Image courtesy of http://www.thepickiesteater.net/2014/01/skycable-just-way-you-want-it.html
My cable TV had intermittent
signal during the first week of October until it finally gave up and went dead last
October 7. I didn’t bother calling my provider since my experience with their
service led me to believe that it should be up and working again after a day or
two. On the third day I tried troubleshooting the issue myself, having a 5-year
background on technical support, but after going through the initial steps I
knew I couldn’t get it back up.
I sent an email on October 10 asking
for a technician to be dispatched to check my service and was given a window of
three calendar days. Almost a week had passed and no one had gone out to check
my cable TV service. As any customer would do, I sent a follow-up email and tweeted
to get answers. I thought it was just a case of delay as I found out that a lot
of areas were experiencing major problems. I didn’t know I was about to go
through an early Halloween treat, my own Horror rollercoaster ride courtesy of
Sky Cable.
I was given two different reasons.
Their Twitter team said my number was inaccessible, and was asking for another
contact number. It was a lousy excuse. I never turn my cell phone off, and my
cellular service is strong. There is NO WAY I couldn’t be reached at any given
time of the day. But being an understanding customer, I gave an alternate
contact number.
On October 17 I was given another schedule for the technician dispatch. No one arrived as usual. I really didn't understand what was taking so long to get someone out.
I sent another follow-up email. Their response shocked me. I almost lost it at that point. For the second time they were asking for landmarks so they could locate my area.
It was already the 25th when I received a call from customer service asking me to fetch the technicians at the landmark I provided. I asked the representative how I could identify their guys. His response: "naka-motor po ata sila" (I think they're riding a motorcycle) followed by a long pause. Don't get me wrong, I know they are in blue uniforms and would come in a van with the company's logo on the side. Yes, Sky Cable hires 3rd-party technician service. But that question shouldn't be that hard to answer. I think this just proves how much their frontliners lacked basic knowledge of their own SOPs.
The technician found out that the cable running from my house was disconnected from the port in the light post. That is where all the connections in our block stem out. I asked the technician what took them so long to get dispatched. He showed me a copy of his work order and it lacked the name of my subdivision. No wonder they were having a hard time locating my residence. Out of the numerous e-mail exchanges and tweets, no one even bothered looking at the work order to verify if the address is correct!!! I also found out that the technicians don't have the ability to call cellular phones because they carry mobile landline. If that's the case, why did their Twitter team say that my number is inaccessible the first time I made a follow-up? Not all subscribers may have landline, especially if they don't find the need for having one.
I don't turn my TV on that often, but when I do I would like to actually be able to watch something. It was a simple issue that required a simple solution. The length of time I had to wait to get my cable service up and running wasn't justifiable.
Do you have a similar experience with this company? Let me know down in the comments! I would love to hear your story.
