Verizon DSL Customer Service

After three months of hell dealing with Verizon DSL customer service, I’ve come to some conclusions.

Problem Could Be Fixed Easily

If you’re Verizon DSL modem starts blinking, which means that you don’t have internet access, there’s a good chance that it’s something simple that you have to fix. Maybe it’s just a Network Setting or a loose cable. The Verizon Team helps you realize your problem and you’re back and running!

Mac User? Get Ready For A Longer Call

If you use a Mac instead of a PC, my advice to you is to tell them right away. Otherwise, you will be going through a series Verizon hardware troubleshooting which you’ll have to do all over again if you tell them later on that you’re on a Mac.

Technician Date Booked? Take A Half Day

If you’ve gone through the motions with the Verizon Tech Support and they insist on sending a technician to your house, be prepared to take a half day off from work. They book in 9:00 a.m. – Noon hours, or Noon – 5:00…If you want to do it on a Saturday, it’s 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. How convenient.

Technicians Are Barely Tech Savvy

You figure that the technician would be “in the loop” of what your problem is. Unfortunately, they have no idea what they’re stepping into. They are not notified of “the issue”, and you’ll have to re-explain the whole nine yards.

You’ll have to do the whole circus of unplugging and plugging in cables with them. Some of these techs are strictly hardware guys as well, and don’t even know how to enter a web site address into a browser. (Seriously, this has happened.)

It’s definitely a hand-holding experience. If you think you can just kick back and watch some “A-Team” reruns while the tech works away, you’re in for a surprise. The techs also seem to know absolutely nothing about Macs as well, and they often end up calling Apple to go through the motions.

Problem Gets Mysteriously Resolved Before Tech Arrives?

This is where it gets really insane and you start realizing that you have a reoccurring problem that has nothing to do with your setup or even anything within your home or apartment. This is when you realize that it’s on Verizon’s end.

So, the blinking light went solid, and all was good in Internet land. But the tech was still booked to come over. So, I kept the appointment because there still was obviously a problem. I hadn’t changed anything. Maybe the tech had to go out and climb on a telephone pole and adjust something. But when the tech arrived, he said that the “issue was resolved”, closed the issue, and said that there was nothing he could do.

Issue Closed…The Blinking Light Emerges Again!

About a week later, the the blinking light scenario happened again. When I got a hold of Verizon, they started to make me go through all of the goofy non-sense, like restarting my Mac etc. I told them that I had an issue in for this already and that I think it is a reoccurring problem. They then went on to explain that all issues get DELETED 48 hours after they are resolved! It’s as if it never happened to them.

What’s A Good Call Back Number In Case We Get Disconnected?

Be prepared to repeat your cell phone number often. Every single time that I call Verizon and they go into my account, they ask this question. Hmmm, maybe it’s the same call back number I gave you the last 10 times that I called? Wouldn’t they “enter it into the system”? I started having visions of the Verizon Customer Account software looking like a ColecoVision game.

“Reoccurring” Is Not In Verizon’s Vocabulary

So, if you end up with a reoccurring problem, be prepared to enter a world of pain. I had tech support agents remember me by the sound of my voice. A few days ago, I really had just about had it and decided was ready to switch to Comcast. Then I got a call from Verizon by an excited man that was thrilled to tell me that the problem had been solved, that it had been on their end all along. I couldn’t believe it. When I got home, I was in shock to see a steady green ready light. It has been 3 days now, and I’m still in shock.