrow (august the 25th). it’s thursday, august 27th and i have yet to get a call back.</br>
on top of this, i did write them a feedback online. and to their reply by email, i responded with an explanation of the events.
why did i not cancel yet, well essentially the fee i must pay is about $600+. while this is doable, they are the only ones with a sim card and i doubt i will get a better deal if i come back to them as a new customer. i can’t yet go to bell…so i must wait till december-ish, once they have their sim cards out.
as soon as your under contract you won’t get the service (and yes…there are more out there). now this is not specific to rogers, telus behaves the same, bell (based on what i’ve heard) behaves similarly. so the best you can hope for is get the best deal possible prior to signing the contract, as you’ll live it for 3 years. time and time again, rogers has proven that a customer under contract is just a small figure for income. we pay through our nose for cell phone service…they charge every small feature…and on top of this…good luck getting attention. go to europe, where there is more competition…you have cheaper phone plans and more features included in the plan. you get more bang for your dollar (well…euro there). at this point, the cheapest you can hope to pay per month is $35 (to include the access fee and tax) and for that you basicly just get to talk to a few people…no voice-mail nor called id. i hope that vodafone decides to bring its business over here…have some healthy competition. so customer service..certainly, just make sure you’re not under contract.
at the beginning of the new decade bc drivers had to do a quick update in regards to what they’re allowed to do while at the wheel of a vehicle. the use of a cellphone, mp3 or any other handheld devices if strictly prohibited while driving. however, just like any other law made by man there are just as many exceptions to the law as there are grammar exceptions in the English language. most important ones are, and this only applies to full driver license holders, you can talk on the phone if you are using a hands free device or if it is an emergency then feel free to use the handheld device.
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