DIRECTV Deceiptful business practices, unethical, predatory Internet Nevada

Today I found out that direct TV helped themselves into my account and with draw monies.  When I called I was being treated as someone whose services were involuntarily disconnected.  What they failed to realize is that I called and disconnected my services.  I went up to 3 levels (supposedly) of supervisors and managers.  Each one regurgitating the same scripted response over and over.  On to the details.

I moved to Nevada from California a little over 1 year ago.  At which time DIRECTV charged me $150 to move my service from California to Nevada which included a new dish.   To me, in my ignorance of predatory and deceitful business tactics, it seemed logical considering I was crossing into a new state.  So I unknowingly complied.  Now, my lease expired in June of 2013, so we upgraded to a nicer home 3 city blocks west of our old house.  I call to move my services, and DIRECTV wants $250 to move my services.  Interesting.  Logical question was, Why?   When I moved across state it was only $150, and now 3 blocks down the way is $250? DIRECTV replies with, you get a brand new dish with your install, and you’re no longer liable for your old dish.  They also mention the $250 is with an added $500 discount.  Great googlie mooglie.  In the end, DIRECTV, without you realizing based on their little scripted verbiage, gets you to surrender your dish every time you move, and charge you for a new dish.  What they fail to tell you, is if you move to a new place that has a DirecTV dish hooked up, you can connect your receiver, reset it, and see if the dish is configured for the card in your receiver.  This is where it gets obviously deceitful.  The representatives at no time offer that as a solution, and go in for the big hit of $250, $150 or whatever they feel like charging at the time.  The only reason I was told that, was because I kept asking how was I no longer “liable” for a dish I was just told I paid for when I moved from California to Nevada, and why I was being forced to buy another one.  I say forced because there is a DIRECTV dish already here, with wires going into the house.  The last sucker released his “liability”, which in reality is abandoning the dish, and now what happens to that dish?  At which point the representative fires back with I will get a new dish, and don’t have to worry about that dish.  After several round abouts to deter me from figuring out me willingly abandoning my personal property, and buying the same thing again at a rate determined by them. They told me the solution as mentioned above, and that I don’t have to pay anything at all, and can continue enjoying my service.  That is the epitome of deceitful, and unethical business practices. 

I immediately cancelled my services, and was told I would incur an early termination fee, of which I complied.  I would rather pay a cancelation fee, than another dime towards what they call customer service.  I will not be held subject to these deceitful and unethical practices.  I was told that they would ship a box for me to send my receiver and control, along with a final bill. Good ridden, so I thought.  To this day, no box, no final bill, But I got a nice unauthorized withdraw from my account from these monsters.  Only to be told that the card I set up services with is able to be charged for my final bill.  To me that was music to my ears.  The card they drafted had nothing to do with this set up.  But of course, like everything else with these guys, it changed to, the last card you used to make a payment.  Of course, why wouldn’t it be that?  I told them this was not authorized and was told when I cancelled my service I was read disclosures that stated this.  Again, not the case, and immediately requested the recording retrieved and reviewed.  If a company is going to get you to agree to legal disclosures and grant access to people’s accounts, one would think this would be recorded.  Of course not, they can only be subpoenaed, if they even captured that recording.  Awesome.  If that does not wreak of shady, you’ve lost your sense of smell.  So in turn I have commenced the necessary processes to pursue these guys to the fullest extent of the law.  If they are operating legally, and these practices are condoned by my local government, they too will hear my discontent. I ask all of you to not stop at these avenues.  Keep going.  The only way this will ever stop is if WE THE PEOPLE put our foot down.

In reading there are a lot of people who are scammed into surrendering their physical property and incurring outrages fees and charges to replace it, when a far more economical, customer friendly, and time efficient solution is available, but is rarely disclosed.  DirecTV has proven to be desperate in their tactics, and can only show to what extent a company will go to stay profitable.  It saddens me to think of the thousands who willingly pay hundreds of dollars to discard their perfectly fine personal property.  In our current state of economic distress as a nation, how can we tolerate a company that prays on those it claims to provide service?