Charter Communications Charter Needs to Be Fined or Shut DOWN Roxboro Nationwide

The cable account was past due and service was interrupted the morning of 9/7/08. I called Charter Communications, paid the past due amount using my VISA debit card and was given a confirmation number. Our service was restored before I ended my call. In subsequent days, we have been contacted by Charter about the acount being delinquent. On each occasion we told them of the transaction on 9/7 and provided them with the confirmation number.

On 9/11, we were contacted again by the local office to provide evidence of our payment. ONCE AGAIN, we gave them the confirmation number along with our assertion that our service could only have been restored by someone who represented the company and restored it upon a successfully completed transaction. Additionally, I visited the local office in person, spoke with persons named Candace and Christy, who informed me that while the system documentation shows that I called on 9/7 and reported a service interruption, there is no record of payment being received. I requested that they enter my confirmation number to verify the transaction; they stated that they had no way of doing it. (What, then, is the purpose of a confirmation number if it is not to CONFIRM payment?)

They did state that codes rather than names are assigned to company reps who enter notes into the account. I inquired as to why the code associated with the man with whom I spoke on 9/7 had not been tracked and why he had not been questioned as to how he produced a confirmation number without a financial transaction having been conducted. Christy had no explanation, but assured me that she had contacted her supervisor, Gloria Surles and the matter is being examined.

As of today, 9/13, there has been no activity on my checking account related to this transaction. I am closely monitoring it.

I fully expect this matter to be investigated. Our service is scheduled to be interrupted again on 9/16, but I am not comfortable making additional payments until this matter is resolved and action is taken against the responsible--or more fittingly, IRRESPONSIBLE party(ies) who mishandled this transaction, failed to make accurate documentation, and issued a confirmation number of which validity cannot be confirmed or denied by the other persons to whom I've spoken within the company.

Furious in nc
Roxboro, North Carolina
U.S.A.