***Charter Communications Sucks Big Cack***

[Mazinger Z]

This is from my post on (http://www.pissedconsumer.com)

http://charter-communications-san-ga...816131718.html

Please read if you care about business ethics and morals in general. Companies like this should be BANNED.

Dear Consumers,

We have been customers of Charter Communications here in Southern California (San Gabriel Valley) for about 8 years. From as early as I can remember, we have NOT been getting our promised (advertised) internet connection speed.

We've had Charter technicians come to our home numerous times (so many times I can't even count - 8 years worth of visits) and they STILL have not solved the problem.

Last year we downgraded our service from 10Mb download to 5Mb download because we were not getting anywhere close to 10Mb. This was okay and we were decently happy with our connection speed.

But recently, we upgraded our TV to HDTV and thus got their HD service. As a "value package" we were promised numerous channels on HD, Charter telephone and 10Mb download for about $150 a month (which... of course was substantially higher than the price they promised us when I first called in but more on that later...)

Now, a couple of times a day, we would actually LOSE our connection and speeds are sometimes so low I would rather have 56k!!!

Again, we called in for a technician to come in and "look" at the problem (the techs are actually cool because some are honest with us why the speed is so slow and why it's probably NOT possible for them to fix it).

This time (after 8 freaking years!) the Tech told us that because of the type of neighborhood we live in (not the most affluent) Charter was not willing to install the necessary components to handle the amount of users in our area. This Tech was outsourced so it's his part time job and that was why he was honest with us! Then I ask you, why would a company as big as Charter offer a service they cannot provide? Simple. Consumer Fraud!!!

We have filed NUMEROUS complaints with the BBB and still... nothing. We are planning to downgrade to the 5Mb service once again and get our money back for the service we did not receive for the past month.

As for the "value package" - when I first called in to upgrade our HDTV service, I was adamant about getting the "correct price" up front. The lady told me, with the HD sevice, the new box and the new channels it would only cost us an extra $15/month. I was very surprised at how cheap it was (and according to Murphy's Laws)... I asked some questions.

What are the hidden costs?

What other fees do we have to pay?

What are the rental fees for the equipment?

What is the install fee?

What are the reoccurring service fees?

She said, install is a one time fee of $30. I said okay that's fine. How much extra over our current monthly bill do we pay then? She said, "$15". Okay then, I did what I could to find out all of the information and told her to sign me up.

(Not) Surprisingly, when we got the bill, we were charged over $80 over our current monthly bill! Minus the $30 for the install it leaves $50 (this was before we 'upgraded' to the 10Mb) for the HD service which we were promised at $15! That's a $35 difference.

WTF... I called in once again and the rep told me there is this fee, that fee, you have 3 rental boxes (but only 1 HD box), remote control, cable service fee, HD channel fee blah blah so on so on...

I haggled with him and he took off $20. I was sick of this crap and said FINE. Whatever. Charter *** and if I had a choice I would NOT choose you. They have a monopoly over this area so what can we do? Use 56k? Use DSL? Return to the dark ages without internet? LOL...

Now, I have to copy and paste this whole thing in case my connection gets lost. I'm hoping another company (like Cox or Time Warner) would just buy out Charter and put them out of their misery. Thank you for reading this.

Signed,

Sick of crappy consumer fraud from "Charter Communications" in San Gabriel Valley.

[PFunk124]

Check into alternative routes. Such as, Direct TV, DSL, T1. Their not the only company to use. GL on troubleshooting the issue.

[BornSlippyZ]

I guess I'll keep my dish when I move to Rancho Cucamonga.