[X]
Write ReviewJump to 
2
Helpful
Votes
Votes
Centurytel Complaint - Centurytel's refusal or inability to provide me internet services but keeps charging me for no service! - DSL 1.5Mbps/256K
DSL 1.5Mbps/256K - Complaint
PINEDALE, WYOMING -- I have been calling Centurytel's DSL Technical Support now for many months! I pay $106.07 each month for (what is already known as slow speeds per this day and age)a combined "package" that is to include my long distance calls & 1.5Mbps/256K internet services. Not only have I never gotten anywhere near the speed I pay for, but every night around 6-6:30, I watch my speeds go down as low as 100kbps...less than 10% of what I'm paying for! Each time I call, I'm told by Centurytel's Tech Support that the reason for these unacceptable speeds is that they have too many customers but not enough broadband width equipment & that, while they keep adding customers in my area, they cannot afford to add either any new equipment or even any more equipment! It's like trying to push a large PIG through a soda straw! They then tell me to call Customer Service. I call Customer Service who tells me that they cannot help me and that I need to call Tech Support...and so the "circle jerk" has been continuing for many months with no solutions or crediting to my account for the lack of service for which I am paying dearly! As if this wasn't bad enough, this past Sunday, 1/25/09, my service went down to 1.04kbps...that translates out to 1/1,500th of what I'm paying for! Again, I called Tech support who said they'd put in a work ticket for repair. On Monday, when I called, I was told the repair work ticket had been "closed". However, no repair had been done.
Nobody seemed to know why & no notations had been made. They assured me that they would open yet another repair work ticket and put my account to a priority status with the repair to be completed no later than Tuesday morning. No repair, no increase in DSL speed...and no access to the internet yet again on Tuesday...or again today, Wednesday!
So, after "living" on the phone for the past 3 days, I again call Centurytel's Tech Support today, Wednesday...only to be told yet again that the work repair order ticket(s) for the past 3 days had again been closed - with, of course, no repairs being done. I'm told also that no notations or explanations are given! The snotty young woman I speak with threatens to hang up on me because she says I'm am disrespecting her company! HELLO? No service, huge monthly bills, no repairs, no notations, or explanations and I'm sitting here 4 days with nothing, but she thinks I should be thanking her for this? She then tries to tell me it is MY computer or wireless router's problem..not theirs & that Centurytel does not support wireless routers - even though right on their own pre-recorded message, you get to hear that their "friendly technical support staff will be happy to help you with anything from your wireless router to your printer!) and,...even though I'm trying to tell her that nobody in my whole town can get online!
I also explain to this idiot that if it were MY computer or router's problem...or even their own DSL modem's problem within my home, how is it that I have not had any interruption to my email service...just my internet? (Centurytel uses different equipment for their internet lines vs. their email lines - thus, you can have problems at times with your email but access your internet fine...or, as in this case, the email speeds have been fine....just no internet or at best, intermittent internet speeds that fluctuate all over the place like a BB in a blender!) I also go round and round with Centurytel's customer service...who manages to accidentally "slip" and mention a monthly fee that is $10 LESS than what I am paying!
Come to find out, the company lowered it's monthly fee for my service, but failed to notify me of this pricing change (nor did they notify anyone else it seems in my town!). I finally get them to credit me a whole lousy $10...but they won't go back and credit me for their over charging for the previous months, nor will they credit me for no internet service! Again, they tell me that they cannot help me & redirect me back yet again to Tech Support...who, of course, tells me that yes, that work order from yesterday, has again been closed with no work or repairs done. When someone is finally helpful enough to actually talk to a repair person, they tell her that, yes, they know that there are widespread outages in my area for the past 4 or more days, but, it's "not their problem", so they just cancel out and close the work orders with no repairs being done! My mind is absolutely blown away by this!
Finally, a Tech Support supervisor calls me back and says that she has emailed one of these repair (or it should be renamed to "DIS-repair!) people & that she will call me back tomorrow...which will be day 5 of no service or at best, very slow service that can only be accessed after midnight....like I am doing now to be able to write this! I'm fed up and hamstrung! There are no other ISPs within 100 miles of me and Centurytel knows it! Also, we have no other phone company options either! I have just filed a complaint with the FCC online, and plan to file a complaint also with the Wyoming Attorney General's office tomorrow. If anyone knows of any other agencies, news agencies, or wherever, whomever, whatever...please let me know!!
Nobody seemed to know why & no notations had been made. They assured me that they would open yet another repair work ticket and put my account to a priority status with the repair to be completed no later than Tuesday morning. No repair, no increase in DSL speed...and no access to the internet yet again on Tuesday...or again today, Wednesday!
So, after "living" on the phone for the past 3 days, I again call Centurytel's Tech Support today, Wednesday...only to be told yet again that the work repair order ticket(s) for the past 3 days had again been closed - with, of course, no repairs being done. I'm told also that no notations or explanations are given! The snotty young woman I speak with threatens to hang up on me because she says I'm am disrespecting her company! HELLO? No service, huge monthly bills, no repairs, no notations, or explanations and I'm sitting here 4 days with nothing, but she thinks I should be thanking her for this? She then tries to tell me it is MY computer or wireless router's problem..not theirs & that Centurytel does not support wireless routers - even though right on their own pre-recorded message, you get to hear that their "friendly technical support staff will be happy to help you with anything from your wireless router to your printer!) and,...even though I'm trying to tell her that nobody in my whole town can get online!
I also explain to this idiot that if it were MY computer or router's problem...or even their own DSL modem's problem within my home, how is it that I have not had any interruption to my email service...just my internet? (Centurytel uses different equipment for their internet lines vs. their email lines - thus, you can have problems at times with your email but access your internet fine...or, as in this case, the email speeds have been fine....just no internet or at best, intermittent internet speeds that fluctuate all over the place like a BB in a blender!) I also go round and round with Centurytel's customer service...who manages to accidentally "slip" and mention a monthly fee that is $10 LESS than what I am paying!
Come to find out, the company lowered it's monthly fee for my service, but failed to notify me of this pricing change (nor did they notify anyone else it seems in my town!). I finally get them to credit me a whole lousy $10...but they won't go back and credit me for their over charging for the previous months, nor will they credit me for no internet service! Again, they tell me that they cannot help me & redirect me back yet again to Tech Support...who, of course, tells me that yes, that work order from yesterday, has again been closed with no work or repairs done. When someone is finally helpful enough to actually talk to a repair person, they tell her that, yes, they know that there are widespread outages in my area for the past 4 or more days, but, it's "not their problem", so they just cancel out and close the work orders with no repairs being done! My mind is absolutely blown away by this!
Finally, a Tech Support supervisor calls me back and says that she has emailed one of these repair (or it should be renamed to "DIS-repair!) people & that she will call me back tomorrow...which will be day 5 of no service or at best, very slow service that can only be accessed after midnight....like I am doing now to be able to write this! I'm fed up and hamstrung! There are no other ISPs within 100 miles of me and Centurytel knows it! Also, we have no other phone company options either! I have just filed a complaint with the FCC online, and plan to file a complaint also with the Wyoming Attorney General's office tomorrow. If anyone knows of any other agencies, news agencies, or wherever, whomever, whatever...please let me know!!
Comments:
Posted by cd1214 on 2009-03-07:
Let me start off by saying, I have no affiliation with Centurytel. I have had only 1 cable/internet provider and that is Time Warner, now Comcast. However to be fair it could still be your computer, modem or router. This sentence here is completely wrong:
"Centurytel uses different equipment for their internet lines vs. their email lines - thus, you can have problems at times with your email but access your internet fine...or, as in this case, the email speeds have been fine....just no internet or at best, intermittent internet speeds that fluctuate all over the place like a BB in a blender!"
For DSL, you have only one line. From the central office, the line goes into a DSLAM, and then out to your house. All communication will go over this line. So there is not a separate line for your email.
To test Centurytel's theory, the next time this happens do 2 things:
1) Go to Start -> Run -> type in "cmd" -> press Enter-> when the black box opens up type "ping www.google.com"
If there are no replies, the line is in need of repair. So you would need to call Tech Support for that. If there are replies then there is a bandwidth problem. So maybe we could look at the equipment you are using. Is your modem in full bridge mode? For routers, this is the best way to go. If it is not, then you need to bridge your modem and set your router to handle a PPPoE connection.
Another way to see would be to get into your modem's or router's firmware page and check the connection rates there. There is usually ping tests/latency checks there.
If your modem or router shows that the connection speed is 1500 KB/s then your equipment is at fault. However if it is not then call back Tech Support.
If your modem shows that the connection is at 1500KB/s then try to reset your tcp/ip stack and the winsock catalog. If you need to do that, reply to this post and I will tell you how.
Anywho, I hope this helps!
Ryan
"Centurytel uses different equipment for their internet lines vs. their email lines - thus, you can have problems at times with your email but access your internet fine...or, as in this case, the email speeds have been fine....just no internet or at best, intermittent internet speeds that fluctuate all over the place like a BB in a blender!"
For DSL, you have only one line. From the central office, the line goes into a DSLAM, and then out to your house. All communication will go over this line. So there is not a separate line for your email.
To test Centurytel's theory, the next time this happens do 2 things:
1) Go to Start -> Run -> type in "cmd" -> press Enter-> when the black box opens up type "ping www.google.com"
If there are no replies, the line is in need of repair. So you would need to call Tech Support for that. If there are replies then there is a bandwidth problem. So maybe we could look at the equipment you are using. Is your modem in full bridge mode? For routers, this is the best way to go. If it is not, then you need to bridge your modem and set your router to handle a PPPoE connection.
Another way to see would be to get into your modem's or router's firmware page and check the connection rates there. There is usually ping tests/latency checks there.
If your modem or router shows that the connection speed is 1500 KB/s then your equipment is at fault. However if it is not then call back Tech Support.
If your modem shows that the connection is at 1500KB/s then try to reset your tcp/ip stack and the winsock catalog. If you need to do that, reply to this post and I will tell you how.
Anywho, I hope this helps!
Ryan
Note: All comments are reviewed by a moderator before being published. Please be sure to read our guidelines before commenting.
Company Reps: Post your company response!
