A very frustrating afternoon.
By Marie Coyle
@MarieCoyle (37443)
May 21, 2024 6:13pm CST
I kept telling myself, smile, you can get this fixed.
Have you ever tried to get an internet service/cable company to fix one of their OWN mistakes? I have my internet service for my home through Mediacom. That and one other are our only good choices, and in this area, Mediacom is the best. I have had the same service for years now.
About 11 AM, it just...died. No internet. Of course, when you call the ''help'' number, you get someone in another country that honestly does not understand what you are saying any more than you are understanding them. One time when I called them for assistance, I got a fellow in Indonesia who was trying to talk to me over chickens cackling and a loud rooster crowing. He kept trying to apologize for it but I finally just had to say thank you, and hang up, because I couldn't compete with the chickens. But this time, no chickens. Just a fellow on one end and me on another and we were at a standstill, trying to understand each other. (No offense meant to anyone from Indonesia, please. His accent was his, mine is mine, and we just couldn't make the talking thing work!)
I hiked out to the car and drove to the Mediacom store. Come to find out, one of my neighbors moved out (yes, I knew that...) and called to disconnect his cable/internet service. I live in a townhouse apartment, the access to the Mediacom wires and such are in a metal box at the end of one of the buildings here. So, the Mediacom worker disconnected ME instead of the guy moving out. And then they said there wasn't a tech guy to come out to reconnect me until next week! Excuse me??? It's your fault, not mine...but I smiled and was nice and just said, that's not acceptable. I pay my bill and I want the service I paid for. I will just have a seat, until you can come up with someone to go hook it back up.
That worked. I am acquainted with one of the ladies that works there. She has been at that office for years and is in charge. I don't know what she said, but one of the workers in the office left, went to fix it, and that was it. She said they weren't supposed to go out in the field if they work in the office, but it didn't take long and he said sure, he'd go hook it back up!
With a smile and some insistence on my part, I got my internet back on. They even credited my account for $20. Miracle of miracles!!
20 people like this
20 responses
@snowy22315 (180664)
• United States
22 May
You were super lucky they had a local office. My old provider only had an office like 5 states away! They did have some local contractors they worked with..but they were just at the beck and call of the company.
3 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
Yes, it's nice to have a local office. However, we cannot call them, as they do not handle to calls to Mediacom--they are all routed to overseas! So frustrating. I learned long ago, if I had a problem I just go to the Mediacom office here. They are very nice.
4 people like this
@snowy22315 (180664)
• United States
22 May
@MarieCoyle At least with my new provider they are fairly local, but I think their main office is in Lynchburg which is a hike from here.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
@snowy22315
It's so hard to get good service anymore from any of these places providing a service.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (218781)
• Walnut Creek, California
22 May
@MarieCoyle When I hear it's a foreigner who does not really speak English, I just think: "Corporate Greed." And then I am sad. For me and for them.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I'm sure it truly is frustrating. I always think they must think I am just dumb, because I can't always make out what they are saying. I live in a place that is very diversified, I hear a lot of people speaking English with a heavy accent from somewhere. I can understand pretty much all of them here...but when you get one of the telephone people with certain accents, etc. I just can't get it all--plus, they have a tendency to really talk fast, and that doesn't help me try to decipher it all.
3 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
@TheHorse
I know exactly what you mean. It's all about the money, not the service.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (166911)
• Boise, Idaho
22 May
I sure dislike getting a service person in another country. When I call for help I am already nervous if not also a bit upset. Someone who has an ascent is hard to understand and it is so frustrating.
They disconnected the wrong person? Oh, ee-gads!
We have been using this same cable company since the mid-90s. I pay $5 extra each month for their guard so if I do need to have a person come out that pays for it.
I must say though, the help I got from Roku sure was exceptional. They charged me twice, once on Roku and once on the app itself. It's so confusing it probably was my own fault but, the nice rep credited me for both and started me over with the free trial even after I paid for the month. That was nice. I wish Sparklight(our cable co.)was that nice.
2 people like this
@celticeagle (166911)
• Boise, Idaho
24 May
@MarieCoyle .........We have that and Direct TV. Those are the two big ones.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I am not familiar with Sparklight as my area only has two basic providers. Some people rig up and stream things on their computers from a good phone internet.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
24 May
@celticeagle
Direct TV is not very popular here. A few people have it, but very few.
1 person likes this
@Juliaacv (51190)
• Canada
22 May
@MarieCoyle It is encouraging to realize that there are still some workers who realize their errors and realize that they need to make amends with their customers as that is the right thing to do. I am glad that you were the recipient of their goodness.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
The people that work in that Mediacom office are always very sweet and polite. The lady in charge went out of her way to get me up and running, she said that it was their mistake. I was glad it was fixed so quickly. I never even imagined getting a credit, I was very surprised!
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
@Juliaacv
That one lady who has been there for so long seems to know her stuff. I was glad she was there. Thank you, Julia.
1 person likes this
Good for you.@JudyEv (339930)
• Rockingham, Australia
22 May
@MarieCoyle I always think you can get so much further if you can just keep your cool but it's not always easy.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
It worked! Your friend had a good idea, just settle in and don’t cause any fuss, just don’t leave!
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
23 May
@JudyEv
It just never pays to get angry over little stuff. Now if a child is being bullied or hurt, or someone is neglected, I may come completely unglued over it all...but not an everyday type of problem.
1 person likes this
@LovesEverybody (4569)
• United States
22 May
so sorry you had to go through that. I am glad you got your cable and the $20!
Hooray for you!
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
Sometimes, a smile and just waiting...works! Not cable but internet, but same concept.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
@LovesEverybody
There is almost always a fix for everything if we are patient and kind. I am glad your TV is working again!
1 person likes this
@LovesEverybody (4569)
• United States
22 May
@MarieCoyle Yes smile and wait. and patience helps! I need patience. My cable went out earlier this week but thank God it was only for the living room TV, I could still watch TV in my room
The living room TV is working again
1 person likes this
@kaylachan (69646)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
22 May
I am glad you didn't take their bs for an answer. Sometimes persistence pays off.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
It did. They probably didn't want a goofy smiling lady in their office chair all day long, and I wasn't leaving until I had a better answer than the next week fix!
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (471497)
• Switzerland
22 May
They are incompetent, it happened to us years ago, they disconnected our phone instead of the phone of someone who moved. And as this was not enough, when they reconnected us, they reconnected our phone on a "wrong number". It took two days to have this fixed.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I often think that some of these companies do not train their employees very well. They slap them out there and they are mostly just kids, and they have to learn as they go. Companies do not spend money on training like they used to!
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (471497)
• Switzerland
23 May
@MarieCoyle Companies want to spend the less money they can. They do not train workers anymore.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
24 May
@LadyDuck
A lot of stores here cannot even keep management at all. No one trains anyone, so they have no idea what they are even supposed to be doing.
1 person likes this
Have a great day.@just4him (317041)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
22 May
@MarieCoyle Thank you, Marie. It's been good. I understand completely. It's only right you get what you paid for.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I only wanted what I paid for, nothing more. And I couldn't wait a week. Son has tele-appointments and so do I, among other things. I may have mentioned that....but it's fixed! I hope your day is a good one, Valerie!
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
There are still a lot of good people out there. I am of the opinion that we attract them or chase them away, depending on our actions. If we are angry, no one is going to help us. If we are nice, more than likely someone will step up. I have never been a mad, angry person, but I have seen instances of what results from being that way, so I will stick to who I am.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I won't be mean or nasty about it, but I did want what I had already paid for! My idea worked, yay!
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (130218)
• Israel
22 May
@MarieCoyle
Good for you for getting it done and being persistent. I get frustrated with these call because they do not understand our situation and frankly do not care so I waste the calls and feel like not wanting to try and explain things and get people that do not care or do not understand so I do not want to call back. I have to try something and will wait to try it.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I try very hard to be kind and to be patient. But if I cannot understand the person that is supposed to be helping me, I have to try another way.
2 people like this
@LindaOHio (178568)
• United States
22 May
Good for you for standing your ground. I'm glad it worked out for you. Have a good day.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (178568)
• United States
23 May
@MarieCoyle Thank you very much.
You're welcome.
1 person likes this
@grenery8 (10592)
• Zagreb, Croatia (Hrvatska)
24 May
casually saying they turned you off your cable instead of your neighbour's, i think you casually answered them and acted according to that. way to go
. i am not sure would i be this calm but rising voices don't help, especially to us and our health.
. i am not sure would i be this calm but rising voices don't help, especially to us and our health.1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
24 May
Anger doesn't pay off...reasoning and being nice does, for the most part. It is more effective than being nasty, from what I have seen. After all, the people in the office were not the people who accidently disconnected my internet, it was a field worker for the company. Usually, the people in offices that we deal with to get help for problems, did NOT cause the problem itself, they are there to earn a living, and it's not fair to blame them.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
26 May
@grenery8
I just try not to take my frustration out on someone that didn’t cause the problem. I’ve walked that walk and it’s not fun to deal with angry people.
1 person likes this
@grenery8 (10592)
• Zagreb, Croatia (Hrvatska)
25 May
@MarieCoyle you react how you feel.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (160663)
• United States
22 May
Wow, I am impressed. You staged your own sit in. As someone else said, you are lucky in this day and age to have a local office.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
I guess I did.
I honestly didn't have but one hour, so if they hadn't helped me, I would have had to leave eventually. But I think I just acted all nonchalant about it, pretending they would get it fixed very shortly if I just waited it out...and my ploy worked! 
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
Oh, I acted sweet, I swear. Just determined to get my own way, haha!
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (106226)
• Marion, Ohio
22 May
Glad they got it fixed. They should have moved you right up since it was their fault
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
They were wonderful to me in getting it up and running again very quickly. Amazing what a peaceful attitude and a stupid smile will do to get attention! Thank you.
1 person likes this
@zainkhan121 (859)
• Pakistan
22 May
Dealing with internet service issues can be incredibly frustrating, especially when the problem is due to a mistake made by the service provider. Your experience with Mediacom highlights some of the common challenges, such as communication barriers with customer service representatives and the initial unavailability of technical support.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
22 May
The idea of routing all the calls to another country is not a good one. The companies do that to save money, as they pay the people in the other countries way, way less than they pay for the same job here in the US. So it's not fair to the people in those countries doing the job. Why is it worth less there, than it is here? Plus there is often the language barrier, I am not the only one who has a problem understanding them at times.
@MarieCoyle (37443)
•
23 May
This wasn't about the money. I paid the bill, they were not asking for extra money. It was about a big lag in service, and they arranged for it to be fixed quickly rather than wait a week.
