I was trying to get a faster internet connection and my husband got tired of hearing me chew out AOL so he and my son decided to go with Dish Internet and Vonage. To my surprise, I've been through more problems in one day than I had in the 69 years before I started dealing with those companies.
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I am so sorry you had all these problems. I found out about vonage when it cost me almost $90 to opt out of it. I don't have any experience with Dish internet but I sure have with Dish TV. After being a user for over 5 years, my daughter moved into town where cable was available. In trying to cancel the Dish contract she was informed she would be charged almost $200. This of course was absurb and was settled only after a conversation with their lawyer.
Sorry to know you had all those problems and expenses...
- Document everything...
Try joining and posting this scenario at www.ClarkHoward.com ...
Also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Comission... www.FTC.gov i think...
You can also try your local Consumer Affairs office for filing a complaint...
FREE means free...
We tried Vonage for a month and had no problems with the service. We then found that Viatalk had a local number, so that's why we switched. We weren't charged a cancellation fee by Vonage, and we've been happy with Viatalk. We pay a grand total of around $80 for basic cable, internet, and all our phone service--and we make international calls to my husband's family in Ecuador on a regular basis. (Our internet and cable is through Charter.)
Here's a link that says there shouldn't be a cancellation fee if you cancel in time and return the equipment to Vonage.
vonage.com/
I'm sorry you had a bad experience...but I have to wonder if maybe the lesson here is to do your homework before signing up for something new and different from what you are used to so you know what to expect and what other services you need. Viatalk works great for us, in our situation, but it may not be the best for everybody. But just because this type of phone service doesn't work for one person, that doesn't meant it's bad all around.
I think these types of phone services are an excellent way to save money for many families. We used to pay $85 for phone service alone, but by learning about new options, we found Viatalk to be more affordable and just as reliable.
"FREE means free..."
I always question a "free" offer. I always read the fine print. There's usually some sort of catch. "Free" usually means, "Free as long as you cancel in time."
I always find out HOW to get the item, service, or whatever for free before signing up so I usually only have myself to blame if I don't follow through.
It's not really a good idea to sign up for every free offer, thinking "free means free." You should always find out what you're getting into first, not wait until later and then try to argue with the company and wonder why you had to pay them.
vonage.com/
This link to the Vonage website is where they explain the type of internet service you need for Vonage to work.
You said they didn't mention the type of service needed, but actually, they do.
vonage.com/
This link to the Vonage website is where they explain the type of internet service you need for Vonage to work.
You said they didn't mention the type of service needed, but actually, they do.
ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Vonage....NO WAY! We tried them....good luck getting rid of them! One little tidbit of knowledge....make sure your internet connection is fast enough...they don't check it.
We have DSL, but are in an area where it is hit or miss. It works fine for us for an internet connection, but not so when Vonage was added. Nothing but problem, after problem. (We swear it messed up 2 brand new phones too.) After 3 months we finally decided we had had enough of this...we got where we dreaded to hear the phone ring as the reception/quality was AWFUL! Our DSL connection apparently was not strong/fast enough to support Vonage....they didn't/don't check it, and we certainly didn't have a clue. Trying to cancel Vonage was almost impossible.
They were eager to sign me up over the phone. Not thinking I signed up using my husband's name, and they never, ever questioned that. (Any other phone service I have gone through in the past requires the service to be put in the person's name that is ordering it.) This should have been my first clue that there was going to be a problem. When it came time to cancel, I couldn't cancel it even though I was the one who signed up for it. We went around and around with Vonage about this.
The original set up installing Vonage is not all that easy, although Vonage claims it is. (Another thing that throws a monkey wrench in the problem was having cordless phones.) My hubby is very educated in the phone line/electrical, area and he thought it was a bugger.
Vonage directs most contact with them to over the internet...some of that is fine, some not. When talking to them on the phone, good luck understanding them...most were not English speaking/understanding customer service agents.
We cancelled almost 5 months ago (yes, the hubby had to call and get his fill of their customer service, their policies, etc to be able to cancel) and we are still dealing with them.
We had to pay a fairly large amount of money to cancel our acct. If they would have checked our speed, or at least told us how to check our speed, we wouldn't have had to go through all of this crap.
Vonage has got themselves covered for any and all situations....they are going to get their money....you may not get their service though.
Buyers beware!
Post this info on
www.epinion.com
it'll be a wake up call to others.
I don't have Dish but I do have cable. I don't have Vonage, but I do have Lingo. Lingo is the same thing but doesn't advertise as much and because of that didn't grow to fast and to big to handle it's customers. I've had Lingo for four years and the one time I had a problem, I called customer support and they fixed it immediately by sending me a new modem. I highly recommend Lingo. It's been great. I can call anywhere for free and it doesn't cost as much per month as Vonage.
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