It’s been a long few years of Spectrum Internet service, but it was the only internet available at our house. Spotty connections, not strong enough for our 1300 sq. ft. house, and a randomly but consistently increasing monthly bill. But only when I called to terminate our account was I actually offered help, despite me reaching out before.
Too little, too late for me, but I learned something about the department structure that might help with your account issues!
The Dreaded Call
When AT&T Fiber moved to the neighborhood, we jumped fast. Higher speeds, less expensive monthly bill, and (hopefully) more reliable connections. And when you make that internet service provider change, you have to make the dreaded call — the cancel service call.
Much to my surprise, I was immediately connected to the most pleasant phone customer service rep I’ve ever dealt with. I was frank about my reasons for leaving, stated that we already signed the new contract with AT&T, and that we wanted to terminate our account immediately. We chatted for a minute about my frustrations, with me acknowledging that I knew it wasn’t her, and then she let me in on a secret. There are two customer service departments at Spectrum — one is sales, and the other is retention.
Those multiple times in the last two years that I’ve called about my increased rate, I was connected to the sales department. Being in sales, their only job is to sell. Have customers add TV and cell packages to their internet service. Increase upload rates. Anything that is more money, but their ability to add promotions and help decrease or maintain your bill is limited. The answer was always, “there’s nothing we can do.” And since Spectrum held the internet monopoly in our neighborhood, we had to accept.
Now the retention department is the group you want to speak with. Their entire goal is to keep you as a customer. If you’re actively looking to cancel your account, they get involved. They are given extra promotions to offer, and can help you lower your monthly rate. You just have to show you are willing to quit them entirely. My mind was made up, but she still shared the promotions she was allowed to offer. $20 off my monthly rate. Free mobile phone lines. Waived router rental fees. And more. Too little, too late for me, as the AT&T installer was walking around our house.
Anyway, to sum up, get to the retention department. Be okay with actually dropping Specturm as an internet provider. That seems to be the only way to get them to act towards your benefit. If they had responded with any offer or help when I called previously, showing they actually listened, we would still be their customers. But when you feel taken advantage of, and a better option comes by, goodbye Spectrum! No questions asked.
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