One would think that when you have your cable TV/Internet
service installed in your new home, the local cable company
would do their best to impress you. Not with so with >>>>>>>
MAY 5, 2007 - Our cable TV/Internet service was installed on March 7, 2007. Now, some TWO MONTHS LATER, the cable to our
new palatial estate has yet to be buried; it's STILL laying on top of the lawn. (That's a real 'pain' when it comes to cutting the grass!)
As for our neighbors, they moved in to their new home last July 2006 and THEIR cable is STILL laying on top of the ground, too !!
So that's TWO UNBURIED CABLES that we have to move every time we cut the grass !!
MAY 24, 2007 UPDATE - There MAY be a God !! In addition to having wires from the cable company cluttering up our yard, our lawn is now 'accented' our lawn with red (electricity), yellow (natural gas) and orange (telephone) paint marking the locations of the buried utilities. (Know what that is, Mediacom ??) Hopefully, this is a 'precursor' to Mediacom FINALLY getting off their butt and coming out to do what they should have done months ago !! But I'm not holding my breath.
MAY 29, 2007 UPDATE - The guy came to bury the cable TV wires !! I saw someone walking around in the back yard, a truck with a trailer; the trailer had a 'trencher' and spools of cable on it. I went outside and asked (I just couldn't resist the temptation!!); "Are you here to bury the cable TV wires?" He stated that he was and I told him that we've been waiting since March 7th to get our wires buried; the neighbors have been waiting since LAST JULY !!
Hearing that, he stated that he only had a 'Work Order' to bury the neighbors cable; NOT OURS !! (I'm the one who has been calling Mediacom WEEKLY to get OUR cable buried!!) I asked him what the date was on his 'Work Order' and he showed me a date of May 15, 2007. I explained to the guy that as long as he was here, why not bury BOTH cable TV wires and 'call it a day'. Being an 'independent contractor' for Mediacom, he, fortunately, was much more interested in making a customer happy than Mediacom is; he agreed to bury our cable as long as he was here. He worked diligently and got BOTH cables buried and packed up his equipment and left. But we STILL had cables laying on top of both lawns. It seems now that once the cables have been buried by the 'independent contractor', it's up to a Service Technician from Mediacom to come back and connect them up !! How much longer do you suppose that's going to take?
Like my experience of trying to cancel DISH Network, our bad experiences with since subscribing to their cable TV & Internet service in March 2007 are deserving of their own Webpage (with pictures) showing how they 'butchered' our lawn when they (finally) showed up and buried the cables. CLICK HERE to see that Webpage I've created.
JUNE 6, 2007 UPDATE - We FINALLY got everything with the cable TV service taken care of. But NOT because of our constantly calling them; because our Internet service which Mediacom 'boasts' is 8MB, had slowed to a crawl of less than 1MB !! When the 'service technician' came you on Monday, I had already spent more than 30 minutes on 'hold' trying to find out, from Mediacom, why their technician didn't arrive between 8-11AM like they said he would.
Their 'service technician' came and left; we STILL don't have our 'high speed Internet' that we've been paying for since March !! And they could care less !!
JUNE 14, 2007 UPDATE - After TWO MONTHS of my 'being on their case', Mediacom FINALLY ADMITTED to me that their 'high speed' (8MB) Internet service isn't as fast as they claim it to be. Their technician specifically told me that this 'problem' with their 'high speed' Internet service began developing about the time we moved in; it seems there are too many 'users' hooked up to the same line. From what I've experienced, their touted 8MB download speed is more like 2-4MB and routinely slows to less than 1MB. Supposedly, Mediacom has 'ordered the parts' it needs to provide their customers with the 8MB download speed that they've all along led us to believe exists. But didn't. Now I'm curious if they are going to make any 'adjustment' to their customers who were paying for a service they never received. STAY TUNED !!
JUNE 15, 2007 UPDATE - Our Internet service is now totally 'out' this morning. Mediacom said they'll send a technician out tomorrow morning to see what's wrong. So than means no Internet service, for which we're paying, for at least 24 hours. And they want us to subscribe to their Internet phone service. Ain't gonna happen !! And I can't wait to see what their billing department has to say when I ask them for credit on our bill for advertised service we paid for for the last 3 and a half months but didn't receive !! How do they stay in business ?? The answer is simple: Because no one 'speaks out'. Until now.
JUNE 19, 2007 UPDATE - Our Internet service from Mediacom was restored later in the morning on June 14th. Mediacom also finally admitted to me that they had another failure on Thursday, June 14, 2007 that affected a substantial number of their Internet customers. Supposedly, Mediacom was going to have the 'problem' that was causing their 'high speed' Internet service to run so slow, fixed by yesterday morning. While I don't have a clue what they did yesterday, I will have to admit that their Internet speed appears to be back in the 'ballpark' of where it should be.
But who knows for how long ??
JULY 5, 2007 UPDATE - I contacted Mediacom a week or ten days ago via their Website and again expressed my concern for their slow Internet service (and CRAPPY customer service). Their Website says they'll give a reply in 24 hours; it took them FOUR DAYS to respond !! And when they finally DID respond, they referred to to ANOTHER 800 number and when I called that number, I was told I had the WRONG number; they couldn't 'do anything' for me !! So, last Sunday, I called Mediacom AGAIN (for the umpteenth time!) and after speaking to someone who didn't care one bit about 'customer service', I demanded to speak with her supervisor. Some guy at Mediacom named 'Casey' seems a little more interested in resolving the issues I've raised more than anyone else I've talked to.
'Casey' said he check into things and get back to me. We'll see; stay tuned.
JULY 18, 2007 UPDATE - Well; you guessed it!! Never heard back from 'Casey'. In the meantime, the 'supposed' 8MB download Internet service is percolating along about 2.5 MB and no one has ever returned any of my calls or e-mails to give me any answers to my questions about why I should pay 'full price' for a service that isn't performing like it's advertised to perform. Plus, nobody from Mediacom has returned any of my calls to them about the way our yard was 'butchered' (see pictures below) when they FINALLY arrived to bury our cable (and the neighbors cable that has been laying on top of the ground since July 2006 !!
All in all, Mediacom is probably the WORST COMPANY that I've ever dealt with and nobody seems to care. Worse yet, we here
in Deltaville U. S. A. don't have any other options.That's the 'real shame', we are FORCED to have to tolerate Mediacoms
indifference and lousy Customer (dis)Service.
SCROLL DOWN to below the pictures to read more about my ongoing experiences with America's WORST Cable TV/Internet/Telephone service 'provider' !!
Here's an e-mail I received on June 15, 2008 from a Mediacom customer in Missouri relating their 'experience' with Mediacom:
I found your Website by chance while looking for something else, and I have to admit your pain was all too familiar, so I had to keep reading... I had to call them down here to my house so many times, it's not funny, and each time they left I was fuming with the response. Here was my problem. I'm deaf, so I rely on close captioning to be able to watch TV.
One of my favorite shows is Judge Judy, but one day (Thursday mid April 07) she wasn't closed captioned anymore. wellllll if it's not close captioned, no sense in me watching it as I won't understand a thing about what's going on, even though I know Judge Judy is giving someone hell! But I wanna READ what she's saying!! Soooooooooo I'm thinking maybe the channel is having technical difficulties, I'll try again tomorrow. Next day, (Friday) same thing happens. So my brain goes into overtime mode thinking on who I need to call to resolve this issue because I need my Judge Judy fix. So I call MEDIACOM via relay, and I inform them that one of my stations isn't closed captioned for two days now.
They inform me that there is NO PROBLEM on their end, and the problem lies with the TV station. So I tried to call the TV station via relay, and they hung up on me (guess they're not familiar with deaf people on relay) So I waited patiently for my husband to come home and have him make the call for me. He calls the TV station and tells them that his wife loves to watch Judge Judy, but for some reason it's not close captioned anymore, and she's not able to watch it. It just so happened that Judge Judy was still on when he got home, so the TV station was able to tell him that it was on, and they were watching it, and it was DEFINETLY closed captioned. The problem is not with our station, but with Mediacom. YOU DON"T SAY!!!!
So I get back on relay and call Mediacom back, and report to them that we had in fact called the TV station and checked with them, and they assured us that Judge Judy was on, and very much closed captioned. Their response was "we'll send someone out" They will show up on Monday between the hours of 9am to 5 PM. Well Monday is my bowling day, so I had to cancel bowling because it starts at 1PM and as of noon, no one had showed up yet. 5PM came and went, still no techie from Mediacom, so I call them back again. No one showed up. She apologized and said give him some more time, he's busy today.
Wait til about 7PM. 7 came and went so I called them back yet again. She says let me check the work order......then she comes back and says, he came but no one was home. OMG!!!!!!! yeah I'm deaf, but I have two big dogs in the house that bark the paint off the walls when someone knocks at the door, and I assure you the paint was still on the walls, and not to mention I spent the entire day peering out the window watching for that famous Mediacom van. So they set up another work order day for Wednesday now, guess he's still too busy Tuesday to come. I'm now at 4 days with no Judge Judy fix, and I'm about to go postal on something. Wednesday morning rolls around, and bright and early here come the techie (Jonathan). He comes in and asks me what the problem is. I said we have no closed captioning on Channel 4. We have closed captioned on all channels but that one. He picks up the remote and starts flipping thru the channels. Finds a channel that IS closed captioned, then tries channel 4, and it's NOT closed captioned. so he says where is the TV remote?? so I ask him what for? his response was.... I need to check the TV settings to see if closed captioned is ON.....
HELLOOOOOOOO you just had a channel on that was closed captioned and it was ON!!!!!!!! I had to make sure I got my little quirk in there to him about how I been deaf all my life and have been using closed captioned boxes since 1975 when they came out, and that I DID in fact know how to set that on a TV!! nonetheless, he checked the TV anyway and found out the closed captioned settings were ON!!! duhhhh that's why the other channels were showing caption....just like I said. so he goes out to the pole.... he's gone a bit and comes back....says all is fine, there is nothing wrong with the cable. it has to be the TV station. then he leaves. so I call Mediacom back and let them know that he didn't get it fixed and that I had already called the TV station, and they informed me that it was working, and I wasn't going to bother them again with a repeat question. she says she'll send another tech out to have him check it on Thursday between the hours of 9am and 5 PM GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR Thursday comes, and here comes a different techie (Lonnie). he comes in and takes the remote and flips thru the channels.. most were closed captioned and working....then tried channel 4....and it wasn't working... he asks for the TV remote... by now I'm furious....
C'mon Lonnie, it's set right, I DO KNOW how to check that since I'm the deaf one and rely on it immensely here.... and you just saw channels that DID have caption.... DUH!!!!!! so he starts checking wires, and gets to where my computer is (it was cable also) and he says well whoever put this in, should NEVER have spliced this cable like this for your computer. So I happily add the fact that it was Jonathan that did that, and that probably explains why my Internet don't work half the time, but that's a whole other story. So he agrees that we need to fix that spliced wire and have one coming in direct for my cable and NOT spliced off the TV, and he would be back to fix that later. (no time or date, just later) Friday, still no Judge Judy.....and no fix for the spliced wire....so I call them back again...hee hee, hoping they're sick of me by now and hurry up and fix the problem...
Damn it, I wanna watch Judge Judy!!!!She tells me that she's contacting another techie in a town 175 miles away, not sure what he's going to do for me from that far away, but I let her do what she had to do....He tells her that they are going to check into the problem Monday (it's Friday night and everyone's gone home for the weekend) I asked for Tuesday since I already missed bowling the Monday before, and didn't want a repeat of the previous Monday. so Tuesday it is. Tuesday rolls around, and again I spent the entire day looking out the window every time a car drove by, looking for that Mediacom van. No one showed up, why am I not surprised. so I wait til 7 PM again (even though I know they go home faithfully at 5PM) and call back again... she checks the work order and tells me that they came, but no one was home, and they left a note on my door!! OMG!!!!!
So I run to the door looking for the note while she's still on the line. and I argue the fact that I've been here the entire day and never left, not one time, and there is NO NOTE on my door. she said we can set up another date, to which I said no thank you, I'm going to look for other options as far as TV goes, and get rid of this lousy service and I hang up. I start immediately exploring other options for TV service and Internet service.....and all were the same thing....sorry, we don't service your area, you have to call Mediacom for that area....in a pig's eye I will!!!!!!!!!
The only thing that kept me sane was that my other favorite shows were on a channel that WERE closed captioned, and I was able to watch them.
I was grieving over losing my favorite show, and not able to find another cable option because MEDIACOM owns our area...and was making do with court TV (my other favorite channel) when all of a sudden one day, (was about 2 weeks later) there is a knock at the door. a man from Mediacom appears and says, I'm from Mediacom, and I wanted to tell you that there is a problem with the cable. FOR REAL???????? what gave him the first clue?????
I really did try to be nice to the guy, but I was so ticked off from being treated like I was stupid from all the other visits, just because I'm deaf, that I'm afraid I wasn't very nice to him. He was calm though and kept his professionalism and went on to explain to me that there is a head on the box (somewhere) that feeds the closed captioning in for channel 4, and it was broke. and they didn't have the part to fix it, but they had ordered it, and as soon as the part came in, they would be replacing it, hopefully within the next two weeks.
It actually took more like 4-5 weeks to get fixed (I checked judge Judy daily to be sure) but in the meantime we had had so much rain, and it seemed like cable went out every time the birds peed on the cable wire, and I was so sick of them, that I canceled my service with them and went to dish network. it's not a move I wanted to make, and I'm not happy with them either (at&t employees are liars) but that's a whole other story also. they did get the part fixed though, 2 days before I canceled them out and went with dish network.
So it was fixed by the end of may 07 because I switched to dish network on 6-1-07. I feel like we should have a choice on what we want for cable TV, and that they shouldn't have areas OWNED by someone we don't like, because the service is extra lousy when they know we have to use them or do without because no other company can come in and take their place in this area. there should be a law against that.
We can go out on any given day and we have a choice of what gas station we want to use, what grocery store we want to shop at, what clothing store we want to shop at, and even what restaurant we want to choose to eat at, we should have the same choice when it comes to what telephone service you want to use, and cable as well.
Mediacom SUCKS!!!!!!!!!! thanks for the great story on your Website :-)
Guess I'm not the only one that has a 'problem' with Mediacom. Their regular monthly charges for their cable television service as well as their high speed Internet access is out of sight and their customer (dis)service leaves much to be desired.
Their 'products (cable TV and high speed Internet access) far surpass the performance of their customer (dis)service.
FROM THE 'DELTA DICK' HOMEPAGE
MEDIACOM STRIKES AGAIN !!
August 6, 2008
Minnesota's worst cable company, Mediacom, (so bad that they deserve their own Webpage; see www.deltadickshow.com/mediacom.html) has done it again. Last Tuesday (a WEEK ago) I called Mediacom because some of their cable channels were not being received properly ('checkerboarding' is what it's called). I was told that they couldn't have a service technician out until Friday (that was three days away). I told them we'd be out of town that day; they stated their next 'opening' for service would be on Sunday. I told whoever I talked to at Mediacom that I had to work Sunday afternoon; they said they'd call a half an hour before they came out.
They didn't show up, didn't call and I had to leave for work. After work when I checked my cell phone, I saw that they had called at 4:05PM; some THREE HOURS after the time I told them I'd be leaving for work !!
So yesterday, August 5th, I called the number on my Caller ID belonging to the service technician that called me and was supposed to show up on Sunday before I left for work. He told me he was 'filling in' on Sunday because somebody called in sick. I explained my problem with our cable service to him; he stated it was due to the 'fluctuation of their cable channel signal strength'. I asked why it didn't affect both cable receivers; and gave me an obvious 'gobblely gook' answer thinking I was stupid. Or something.
When I asked him what the 'fix' was to resolve my problem, he stated that I'd have to have a 'whole house amplifier' installed. And told me it's cost me fifty bucks. To properly receive the cable TV reception we're already paying for.
Can you imagine the gall of Mediacom ? We're already paying to receive their cable TV and when it doesn't work properly, they want to 'sock it' to their customers expecting them to pay even more for something they are already paying for.
A 'DELTA DICK DOOR KNOB' Award is in the mail to them for lousy customer service that's not getting any better !!
MEDIACOM FINALLY SHOWED UP
August 14, 2008
After two weeks with intermittent cable TV service from our supplier Mediacom (see below), their service technician called last Tuesday to say that he'd arrive in 15 minutes. He did. He was neat. He was polite. He was personable. He was efficient. He even put 'covering' over his shoes BEFORE he came into our home. Like Santa Claus, he went straight to his work, diagnosed the 'problem' knew how to fix it, and, without putting his finger aside of his nose or going up the chimney, left as swiftly as he arrived. But before leaving, he explained, in terms the average person could understand, what was wrong, what he did and what we could expect.
This Mediacom service technician that came out could sure teach the people that answer Mediacom's toll free customer service telephones, allot about how to treat their customers. Hoping the service technician gets the proper recognition from his employer, I'm identifying him; I only know him as 'Brian'; I don't know his last name.
Hopefully the Mediacom executive that received a "DELTA DICK DOOR KNOB AWARD" last week on behalf of his company's deplorable customer service, will seek out this 'Brian' and ask him what his 'secret' is to treating their customers with so much dignity and respect.
It shouldn't be kept a secret. The whole company could benefit by following Brian's 'lead'.
APRIL 09, 2009 UPDATE - This morning I received the following e;mail message: "I have read your rant on Mediacom & am unhappy to tell you NOTHING has changed! Not 1 thing! I am experiencing the SAME problems as you have in the past. I am paying to have flyers (500 to start) summing up what crappy service they have & posting them on every door in our subdivision! I am canceling them on Friday!"
Here's my response to the sender: "Thanks for your e-mail; sorry it took so long to get back to you. I'll be posting your e-mail message on my Mediacom Website for all to see.
Interestingly enough, a Mediacom representative knocked on my door yesterday saying he was contacting new subscribers to sign up for their Internet/cable/phone service.
In short order, I told him he was one more graphic example of how screwed up Mediacom really is; we've been their 'customer' for OVER TWO YEARS; yet, they send someone out to our home to try to sell us their service.
I told the person that I was ready to leave for work and that I didn't have time to talk to him. He stated that he didn't need to come back later as we were already Mediacom's customer.
I corrected him: Yes; he SHOULD come back because I have some serious 'issues' with his company. I even directed him to my Webpage about Mediacom; he said he didn't need to 'go there'.
I sternly corrected him ad told him that "YES; you DO need to 'go there' to learn more about one customers experience (who his company apparently doesn't know exists as evidenced by his coming to our home to try and sell his company's product) !!
He stated he'd return this morning, but we'll see if that happens."
Stay tuned.
APRIL 10, 2009 UPDATE - To my surprise, the person that stopped at our home yesterday, Todd Ernst, did, I say DID, return on Friday as he aid he would. Now understand that "Todd" is NOT an employee of Mediacom; rather, he works for a 'marketing company' that Mediacom has retained. to solicit new customers. Todd stated that he is given a list of Mediacom customers by Mediacom and then is supposed to go to houses that aren't on the list and try to 'sign them up' with Mediacom cable television, Internet and telephone service. I told "Todd" that I thought it was 'amusing' that Mediacom would give him a list that wasn't accurate; our name wasn't on the list which would indicate that we were NOT Mediacom customers. So much for Mediacom's accuracy.
Well anyway, I invited "Todd" into our home and overwhelmed him with the myriad of pictures and 'tales' documenting our experiences with this cable giant which also happens to be 'the only game in town'. Needless to say, "Todd" agreed with me that we have not been well served by Mediacom. Plus, just last month, Mediacom raised our monthly rate by a whopping TWENTY BUCKS over the $75.00 we were already paying !! (Our most recent bill is $106.51.)
Honestly; "Todd" was pleasant, had a job to do and walked into a literal 'hornets nest' when he rang our doorbell and asked us to 'sign up' with Mediacom's cable television, Internet and phone service. He agreed wholeheartedly that our experience with Mediacom was much less that it should have been or should be. Yet, he can't change the past; only hope to steer the future in a better and more stable manner. But all along, I told "Todd" that it's not the actual cable TV or Internet service that I'm disenchanted with, it's the human 'customer (dis)service' that Mediacom exhibits every time I call them with a problem. Waiting 'on hold' listening to their background music of flutes for a half an hour isn't acceptable. "Todd" agreed. But "Todd" didn't have an answer of how to 'fix' it.
We 'wrapped up' our (cordial) conversation and parted company agreeing that Mediacom didn't serve us well in the past and probably won't be any better in the future. Ironically, that was a foretelling of events to come. Read on.
APRIL 11, 2009 UPDATE - When I got home from work at 1AM Saturday night/Sunday morning, there was a note on the kitchen counter telling me that the cable had gone out' around 7:30 Saturday evening. I 'double checked' the cable TV service and it was definitely 'out' . I then checked put Internet service (also provided by Mediacom) and it, too, wasn't working. I did the normal 'Disconnect the power to the modem and router and wait a minute or two' and then powering up the modem and then the router but none of that worked. Having nothing else to do, I went to bed and would call Mediacom in the morning.
APRIL 12, 2009 UPDATE - Sure as heck, Sunday morning arrived and I woke up at 7AM. My first conscious act was to call Mediacom's 'Repair Service' and get our cable television and Internet service working again. However, I dreaded having to sit 'on hold' and listen to their 'flute music' for a half an hour while I waiting for someone to determine if my call to them was really important to them. But, of course, by now I've realized that Mediacom's main 'focus' is to get more customers to generate more revenue so they'll pay more attention to an incoming call from someone who wants to subscribe to their service rather than get somebody's service back in operation.
So (and pay attention to this), when the 'voice prompts' of Mediacom's circuitous voice mail system asked me if I wanted to add new services, I 'jumped at the chance and didn't let them even get to the part where they asked me if I was already a Mediacom customer seeking service. As soon as I press "1" (which is the number new customers or existing customers enter who want want to throw more money Mediacom's way), and I was INSTANTLY connected with one of their (live) Customer (dis)Service representatives. When I explained my situation to this person, a female, I was asked if I would be home all day (I stated that we would be) and was told that Mediacom's service technician 'would be out'.
Then, at 7:30AM, I thought it would be a good idea to contact the technical support staff for Mediacom's Internet service and at least tell them that their Internet was 'out' and see if there was anything they could do remotely to get our Internet service restored (like they've done in the past). So I called Mediacom's (different) Internet Technical Support toll free number and again 'pressed 1' when I reached their voice mail system. That (again) put me in INSTANT CONTACT with a 'live' Customer (dis)Service person eager to 'sign me up' for more of their services to increase Mediacom's 'bottom line'. I explained my 'problem' to them that our Internet service was not working; they did some tests and verified that our Internet wasn't working. I already knew that.
But they stated that they could see that we were scheduled for service 'Tomorrow (Monday) between the hours of 8AM and noon'. WRONG; I was told by whoever I spoke with at 7AM that their service technician would be out TODAY !! I was told then that their 'schedule' was already 'made out' for Sunday and their were no openings available. I asked, "Why then was I told someone would be out today?" Whoever I was talking to didn't have an answer for that question. I made it clear that if I was told someone would be 'out' today, that should occur. Reluctantly, I was then told that Mediacom would try to 'work me in' for service and would call 15-20 minutes before their technician was to arrive to ensure that someone would be home. I was satisfied with that.
But unfortunately, that never happened. Nobody ever show up; nobody ever called. Surprise; Surprise !! So, about 4PM, I called Mediacom back and (using the 'Press 1' feature to INSTANTLY connect me to a live Customer (dis)Service person), inquired as to where their Service Technician was. Imagine my surprise when I was THEN told that they don't have anybody (Service Technicians) working on Sundays !! (Remember; TWO Mediacom Customer (dis)Service representatives TOLD me that someone would be 'out' to fix our cable TV and Internet service.
Now, in addition to incompetence, Mediacom is involved in LYING to it's customers !! Presumably, all in the name of greed and profit. And terrible Customer Service. They all should be hung by their thumbs !!
So here's the 'box score' for Mediacom this Easter Sunday: NO runs, NO hits but LOTS of errors by Mediacom. Conflicting reports from employees of the same company. Mediacom is just as bad as Xcel Energy, AIG Insurance, Bank of America and all of those other humongous companies that are so large the left hand doesn't know what their right hand is doing. Quality Customer Service is a thing of the past. It's all based around MONEY, MONEY, MONEY !!
And so it is with Mediacom. Only difference is that they haven't asked for a 'government bailout'. At least, not yet. Meanwhile, we've been without our cable television and Internet service and Mediacom couldn't care less; guess we'll just have to wait until Monday morning at 8AM when they said they'd call us telling us when they'd arrive and get things back working.
It's a horrible feeling to be at someone else's mercy and not have control of ALL aspects of your life !!
APRIL 12, 2009 UPDATE - Well; here it is; 8:15AM Monday morning and no call from Mediacom advising us when they'd be out to get our cable television and Internet service restored. So I called their local office in Waseca (Minnesota) and asked to speak with the person 'highest up' in their 'chain of command' and the man (or woman) who terrified all of the employees whenever he (or she) walked into the room, and had the authority to 'dismiss' any one or all of them.
Instead of putting me in contact with such a person, whoever answered the phone decided she would deal with the current 'problem'. She wasn't any better, or of any better assistance, than the three Mediacom Customer (dis)Service representatives I dealt with yesterday. All this latest Mediacom employee could tell me is that someone would be 'out' between 8AM and noon today.
Finally, one of their Service Technicians showed up in the street around 11:15. I went out to exchange 'pleasantries' with him. I approached him and stated, (as an 'icebreaker), "How's everything in the cable TV and Internet business?" His response was "Same as it was yesterday and the day before." He certainly isn't going to win any awards anytime soon for personality.
He went to the side of the house where the cable enters our home and took a couple of signal strength readings with his meter. He then went to his truck, removed a latter and climbed up to where the 'service drop' for our cable connects to the main cable mounted to the utility poles. He took a couple of more meter readings and then made a telephone call to Jeff; his supervisor. Finally, he came down his ladder, put the ladder on his truck and told me that somebody else was coming out because he (the guy that was here), could 'fix' the problem. I asked him when that might be, but he wouldn't give me a definitive answer. Finally I asked if it would be in a couple of hours, tomorrow, next Friday or when? He stated he couldn't provide me with that information; it was dependent on "Jeff's" schedule. I asked the guy that was here to please call Jeff and get a time so that I could plan the rest of my day. Reluctantly, the guy stated that "Jeff" would be here yet this afternoon. And sometime during all of this, I mentioned that we waited around all day yesterday for someone to show up as we were promised. The service tech that was here today told me, "We don't work on Easter Sunday; they shouldn't of told you that."Yeah; right.
So now, at 12:25 on Monday April 13, we STILL don't have any Internet access, our cable television still isn't right and we've wasted a day and a half waiting for Mediacom to get their act together. Which doesn't look like it's going to happen anytime soon.
So, to pass the time, I decided to call Mediacom and see what 'promotions' they had 'going' for new customers. I 'got right through' to a live person when I press "1" to order new service. Whoever I talked to provided me with confusing answers and conflicting information.
For example, he told me that as a new customer, I could get the 'Family Cable' packaged, which included our local television station channels, for $39.95 a month.
That's the same we're paying now !! What kind of a 'promotion' is that?
Then when I asked about Internet access, he stated that, too, was $39.95 a month.
That's ALSO exactly what we're paying now !!
Then I asked about their advertisement that I saw advertising high speed Internet Access for $19.95 a month. He stated that was for existing customers only; you can't be a new customer and receive their high speed Internet for the advertised price of $19.95/month. You first have to have their cable service installed (for $30 or $40) and then call back to have them come out (for an additional $30-40) to install their high speed Internet.
This whole thing with Mediacom sounds like one big 'shell games' centered around 'bait and switch' tactics and I'm not so sure that I want to be a part of it any longer. I've called both DISH Network and DirecTV and inquired about their services. It sounds a lot less confusing and a much lower monthly price for more channels regardless of which satellite provider you select. I told both DISH Network and DirecTV that I'd check out their channel 'packages' on their respective Websites and then make my decision.
Then it 'dawned' on me; I can't access the Internet; Mediacom hasn't got it, or our cable television service, 'fixed' yet. It's nearing 48 hours since both stopped working and we're totally at the mercy of a huge company that doesn't have to care about their lousy customer service.
Geez; I hate not having control of my own life. Meanwhile, we're still waiting for Mediacom to show up.
Check back.
AUGUST 1, 2009 UPDATE - Got this e-mal from someone who claims to be a former Mediacom employee and is currently living in Huntsville, Alabama. Madison County: "I am having almost the same problems with this company and cannot find a corporate number or address. Can you help me?"
Yes, I think I can. Try this:
Mediacom Communications Corporation
100 Crystal Run Rd
Middletown, NY 10941
(845) 695-2600
AUGUST 7, 2009 UPDATE - Here's an e-mail I received from a Mediacom customer in Pensacola, Florida who provided me with their location: "Pensacola and the office out of Gulf Breeze, Florida off of Nantahala Beach Road. I have some stories for you....Did you know that the cables that run underground. The ones that are already there are so old that the company is waiting to afford fiber-optic cable before they replace it...It isn't soo much that alot of people are using the same connection its the fact the equipment used hasn't been changed in almost 15-20 years......They aren't willing to replace it. They patch it...which causes more problems."
AUGUST 11, 2009 UPDATE - Here's yet another e-mail that I received from a disgruntled Mediacom customer: "My problem: I’ve had Mediacom for years with the service being generally acceptable. We constantly have some stations go out for no problem at all and when we have bad weather in Kansas we can understand and accept the fact that normally about 6 stations lose signal. The main problem we have is that when the EAS (Emergency Alert System) kicks in is that you can’t see or understand what is being broadcast on the television and don’t bother checking the Internet as the pulse they use to trigger the signal knocks the modems offline. Two years ago we had this problem and they fixed it somehow and we were grateful. We moved to a new house in December 2008 and service was better here than our old house 4 blocks away."
"Then they did service upgrades in January and everything went to hell. Since January I have records of calling Mediacom 10 times of service interruptions to the cable, the Internet or both. Not counting into those 10 times is the 14 times I’ve called for the EAS knocking the modems offline and not being able to understand what is being broadcast. When we had extremely severe weather in May where the EAS was on more in 3 days than regular television programs it was a pain to see and understand what was going on. This is continuing to this day and they still can’t find or fix the problem. I’ve been patient for 8 months but I’m calling the corporate office tomorrow and will send them a mail detailing my complaint."
"BTW, I also got the run around where a supervisor at the repair center was in a meeting and had to send a e-mail to the corporate office to let them know of my displeasure of this problem still occurring and I wanted to speak with them. They don’t have to send the e-mail now that I have the corporate information."
"Please feel free to add my e-mail to your site but please don’t post my e-mail address."
Then here's an e-mail that I received from some mean, nasty, lonely and an old lady that needs to 'get a life':
"To whom it may concern,
I'm not an employee, nor am I an advocate of the 'Mediacom' service; in my area, I'm not even serviceable by them - however, your site was still intriguing to me. I've had some of the same issues with Comcast, so I think it's just a cable company thing..."
"However, I'm straying from the point of which I'm writing to you: Unfortunately I was made aware of your site well after you made your "Oct 12, 2007" post regarding "Melissa's" bill - but I cannot stand by quietly when there is very bad math and blame directed in the wrong direction."
"Her statement "I would really like someone to tell me how in the HECK it costs $270 for cable and I-net? " is answered very simply with : It doesn't."
I"f she'd done her research properly, she'd know that Mediacom doesn't actually come up with the prices for the PPV events. So 80$ of that were not mandatory, monthly charges that she's "victim" to. Those are her free will and obsession with fake wrestling that caused that portion."
"DVR = Not essential
WWE 24/7 = Not essential...etc...etc....
The 1.99 charges - are things she would have been made aware of at the time they occurred, again, something she had control over (otherwise she is capable of suing them. Maybe not now, since so much time has past...but at the time she could have)."
"Her bill could be less than 100 dollars if she only had exactly what she was complaining about, which is strictly TV and Internet."
"Company's like these will never take people seriously if all they do is bitch and moan about things well within their control, and it's sites like yours that show what causes a company's bitterness and lack of respect to their customers."
"Thanks for being a contributing factor to the problem."
"P.S. In regards to your buried cable issue - I'm sure someone told you that you're capable of getting that buried yourself on the company's dime right? Perhaps they did but you weren't willing to hear them.......otherwise you wouldn't have wasted so much time posting pretty pictures and 'pity' posts to get people to feel sorry for you. :)"
"I can only assume since there haven't been any posts since 07 that you've either cut ties to that company or they got better and you didn't have anything to complain about.....either way - I hope whatever company you're with now, has better luck w/you."
If you'd like to offer your thoughts or opinions to the person who sent me the above e-mail, here's her e-mail address:
If you screw with the bull, you'll get the horn !!
SEPTEMBER 7, 2009 UPDATE - Last week our monthly Mediacom arrived. When I opened it, I nearly fell to the floor with apoplexy; it was $74.00 MORE than our previous monthly bills have been !! (Normally our monthly bill is around $107.00 for cable TV and high speed Internet service; this most recent bill was for $181.00 !!)
I haven't yet recovered enough to bring you all of the details; I'm still trying to get my strength back. Every last ounce of strength that I could muster was needed to crawl to the telephone and order installation of DISH Network Satellite TV. Yes; after two and one half rears of financial raping, unrestrained torment, immeasurable frustration and now, price gouging, I'm canceling Mediacom and have already had DISH Network Satellite TV installed.
Please check back later after I've had a chance to 'recover' from this very devastating experience. I'll provide you (in an entertaining way, of course) with all of the details of what took place, what Mediacom did to try and keep us as one of their customers and how we now have 250 channels of satellite TV and are paying only $47.99 a month; about a quarter of what Mediacom expected us to pay according to their latest bill.
You'll also find it interesting to read about my experience with DISH Network. Unless you know how these companies (and the telephone and electric companies) 'play the game', they'll dupe you every chance they get.
Please check back later; I have to go make some chicken soup !
SEPTEMBER 10, 2009 UPDATE - Got this e-mail from someone else who's not at all impressed with Mediacom: "Mediacom hooked me up to their wonderful phone Internet and TV package and I lose my "broadband" connection on the average three to four times per day; sometimes as high as twenty times a day though. Called them because only been hooked up a couple months? And my old Internet service provider? With three years of them only once..."once" in three years (Iowatelecom.net) did I lose my Internet connection.They tried to feed me this bull about it being my location!!! (Poor connection etc) So anyway, they send someone out ,he checks some wires, done, leaves, problem still remains, not only that but my phone is dead half the time. Mediacom really sucks you guys, you'd be better off finding someone else before even going through all that with them.
SEPTEMBER 30, 2009 UPDATE - Nothing like great 'customer service' to impact your company's image and name !! And speaking of that and EVEN THOUGH I totally CANCELLED my Mediacom Internet and cable TV service on September 5th and was told that I'd be getting a 'refund' of $68.00 in two to four weeks (yes; my telephone call with them telling me of my forthcoming rebate was recorded), well, guess what ??!! Yesterday I went to the mailbox and here's ANOTHER BILL FROM MEDIACOM, this time wanting ANOTHER $130.12 !! And, as part of that, Mediacom wants yet ANOTHER $10.00 for the power cord to their stupid cable box that I lost, but PAID THEM FOR when I returned their stupid equipment ! (Yes; I DO have a copy of the canceled check!) And, no; there was NO MENTION on this latest bill for service I haven't for almost a month, of the $68.00 credit that was supposed to be mailed to me in 2-4 weeks !!
Without any question; Mediacom is a terrible, horrible company to do business with. Just because they're the 'only game in town', they think that they can 'stick it' to their customers. Sorry; not in MY sandbox. I'll give them one more week to send us our $68.00 rebate that we were told was due us. If it's not here by then, we going to send a formal complaint to the Consumer Protection Division of the Minnesota Attorney General's Office as well as the Minnesota Better Business Bureau. And I MIGHT just make my recorded telephone conversations with those bunch of 'stooges' available on this Webpage; further attesting to just how screwed up they really are !!
And speaking about the Minnesota Better Business Bureau, they processed a total of 51 complaints about this company in the last 36 months, the BBB's reporting period. Of the total of 51 complaints closed in 36 months, 18 were closed in the last year. To see the full report on file with the Minnesota Better Business Bureau, CLICK HERE !!
Lastly, according to the records of the Minnesota Better Business Bureau, Mediacom is NOT a BBB Accredited Business. You don't have to 'smarter than a fifth grader' to figure out why !!
OCTOBER 16, 2009 - THERE IS A GOD !! This morning I went to the mailbox and what do you suppose was there? A refund check from Mediacom in the amount of $70.14 !! Well; at least SOMEONE at their company has some integrity along with their Service Technician, Brian P.
So, this 'nightmare' with Mediacom; the "Cable TV & Internet Service From Hell' is finally over with after two and one-half years !! GOOD RIDENCE ! As for how the DISH Network Satellite TV System is working; we're totally happy with it and the local Wireless High Speed Internet Service recently installed in our local area is working fine, too. Life is, once again, good in Deltaville.
Meanwhile, if anyone else has 'horror stories' about their 'dealings' with Mediacom, send them along to me at deltadickshow.com and I'll post your experiences here.
NOVEMBER 13, 2009 - I contacted GOPHER STATE ONE CALL (the company a that homeowners and contractors are supposed to notify whenever any type of excavation is being done in the area) and advised them that I was contemplating installing a 'ground rod' for the emergency generator system that I was planning on installing. Whenever they are contacted, GOPHER STATE ONE CALL notifies ALL of the utility companies in the area (telephone, water.sewer, power, cable TV, etc.) so that the homeowner or contractor doesn't have to make a zillion calls. By also calling GOPHER STATE ONE CALL, it assurres that every utility company is properly notified by creating a 'paper trail' of notification. Well; I'm sure by now you 'know where this is going'.
The ONLY utility company that didn't bother to show up and mark its lines was (you guessed it!!) Mediacom !! Why am I not surprised ?
FEBRUARY 8, 2010 - Here's an e-mail that I received today from an 'unhappy Mediacom customer' in Forsythe, Missouri: "We have had the same, horrible, frustrating, ^%$#@& experience with MediaCom. Our service cable was laying in our yard for almost 6 months, after being promised it would be trenched in within 2-4 weeks. To compound things, the line that connects to the service pole has been laying along and across a neighborhood road for 6-8 months. Their Techs must not know that after the cable is driven over for several weeks it gets cut and service goes out. By their own count, we have had 13 service calls, most to repair/replace the exposed cable, in a little over 12 months. Like you, our options are very limited."
