Latest Cox bait-and-switch? (Phoenix: rental, insurance, house)

[Magnum Mike]

Originally Posted by Bummer

I feel your pain, Exit . . .

Cox has proven time and time again, they are the SLEAZIEST and MOST UNETHICAL company I have ever had dealings with. Literally the only company I feel the need to scrutinize their bill each and every month prior to submitting payment.

As soon as I am able to locate a qualified Antenna Installer, I plan to drop them and just realigned my TV Watching Habits.

Good Luck with your dealings with The Crooked Monopoly.

I was a subscriber to their cable TV since the 1980s, long before they became Cox Communications, but it wasn't until just 3 years ago when I dropped them because of their sleazy ways of doing business and their rates. I just didn't see a reason to pay the amount they were asking for their cable TV, and like I mentioned in the previous post, I only watch maybe 2 or 3 channels for not more than 5 hours per week. I have Roku with Sling TV and I only pay about $25 per month, which I'll probably get rid of also since TV programs are getting boring these days.

If I wanted to watch TV, I would just watch one of the movies on DVD/Blu-Ray I have or rent one.

[Magnum Mike]

Originally Posted by KurtAZ

Unfortunately...I feel you. My latest run in with Cox was 100% an incompetent "customer service" person that completely screwed up my accounts and service. I dumped them and went with CenturyLink (data only) but man this service is slow. Supposed to be getting 80Mb/s (bonded ADSL) but I am lucky to see 50Mb/s. Really miss my Gigablast...but at least we cut out the TV portion of any of the services.

Cox internet uses broadband internet connections of different tiers and it is faster than Century Link's "High Speed" internet, which is very slow.

A few years ago my parents dumped Cox and went to Century Link for their TV and internet but it wasn't too long after that their satellite TV rates became ridiculously high I think it was close to $200 per month, just for TV.

[madison999]

We had $100 per month internet only.

Started getting overage charges so upgraded to gigaboast for $150. Roommate moves out, use goes down, call to go back to old plan (like they said we could), are told it's now only $85, $140 and $150 plans.

I hate cox

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

I went back and looked at the mailer I received. Sure enough, there was some fine print at the bottom -- so small that my half-century-old eyes literally had to squint to read it. The text says something like "offer available only to current Advanced TV subscribers."

I'll accept a small sliver of responsibility for not getting out a magnifying glass to read every word on the mailer. Nevertheless, there are so many things Cox did to compound this situation:

-- They should have sent the mailer only to current Advanced TV subscribers, not customers like me who have bare bones channel packages.

-- When my order for an equipment swap came in, someone should have noticed that I didn't have the required channel package and then contacted me to see what I wanted to do. Instead, someone at Cox made a convenient assumption that I also wanted more channels.

-- When my order for new channels was cancelled, the representative should have also cancelled my equipment shipment.

After arguing with Cox representatives on the phone yesterday, I finally got someone to agree to send me a prepaid mailing box for return shipment of the Contour box on the way to my house. I'm thinking, however, that it may be better for me to return the box in person to a Cox store, as much as that feels like a trip to the DMV. At least that way I'll have a receipt to document the return of the equipment.

I am guessing they sent it to you specifically because you have the "bare bones" option. They WANT to upgrade customers like you! And even if you got the new equiptment and realized after the fact that you now have more channels you don't want to pay for, they are hoping you will be so dazzled by the technology and new choices you'll just keep it.

Traditional cable TV is dying, and they are trying everything they can.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by ElleTea

I am guessing they sent it to you specifically because you have the "bare bones" option. They WANT to upgrade customers like you! And even if you got the new equiptment and realized after the fact that you now have more channels you don't want to pay for, they are hoping you will be so dazzled by the technology and new choices you'll just keep it.

Traditional cable TV is dying, and they are trying everything they can.

Sadly, it wouldn't surprise me if Cox were deliberately embracing such an unethical approach to doing business. Cox talks a lot about ethics:

http://www.cox.com/wcm/en/aboutus/da...excellence.pdf

...but the reality of the company's business practices seems quite different.

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by madison999

We had $100 per month internet only.

Started getting overage charges so upgraded to gigaboast for $150. Roommate moves out, use goes down, call to go back to old plan (like they said we could), are told it's now only $85, $140 and $150 plans.

I hate cox

Might as well get the bundle at $150. I was paying $160 for Cable, TV, Phone (that I don't even have), with all the equipment, some 100 channels, the movie channels, and a sports package.



Although that jumped to $180 last month and after complaining to Cox they told me that any changes to my plan would increase that price even more.


By far my least favorite company to deal with in Phoenix.

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

Sadly, it wouldn't surprise me if Cox were deliberately embracing such an unethical approach to doing business. Cox talks a lot about ethics:

http://www.cox.com/wcm/en/aboutus/da...excellence.pdf

...but the reality of the company's business practices seems quite different.

I don't think trying to get people to upgrade is really unethical if the details are listed on the offer, no matter how small the print. Sneaky? Yes. But not unethical. Unfortunately you have to do your due dilligence and make sure you know ALL of the terms before accepting such an offer.

[man4857]

Originally Posted by madison999

We had $100 per month internet only.

Started getting overage charges so upgraded to gigaboast for $150. Roommate moves out, use goes down, call to go back to old plan (like they said we could), are told it's now only $85, $140 and $150 plans.

I hate cox

$100/mo for Internet sounds ridiculous. Right now I'm paying $40/mo for Internet through Cox though granted it's only 30 mbps but I'm dreading the renewal coming next month. Gave them a call this past weekend and they said, I could get the 100mbps plan for $45/mo for another year.

[Ztonyg]

I'm paying $76/mo for Internet through Cox at 30 mbps.

Every year they double my rate and $76 is the best we could do after bartering with them.

I really hate them but they're the only option in my neighborhood (as CenturyLink is beyond slow).

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by ElleTea

I don't think trying to get people to upgrade is really unethical if the details are listed on the offer, no matter how small the print. Sneaky? Yes. But not unethical. Unfortunately you have to do your due dilligence and make sure you know ALL of the terms before accepting such an offer.

They weren't listed. Yes, there was fine print saying that the offer was available only to Advanced TV subscribers, but nothing suggesting that an order labeled by Cox innocently as an "equipment swap" would be construed as an agreement to add more channels at a cost of more than $50 per month. The ethical action for Cox to take would have been to verify I wanted to add the additional channels needed for the Contour box.