RAGE!!!!!! That is all I can possibly say right now. I have a vein popping out of the side of my head. I am beet red with anger. I am superfly TNT right now. And it is all because of AT&T.
So we have AT&T home phone (copper), AT&T wireless, and have bundled our DIRECTV TV package into one account. Yesterday I came home from work to no dial tone. AT&T workers were in the area (we still have new houses being built in our neighborhood) and I’m pretty sure they did something to mess it up. Two things you need to know to understand this frustration: We have a hard phone line because we have it hardwired to our security system and it’s just safe to have one. And secondly, we have no wireless signal in our home.
I tried to submit a repair ticket online and was told that there is no account for that number. I was then redirected to start service at my home phone number. Then I tried going on to a live chat and the following happened:
Live Chat Transcript of AT&T Customer Service
Thank you for choosing AT&T. A representative will be with you shortly.
All operators are currently assisting others. Thanks for your patience. An operator will be with you shortly.
You are now chatting with Charlie.
Gregory Ng: Hi charlie
Charlie: Hi Gregory.
Charlie: It is my goal to provide you with excellent customer service and that at the end of this chat you will be Very Satisfied. How may I assist you today?
Charlie: In the event we get disconnected from this chat, may I please have a call back number where I can reach you?
Gregory Ng: I have a problem Charlie. I don’t need to log in, I just need to report that I have no dial tone on my phone. There were workers on my street today. I can’t call the support line obviously
Charlie: I apologize for the inconvenience you have experienced.
Charlie: I would like to get you in direct contact with a technical support expert for DSL service. I apologize that I do not have the necessary skills to assist you myself. Allow me a moment to connect you to an expert who will be able to assist you with your account. The agent will have access to all the information you have provided me already.
Gregory Ng: that is fine. please note it is just my home phone. i have no del service
Gregory Ng: DSL
Charlie: May I know do you have internet service with AT&T?
Gregory Ng: no. just home phone
Charlie: Please do not worry.
Charlie: Since you cannot call the department, they can set up a technician visit on the chat itself.
Charlie: Will that be okay?
Gregory Ng: sure.
Charlie: So, should I transfer your chat?
Gregory Ng: yes please
Charlie: Thank you.
Charlie: Please stay connected.
Gregory Ng: will do
Please wait while I transfer the chat to the appropriate group.
You are now chatting with Charlie.
Please wait while I transfer the chat to the appropriate group.
You are now chatting with Vivien.
Gregory Ng: Hi Vivien
Vivien: Hi.
Vivien: Thank you for contacting AT&T. My name is Vivien.
Vivien: I see that I am chatting with Gregory Ng and 919XXXXXXX is the number associated with your DSL/dial up account. Am I correct ?
Gregory Ng: yes
Vivien: Thank you for confirming the details, Gregory.
Vivien: Please provide me primary email address with domain names like att.net, sbcglobal.net, etc ?
Gregory Ng: i do not have that. I only have home phone with ATT
Gregory Ng: My problem is with my home phone connection. I do not have a dialtone
Vivien: We are from DSL technical support. As, you are North carolina, you need to contact our bell south technical support. Let me connect you to it.
Gregory Ng: thank you
Vivien: You’re welcome.
Please wait while I transfer the chat to the appropriate group.
You are now chatting with Annie .
Annie : In order to protect your private information, please provide me with a verification item from the list below.
* 3-digit customer code showing after your account number / telephone number
* Amount of your last payment or last bill amount
* Last four digits of the account holder’s Social Security Number
Annie : I’m sorry, I sent that by mistake.
Annie : Hi, how may I assist you today?
Annie : Hi Gregory .
Gregory Ng: Hi Annie, I have no dialtone. There were AT&T workers on my street today working on a new house and I haven’t had a dial tone since. I obviously can’t call the support line for help. Can you help me please?
Annie : Sure.
Annie : I can definitely help you with that.
Gregory Ng: thanks
Annie : You are welcome.
Annie : Currently I see you have a technical.I could transfer this chat to the dedicated technical team so that they would resolve the issue rightaway.
Annie : Before I transfer just to ensure do you have any other billing issues Gregory ?
Gregory Ng: what does a technical mean? And I didn’t have any billing issue to begin with just technological
Annie : The dial tone issue is related to a technical error, this is the reason why I were trying to transfer your chat to the technical team.
Annie : Since I am from the billing section I could not fix technical issues.
Gregory Ng: ah ok. sorry they transferred me to you Annie! I have no problems with billing at all!
Annie : I am sorry I could not help you directly.
Annie : I apologize for the inconvenience you have experienced.
Annie : I think the previous must have put you in the wrong queue.
Gregory Ng: Not surprising. You are the 3rd person I’ve been transferred to!
Annie : I apologize for the trouble of waiting so long Gregory.
Annie : I am sorry to keep you waiting.
Annie : Since you have no dial tone I suggest that chatting to technical team would be the best way to resolve the issue.
Annie : Could you allow me a moment while I transfer your chat to the tech team?
Gregory Ng: Whatever you feel is best is fine with me. My only sadness comes from the fact that someone as helpful as you can’t help me with my particular problem. Have a great evening Annie!
Annie : Thank you for those lovely words Gregory.
Annie : You too have a great evening.
Annie : One moment please.
Annie : Please remain connected.
Please wait while I transfer the chat to the appropriate group.
You are now chatting with Clarice.
Clarice: Thank you for contacting AT&T. My name is Clarice.
Gregory Ng: I Clarice
Gregory Ng: Hi Clarice
Clarice: I see that I’m chatting with Mr. Gregory Ng and you’ve provided 919XXXXXXX as the number associated with your DSL account. Is this correct?
Gregory Ng: It is not a DSL account. It is a home phone number only
Clarice: Good evening Mr. Ng. Thank you for verifying that information.
Clarice: You’re having technical issue with your landline phone right?
Gregory Ng: yes ma’am. No dial tone.
Clarice: Mr. Ng, you have reached the DSL Chat Technical Support group. We handle internet issue. The issue that you have with your phone is handled by Repairs Department. What I can do to help is to provide the contact and hours of operation information for Repair Team.
Phone number: 877-737-2478
Operating Hours: 24/7
Website: http://att.com/repair
Gregory Ng: Please do not disconnect me. You are the 3rd person I have been transferred to and I can’t call the number my phone doesn’t work
Gregory Ng: Can anyone over there transfer me to someone who handles home telephone lines?
Clarice: I understand Mr. Ng.
Clarice: POTS Repair actually dont have chat support. However, you may post your issue on their website.
Clarice: Website: http://att.com/repair
Gregory Ng: I have gone through that site already. It told me to go outside, disconnect the line, reconnect, try with a non-cordless phone etc. I’ve done all that. It is not an issue on my side. It just needs to be reported that the line is down on your end
Clarice: I understand Mr. Ng.
Clarice: I’m sorry that you’re having an issue with phone.
Clarice: It’s best you post the issue on the Internet so our Phones Repair Team will address your issue. If you have a friend who has a cellphone, you may also have them call Repair Team to repair your phone number having no dial tone.
Gregory Ng: Clarice, I know this isn’t your fault but this is very frustrating.
Clarice: I understand how you feel.
Clarice: I would love to help you Mr. Ng should I have the tools that can repair your phone.
Clarice: I’m sorry Repairs Team dont have chat support.
Gregory Ng: ok
Clarice: Mr. Ng, is there anything else that I can help you today?
Gregory Ng: Unfortunately not
Clarice: For quick answers, make the new AT&T Help site your first stop. Visit http//att.com/esupport .
Clarice: It has been a pleasure chatting with you today Mr. Ng. Thank you for choosing AT&T. You may click the “Close” button in the chat window to close this chat.
Today’s phone call
So this morning I called the phone number and was asked to type or say the number associated with the account. I typed in my home phone number and was met with “There is no account found associated with that number”. I then hit “0” repeatedly until it sent me to a different number. I was then told that there was “high call volume: please visit the website or call back later.” In defiance, I stayed on the line and hit “0” repeatedly until it rang again. This time, I was met with someone else who was very nice on the phone but then couldn’t pull up my number to run a test remotely because her computer was giving her problems.
I told her that there was an AT&T truck on my street again. Can you just dispatch them to fix what they probably broke? She told me someone would come out and fix it by 6:00 PM tomorrow! That’s right, I will be out of phone access for 3 days.
I asked about what type of refund I would get for down service and I was told I would see a refund in 2-3 billing cycles.
It’s not the people that are broken, it’s the experience
Every single person I have talked to or chatted with have been professional and courteous. And I am not even distraught about losing access to my phone for 3 days. It’s the principle and the negative customer experience that ticks me off.
AT&T probably hires the most patient people they can find and that certainly shows in the people I have interacted with. But the problem is they have invested in great people to make up for horrible decisions they have made with data integration, systems, and communication. I actually feel bad for the people that work there. They are scapegoats and I try to not take my anger out at them. AT&T needs to invest in their customer experience and that means systems and technology.
Phoneless
So here I am without a phone. I’ll get back that $3 60-90 days from now and they will think they “made-right”. All along, it is another example of a brand failing their customers and their employees.
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Gregory Ng
GOAL: Visit 100 National Parks as a family by 2020. Favorite Parks: Zion National Park, Mt Rainier National Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park
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