AT&T tresspasses on customer property, rips out wiring, says "we'll do it again"
State: FL
UPDATED 7/18/07
Executive summary
AT&T trespassed on my property, ripped working telephone wiring out of my home without my permission or knowledge while I was sitting in my bedroom, CS Manager said "we'll do it again" with full knowledge I was recording the call.
Long version
My telephone provider is Packet8 (similar to Vonage). I had no phone jacks, so I was plugging a cordless phone directly into their modem. The service was great, but degraded sharply when I walked any distance from the base. So I decided to hire AT&T to install phone jacks in my house.
I informed them I was not a customer; I simply wanted to pay them to wire a few jacks throughout the house and use other service. They informed me I would have to order service with them. So I directly asked if I had any contractual obligation to keep the service for any length of time; they said no. I then directly asked if I could cancel after the wiring was complete, then simply pay for the work performed (about $400); they said yes.
After the jacks were operational, I called AT&T to cancel the service, telling the story again. The rep was very nice and immediately removed dial tone as I requested. I then plugged in my modem to one of the jacks, and all phone jacks were working properly with Packet8 dial tone. I had the telephone service I wanted, and AT&T was getting $400 for two hours' work.
About two hours later, I heard several men talking outside my window, banging on my wall with tools. I walked outside and saw two AT&T vans. Three AT&T techs were ripping out the telephone wiring from my house, without my knowledge or consent. My jacks obviously no longer worked. I was furious.
I called customer service, and was on the phone over an hour before finally speaking to a supervisor. She responded that it is their practice to rip out any new wiring if the customer does not keep service for at least 60 days(!)... and that if I order service and cancel again, they would come and rip out the wiring again(!)
From a common sense perspective, I feel AT&T is not only wrong, but also insane. Instead of taking $400 for two hours' work, which I told them I wanted to pay them, they bankrolled three well-paid technicians to undo what could have been productive profitable work -- that is to say, they ripped out working telephone wiring from my home. Just bizarre, vindictive behavior.
My father is a contractor and electrician (I didn't ask him to do it because I wouldn't ask him to spend several hours in my crawlspace in the dead of Florida summer), and he says AT&T absolutely broke the law. If he wires a home and the customer fails to pay, he would be in huge trouble if he went to their home and ripped out the wiring he installed. In contrast, AT&T ripped out wiring without even having billed me yet. I feel AT&T should be in legal trouble for this practice.
UPDATE (7/18/07):
If I may say so: Packet8's customer service is amazing. I explained the situation, asking if they could send out a contractor. They said they did not do wiring. The level 1 CS rep suggested that I hire AT&T again, keep their service for 60 days so that I could keep the wiring, and that they would credit me for two months of Packet8 service so I wouldn't have to pay two phone bills at once. I was floored, but I turned it down; I didn't want to give AT&T a penny after what they did.
So, I hired a Comcast contractor to repair the wiring at a very reasonable price (< $150 for five jacks). Upon finishing this morning, he said, "someone really butchered those wires down there"... he said someone had cut all the wires at the floors and walls -- meaning they cut my wires in my house, not simply from the junction box. I asked, "Isn't that illegal?" The Comcast contractor who does this for a living said "Yes, because once it's there, it's your wiring." (Yes, Comcast is a "good guy" in the story... which speaks volumes for AT&T).
Mr. Comcast wrote a statement with his name and contractor number stating what he observed while fixing my wiring. I'm kicking myself a bit for this aggravation because the crawlspace had to have been accessible; I suppose that was my mistake.
I am going to file a complaint with the Public Services Commission and the State Attorney's Office; I will also send a letter to the corporate office as some have suggested. Thanks to everyone who helped and read.
State: FL
UPDATED 7/18/07
Executive summary
AT&T trespassed on my property, ripped working telephone wiring out of my home without my permission or knowledge while I was sitting in my bedroom, CS Manager said "we'll do it again" with full knowledge I was recording the call.
Long version
My telephone provider is Packet8 (similar to Vonage). I had no phone jacks, so I was plugging a cordless phone directly into their modem. The service was great, but degraded sharply when I walked any distance from the base. So I decided to hire AT&T to install phone jacks in my house.
I informed them I was not a customer; I simply wanted to pay them to wire a few jacks throughout the house and use other service. They informed me I would have to order service with them. So I directly asked if I had any contractual obligation to keep the service for any length of time; they said no. I then directly asked if I could cancel after the wiring was complete, then simply pay for the work performed (about $400); they said yes.
After the jacks were operational, I called AT&T to cancel the service, telling the story again. The rep was very nice and immediately removed dial tone as I requested. I then plugged in my modem to one of the jacks, and all phone jacks were working properly with Packet8 dial tone. I had the telephone service I wanted, and AT&T was getting $400 for two hours' work.
About two hours later, I heard several men talking outside my window, banging on my wall with tools. I walked outside and saw two AT&T vans. Three AT&T techs were ripping out the telephone wiring from my house, without my knowledge or consent. My jacks obviously no longer worked. I was furious.
I called customer service, and was on the phone over an hour before finally speaking to a supervisor. She responded that it is their practice to rip out any new wiring if the customer does not keep service for at least 60 days(!)... and that if I order service and cancel again, they would come and rip out the wiring again(!)
From a common sense perspective, I feel AT&T is not only wrong, but also insane. Instead of taking $400 for two hours' work, which I told them I wanted to pay them, they bankrolled three well-paid technicians to undo what could have been productive profitable work -- that is to say, they ripped out working telephone wiring from my home. Just bizarre, vindictive behavior.
My father is a contractor and electrician (I didn't ask him to do it because I wouldn't ask him to spend several hours in my crawlspace in the dead of Florida summer), and he says AT&T absolutely broke the law. If he wires a home and the customer fails to pay, he would be in huge trouble if he went to their home and ripped out the wiring he installed. In contrast, AT&T ripped out wiring without even having billed me yet. I feel AT&T should be in legal trouble for this practice.
UPDATE (7/18/07):
If I may say so: Packet8's customer service is amazing. I explained the situation, asking if they could send out a contractor. They said they did not do wiring. The level 1 CS rep suggested that I hire AT&T again, keep their service for 60 days so that I could keep the wiring, and that they would credit me for two months of Packet8 service so I wouldn't have to pay two phone bills at once. I was floored, but I turned it down; I didn't want to give AT&T a penny after what they did.
So, I hired a Comcast contractor to repair the wiring at a very reasonable price (< $150 for five jacks). Upon finishing this morning, he said, "someone really butchered those wires down there"... he said someone had cut all the wires at the floors and walls -- meaning they cut my wires in my house, not simply from the junction box. I asked, "Isn't that illegal?" The Comcast contractor who does this for a living said "Yes, because once it's there, it's your wiring." (Yes, Comcast is a "good guy" in the story... which speaks volumes for AT&T).
Mr. Comcast wrote a statement with his name and contractor number stating what he observed while fixing my wiring. I'm kicking myself a bit for this aggravation because the crawlspace had to have been accessible; I suppose that was my mistake.
I am going to file a complaint with the Public Services Commission and the State Attorney's Office; I will also send a letter to the corporate office as some have suggested. Thanks to everyone who helped and read.
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