Wednesday, July 24, 2013

She's gonna blow......

Brace yourselves - I'm about to vent all over you.  It's war with the telephone company!!  This sad saga  started a few days ago.  Auntie got a "statement" from the phone company.  Not a bill, a statement - which said Do Not Pay - balance has been charged to your credit card.  But the problem is she had never given them her credit card.  She always pays her bill by cheque.   So you can imagine the tizzy she was in.  Someone got her credit card, the phone company can do what they want with her bank accounts, blah, blah, blah.....One conspiracy after another!  

She called the phone company.  They couldn't help her.  Didn't know how or who changed it but it was changed.  They told her it was her Bank's problem.  (Insert more tizzy and conspiracy theories).
Yesterday she went to the bank.  They called the phone company for her.  Nope, still no help except all they could tell her was the authorization was given June 24th.   She came home like a crazy woman. 

Frankly if I had heard the story one more time I was going to jam a fork in my ears.  This morning I opened my credit card bill and lo and behold there is a freaking charge from the phone company.  Taaa Dahhh - mystery solved.  On June 24th I called to update my credit card expiry date for the Internet account.  The genius on the other end of the phone obviously just put everything at this address on my credit card. 

Now it was my turn to have a tizzy.  I called the number on the statement to have the pre-authorized payment removed from the phone account.  Ohh, can't do it from that number - I need to call another number (which she doesn't know).  She eventually gives me a number like it is the biggest inconvenience in her day!  I dial the number and I hear this...."you cannot access this number from your area. Please hang up".  Now I'm steaming!

After 3 incredibly frustrating interactions with useless "help" technicians (HA)......I call a 4th number.  I'm seriously about to lose my shit when I am forced to listen to some Muzak version of Muskrat Love while I wait in line for my turn.  The ridiculousness of the music helped settle me so when someone finally answered I immediately said "I'm going to apologize up front for whatever I might say. I'm frustrated!!"  The girl started to giggle and made some funny comment and I couldn't help laugh.  She was great but could call up my phone account, name, address, credit card BUT couldn't find my Internet account without the account number.  And of course I didn't have that!  So I have to go through this all again tomorrow!

Now here is the part that makes me scratch my head.  She had my name, address, phone number etc  and had enough info to charge both accounts to my credit card but couldn't find my account! She could find it to charge me the money but not to take off the charge.

I can type in a random name to Google and find their phone number, address, then pull up a google street view of their house and zoom in to practically look in your windows BUT the phone company can't find my account????  

SERENITY NOW..........(remember that Seinfeld episode?)

I'm de-stressing with a large lovely ball of lavender wool

So, how was your Hump Day?

16 comments:

  1. It was very similar to yours! Commiseration, my dear! I looked up a bird cage I needed on the internet, proceeded to call the store to pick one up if in stock. Well, surprise, the store had one, right on the shelf. So I drove the 20 miles and, sure, the cage was there, but four important parts were missing. Grrrrr. I share your ire! Hope tomorrow is much, much nicer!

    ReplyDelete
  2. OMG! I hope it goes more smoothly tomorrow. They probably even know what size bra you wear but can't find your account number. So much for technology. Keep us posted.
    Hugs :)
    Lauren

    ReplyDelete
  3. And are you using that wool to hog tie someone at the phone company as I think that is the only was it would destress me! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think you need to wrap that lovely yarn around somebody's neck! I hate modern technology....sometimes! I just went through something similar with IKEA. All good now..hope yours gets better tommorow.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Kim, you got to be kidding me, come on!!!! I have a better idea what to use that yard for, :) Francine.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Don't you wonder how these people get and hold their jobs? Sorry. sandie

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am just amazed at how crazier and crazier it gets the more knowledge we have. It should be easier but it isn't and for the life of me, I can't figure out why that lady couldn't see your account.
    It is hump day isn't it? Wow, I thought it was already Thursday.

    ReplyDelete
  8. That seems to be "the way" with phone companies these days... i've all but abandoned one... and now another is on my "list"... beautiful yarn and nice even stitches!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I have been there.....and then a tree falls on your house and people from AT&T go out of their way to make it better, well except for that girlie from India who has trouble understanding you. Lol but the tech was so accommodating when he got here (the same day we called, really) that the silly phone call faded in memory. If only he could have fixed the roof and walls, oh well, hopefully before snow!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Kim I hope all is better today!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I can so relate to this Kim, not just with the phone company but it seems like whoever and where ever you call anymore you just get the run around. Well you need to talk to so and so and they're not here right now or we can't help you with that, we need to speak to your husband because the account is in his name. I just got done dealing with our bank about our online banking. I was having trouble accessing it, well they wouldn't talk to me about it even though I am the one that set up the account and had been using it all this time and it's a joint acct. No, all of a sudden only my husband can discuss it with them. I about went bald over that one! You just get SO frustrated!!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. How madening that stupid overseas call center gives you the run around. I just HATE those call centers.... I hate pre payments on the credit card so I refuse even if they say it will save me $10.00 . I just don't trust enough.
    I went to pay for my son's power bill one day while at the bank and I asked that she took it off my checking account. The way she did it was to enter his power bill account number on my list of on line accounts and the next time I went to pay my own power bill I had two power bill accounts on my checking account, mine and his.

    I hope that you get it figured out soon and please, hide the forks until you get this mess sorted out.
    Good luck.
    Hugs,
    JB

    ReplyDelete
  13. Goodness! What a goings on! Hopefully you get it all figured out soon... some people....

    ReplyDelete
  14. Lord how I hate to do all that stuff I called to cancel something off my credit card and lo and behold they were doing a systems update and I have to call back.
    Cathy

    ReplyDelete
  15. SO sorry about all that frustration! I don't know why they make it so difficult, when it is really right in front of them! Hopefully you get this straightened out soon!

    ReplyDelete