8.12.2005

i have my first rogers cable experience

This is hilarious. But only because it ended well.

A month ago, I set up an appointment with Rogers for the day after we arrive. Since internet, VOIP phone and baseball all depend on cable, we wanted to get it going as soon as possible.

The Rogers representative was amazingly helpful and efficient, especially as compared with the dolts at Time Warner of New York City. She was also Canadian, and I find that it's very helpful to deal with local people when trying to Get Things Done. Everything went very smoothly and I was happy.

Recently we've been hashing through various decisions on what to bring with us, what to buy there, what to buy here and ship up there with the movers, etc. Boring but necessary details and decisions. Because of some of these, we decided to change the time of our cable appointment, to make it earlier in the day.

I called Rogers this morning.

There was no record of our August 31 appointment.

After some research, the representative - also extremely friendly and helpful - located the problem. The appointment was never scheduled for August 31. It was scheduled for August 8.

We are moving to xxx Street South. On August 7, Rogers disconnected cable service at xxx Street North, then showed up to connect "our" service on August 8. Except we weren't living there, and never will be. The good folks at xxx Street North lost their cable service and had to start all over!

Rogers supposedly "attempted to contact us," but we have voice mail and never got a call from them.

If I hadn't called to change the time of the appointment, come August 31 - the day after our 12-hour drive - we would have waited for cable to show up, only they never would have.

I'm finding this very amusing, but also very ominous. Toronto is not very different from New York in this respect. Here's I'm hoping they really do show up at our house on August 31.

23 comments:

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

At least you'll have cable...

Bell (the local phone company) has striking technicians. So, I may or may not have phone (and DSL) service when I move in.

Then, Rogers tells me they can't schedule an appointment to hook up cable because my new address shows up as "unservicable" in the computer, even though its right in the middle of the city and there's already cable wired up to the house. They say try calling again next week.

So, I guess I'll be communicating by smoke signals in my back yard while playing cards or something.

James Redekop said...

Don't worry too much. Everyone hates Rogers and Bell. My SO has worked for both of them, and has always been amazed that either of them can actually function at all. But everyone gets the service in the end.

laura k said...

Everyone here hates Time Warner, too. I assumed it was the same.

Luckily I'll never deal with Bell.

Anonymous said...

Cable monopolies are cable monopolies, whereever you go. Shaw's-hmmm. well, I've never had an experience that bad, no. I love that some random bystander had their cable cut off, though. That's the crowning touch.

Anonymous said...

Everyone hates all of the monopolies... Out west we are stuck with Telus for phone and Shaw for cable and I can't stand either... choice for internet is the lesser of 2 evils.

Peter

laura k said...

Yes, these monopolies are maddening.

Out west we are stuck with Telus for phone

You don't have a choice for phone service? That seems so odd to me. Is all of Canada like that?

Mossy Stone said...

Welcome to the Rogers monopoly. I suffered through missed appointments, poor customer service and negative-option billing and finally switched providers. Now, none of my money goes into Ted Rogers' coffers (if you exclude what I pay to go see the Argos) and I'm very happy about it.

The grass, as you may discover, isn't always greener.

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

You don't have a choice for phone service? That seems so odd to me. Is all of Canada like that?

No, there are other choices, at least in Ottawa. Sprint and Primus have local service, as do some others.

Note to all: Try (Calgary based) 3web for internet service. They provide both DSL and cable (as well as long distance), and for only $28/month, full speed (3mbps). Rogers and Bell were charging close to $50 for 3mbps DSL/Cable, and for $25 you could only get 128kbps "lite" service.

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

Here's the comparison list

I switched to 3web two years ago, and I subscribe to what's now called "Gold" level service (they only had the one level when I joined).

dualistic said...

Welcome to Toronto! You'll learn to have a love/hate relationship with Rogers like all Torontonians do. People try to avoid their tech support like the plague. *The plague*.

Pearl Pocock said...

Do keep your sense of humor with these services, I guarantee you'll need it.

As far as choosing what to bring and what to buy here new, I recommend you take a different path from us and buy all new here. Travel as lightly as possible. We are still thinning out unnecessary possetions and leaning to let go of things that just don't fit with our new situation here. Many days I'd like to put a match to it all.

Anonymous said...

L-girl,

In larger centres there are companies that now provide local residential service, however, in smaller communities like mine there is no choice. To give you an idea the only two cities in Alberta where you can get alternative service right now is Calgary and Edmonton (both about 1 million people) The incumbant carrier still have full control everywhere else. It is kinda like the US was back in the 60's after the Bell breakup and each area had a Baby Bell providing service. In our case most of the companies were crown corporations (companies owned by the Gov't) and in some provinces they still are (Saskatchewan, Manitoba) In Alberta AGT (Alberta Gov't Telephones) was sold off back in the late 80's or early 90's (I can't remember which) and become Telus, which aquired BCTel.

This is probably more info then you ever wanted but our system of phone access is significantly different then the US. This is also why our broadband is in general much more reliable (especially ADSL).

Peter

laura k said...

Peter: Actually, it's interesting, very different than the US.

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

I'm told Bell is off it's strike, so hopefully I'll get a connection on my expected date.

Even if I choose another local phone company, apparently its Bell who actually hooks the house up, so I have no alternatives.

What's it like in NYC?

laura k said...

Oops, where are my manners. Dualistic and Mossy Stone, welcome to wmtc. Are you new readers, or have you been lurking for a long time...?

laura k said...

I'm told Bell is off it's strike, so hopefully I'll get a connection on my expected date.

Oh, good news! That smoke signal bit didn't sound like too much fun. :)

Even if I choose another local phone company, apparently its Bell who actually hooks the house up, so I have no alternatives.

What's it like in NYC?


It's somewhat similar, in that Verizon owns the lines, and having alternative local service can be problematic. But all the companies offer local & long distance packages, and lots of people use them.

Of course, many people don't have land lines at all anymore. They either use cell phones only or have moved to VOIP service (like I did), through their cable or satellite provider, or through a separate VOIP company like Vonage.

So there are a lot of choices. Prices stay pretty low, but there are the predictable headaches with customer service and tech support. Everyone complains no matter what company they choose.

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

And they all got caught during the big blackout....

I don't own a cell phone, nor do I want one. That's an invitation for me to be perpetually on call at work.

As for VOIP, I don't make a lot of calls. I manage to ring up a whopping $4 in long distance charges each month. But that's probably because I'm a guy, and Madelayne's mom is a local call....

laura k said...

And they all got caught during the big blackout....

Well, no. I had cell phone service during the blackout, but not land line.

I don't own a cell phone, nor do I want one. That's an invitation for me to be perpetually on call at work.

Only if you give them the number.

I know what you mean, though. I resisted getting one for years, too. Now I hardly use it, but it's so convenient for certain things. For example, we never could have driven around Mississauga looking at apartments without it.

I didn't get VOIP because I make a lot of calls, although now that I'm moving the unlimited long distance will be nice. I just like having everything consolidated in one bill, and the price is unbeatable - $25 (USD) per month for unlimited everything. I also like all the neat features, like being able to have both a Toronto and a NYC phone number.

Kyle_From_Ottawa said...

Every so often, I think about getting a cell phone again.

But we had a cell phone between us before, on a pay-as-you-go plan, and we let it expire due to lack of use I'm always torn between the times where I really wish I had one on me, and the fact that its a monthly expense for an occasional convenience (they shortened the period between recharging the cards so much that it ends up cheaper being on a monthly plan).

However, did you know that in Canada, you get 911 service even on an expired cell phone? It's the law, but its something the phone company doesn't mention since so many people get a cell phone "just for emergencies".

laura k said...

The grass, as you may discover, isn't always greener.

Luckily I'm not moving to Canada for better cable service!

Folks, while I appreciate all the feedback, I'm been dealing with phone, internet and cable services at least as long as you all have. Rogers will take over where Time Warner is now, I have Vonage (VOIP) phone service, it will all suck, and it will all be manageable.

As far as choosing what to bring and what to buy here new, I recommend you take a different path from us and buy all new here. Travel as lightly as possible.

Um, no thanks. I haven't the slightest desire to do all that shopping, nor the money to do it with.

Our move is all booked. We're taking most things with us, and we'll buy some new things, too. We've pared down and thrown out or donated some things, but mostly, whatever we have, we need or want.

James Redekop said...

This is off-topic, but I can't find the old thread it belonged to... You remember the "You have to choose" bit? This cartoon addresses it nicely

mister anchovy said...

I am happy to say that I have avoided dealing with cable hell, by just saying no to cable......

laura k said...

James: good one. :)

Mr Anchovy: I know many people who prefer to do without. But for us, it's an easy choice.

No cable = no baseball. No baseball = not happy. Baseball + high-speed internet + phone = cable is a necessity.