Mami Drama

I am very proud of myself. Those of you who know me (ok, everyone who reads this) know that I have, umm, issues with authority and customer service people. I am incredibly insecure on the phone, and not because I’m deef…because I am inarticulate. My throat gets a strangle lock on it and I cannot clarify what I need. This mostly happens when I am upset but not really angry. (Angry is a whole ‘nother ballgame.) If I have a problem with a company, it is difficult for me to get to a positive resolution.

Well, I did it! Today I finally dealt with an issue in a calm (okay, slightly irritated) manner. A few months ago a representative from my phone company called to try & talk me into a new service. Basically it was the same service I already had with a few upgrades for a far lower monthly rate. I clarified 3 times with him that it was the same service for a lower monthly charge with no hidden extras, & the only caveat was a two-year commitment on my part. Part of me was thinking, “I’m asking for guarantees from a telemarketer, what do I really expect?” and I decided that they would probably charge a change fee, which I could live with, considering I’d be saving around $40-$80 a month all told.

Yeah, that’s so not what happened. I waited 2 months just verify the consistency of my new bill, and sure enough, I was being charged $10-$30 MORE a month than previously. I finally called them today and got some song-and-dance about what my rate package was and what my service charges were and how I had evidently misunderstood what I was told and that I was basically a slacker for having waited 2 months before I called.

I told the gal that that’s not what I had been promised, and that I had clarified my understanding of the new charges THREE times and had been assured that, yes, my rate was now significantly lower and that that was my full monthly charge. She continued to basically call me an idiot in very polite terms. Then I pulled out my aces. The first was that I REFUSE to pay the rate they were now charging me & that I would cancel my service before I allowed that to happen. The big gun, tho, was that I had a flyer sitting in front of me that had the rate-for-service I’d ordered, & yes, the price was exactly what I’d been quoted.

She put me on hold (at this point I’d been on the phone for TWENTY-SEVEN flipping minutes)  and when she came back, basically told me the original agent had “mistyped” and I was getting the new rate, after all. I verified the price-for service, then asked if it was retro-active. She said she was taking care of that as we spoke. I thanked her profusely, because her job sucks, and told her I would pay my bill online after everything was updated.

‘Cuz I’ll be damned if I’ll take her word for it:) But bottom line, I have both a local number and a number to use for long-distance, and I am (supposedly) paying a far, far lower rate than ever before. & I did it all by myself! YAY for me!!