Centurylink Don't buy what Centurylink is trying to sell you Nationwide

May of 2015 I decided to change my phone, internet and TV providers to a company that cost less than what I was currently paying. Unfortunately I had to "unbundle" my services since there was only one carrier in my area that offerred all three services. I chose to go with Centurylink for my phone and internet as I though they were cost effective (it was going to be $55.00 per month for phone and 10mbs internet) and seemed hungry enough to offer the kind of customer service that would make it worthwhile to put up with the challenges I anticipated going through a transition like thish.

And yes, there was a transition. I gave the information to Centurylink and my soon to be previous carrier to move (or "port") my phone number to Centurylink. As my due date came close I called Centurylink once a day to ensure that the order had been placed with the previous carrier to guarantee I wouldn't  lose service on my phone. In the meantime I received my router, via overnight, which I questioned. Why would they send me a router via overnight mail, certainly the technician who is installing my service could carry the .05 lb router into my house, right? Well the day of the installation came, the tech came (with another router in hand) and all went well, until my phone didn't work. Why? Because Centurylink had never put in the order to have my phone number moved to them.

At this point, I have two routers, a test phone number and my real phone number being promised to me to be   up and running in 5-7 business days. And within a week it was. Then came the real transition, I was charged $25.00 for the overnight of the router, I was charged $25.00 to expedite the move of my phone number, I was charged $7.00 late payment fee because in all of their delirious chargin frenzy they didn't get my bill out in time and by the time I had a chance to figure out what the heck I was being charged I was late, according to them.

I have to say, in the honeymoon period of our relationship, they were wonderful about the bill. They agreed I whouldn't be charged for the overnight/modem debaucle, the emergency port fee, they waived the rel port fee and the late payment. Phew!!

Then the next bill came and it was more of the same malarky. Half month charges prior to cutting over, full mnth charges that I had already paid for and full month charges in advance. I have worked for telecommunications companies for the whole of my adult life and I know the "charging you a month in advance" spiel. Verbatim. Exactly word for word, but not as a way to explain charges that happened prior to having service with you or for payments already received.

Again, I think we may have been in the waning stages of our honeymoon period as they credited me everything I argued about. And the next four months were wedded bliss. I was being charged $54.44 and I felt I got a great deal, and as such paid my bill on time like a good consumer should.

Then January, 2016 - the bill went up $10.00 (to be fair, $9.99 so $64.43)  I noticed that my discount had gone from $47.00/mo to $40.00/mo but quite frankly, I put it on the back burner, I'd never been late with a payment and I had questions but it was a week after Christmas. I never DREAMED the nightmare that was yet to come. January bill was due 2/01

Come February, I get a bill for $143.86. Which $64.43 that I was late,  plus a $14.00 late charge. So many things are wrong with this: The package discount was $40.00, not $47.00 which it had always been in the past. The late fee was $14.00 ($14.00 + 64.43 is $78.43 but...) but the bill showed $79.43 due, So I paid my past due January bill, my Feb bill was due 3/02.

It keeps going downhill from there, they continue to charge $15.00 for late fees that they claim are $14.00, my due date fluctuates from the 29th to the 2nd of any given month. In March they started charging $3.50 if you want to pay your bill online. I thought that's what companies want right? The last two times I called to throw myself on their mercy, they said what I expected since the time the started the $3.50 online charge is that they want everyone to AUTO-PAY and if I just would auto-pay all the reasons I had to dislike them would be taken care of.

But not really, I don't want to be subjected to AUTO-PAY when the bill is never due on the same date. I'll be honest here, I auto-pay my Amex Bill, my mortgage, my DISH bill and my VISA - I will not auto pay a bill when I don't know when the payment will be deducted. As well as not knowing when the price is going to change indiscriminate of the agreement we have.

So, what I've experienced was a total amatuer company doing installations, that since pumped up with AT&T/Direct TV blood don't care one iota about customer service or customer retention for Centurylink is definitely the lowest company on the AT&T DirectTV Totem pole. It saddens me that the people I originally dealt with that were so great with their customer service skills have either been replaced or been trained to treat customers like a neccessary evil.

I have not come into contact with one customer service rep since the initial installation that could give one rat's behind about the care of their customer.