Comcast Bills Non-Customer $29 a Month for 13 Years of Cable Service She Never Got from Comcast

[geforceftw]

Well, my dad recieved a bill from Orange saying that he had to pay 50 EUR.He couldn't even remember having a contract with Orange so he called them...

They said this :

"Oh,the bill is from 1995!"

Really...what the fuck!

was it adjusted for inflation?

[Nineshadow]

was it adjusted for inflation?

Who cares?

It's long prescribed.

[dalekphalm]

I think this is my fault... Years ago, I cancelled my Comcast subscription, but when I plugged things in I was still getting my Cable even though I wasn't paying. I figured nobody was being hurt, and had already tried once to let Comcast know that I was still getting service without paying for it, so I kept using it...

But more seriously, I don't see why this is Comcast's fault. It's not their business if you subscribe to their service and don't use it, as long as you keep paying. This is a pretty extreme case, but I'm sure there are lots of people all over the place who simply forgot to cancel a subscription they don't want anymore, and it's not a cause for a refund if you buy something you don't want.

Except that she wasn't a direct subscriber... Her Condo had an agreement with Comcast at some point BEFORE October 4th, 2000, to provide residents with Comcast Cable services. On October 4th, 2000, the entire Condo switched to a different provider. These Condo agreements are generally exclusive, as in, she couldn't get Comcast Service even if she had wanted to.

 

Plus, she's a freaking 80+ year old lady. Can you really expect to hold her to the same expectations as a young person in their prime who has full knowledge of current technology? She probably doesn't even fully understand what Cable is, aside from "The thing that gives me TV".

 

Yes, she SHOULD have noticed the discrepancy, but I don't blame her for not. It was definitely 100% Comcast's error for continuing to bill her illegally. When that Condo service agreement was signed on October 4th, 2000, that would explicitly have ended any prior contracts, service agreements, or services with Comcast.

[martinrox1568]

Then what? The worse they could do to me is put me in prison where I get free food, education and the like. Oh no, such a punishment. :rolleyes:

 

Honestly though, they wouldn't scare me with their own lawsuit. The fact that I didn't ask for the services and never used them, and ever even had those services checked up on, would be more than enough to win the lawsuit. Unless the judge or whatever is paid off, then of course I'm screwed. lol

I don't know what education your gonna get in prison except dont drop the soap

[Albatross]

I don't know what education your gonna get in prison except dont drop the soap

 

Something similar is learned outside of prison as well.

[flibberdipper]

That's bullshit Comcast. They were more than likely aware of that, and they continued to bill her. Even though she should have noticed a little sooner... But she's older, so I'll giver her a break.

[That Norwegian Guy]

It's incredibly sad that a consumer issue like this has to go through courts or the TV news to get compensation in the US. If that happened in Norway they'd give a refund immediately upon contact or risk the consumer protection bureau to get involved  (which doesn't require court action) and threaten fines and even shutting down their service.

 

USA needs a proper Consumer Protection Bureau, and probably needs it more than any other country, given the extreme anti-culture in companies.

 

And I'm not talking about the Better Business Bureau, a half-assed 'complaints box' at best, a public customer derision outlet at worst.

[h3ll0]

It's incredibly sad that a consumer issue like this has to go through courts or the TV news to get compensation in the US. If that happened in Norway they'd give a refund immediately upon contact or risk the consumer protection bureau to get involved  (which doesn't require court action) and threaten fines and even shutting down their service.

 

USA needs a proper Consumer Protection Bureau, and probably needs it more than any other country, given the extreme anti-culture in companies.

 

And I'm not talking about the Better Business Bureau, a half-assed 'complaints box' at best, a public customer derision outlet at worst.

amen B)