Optimum — Local services in Cabot

Today is a day I have looked forward to since June of 2022. Today is the day I’ve returned my equipment to Optimum / Suddenlink and have cancelled my service.

This started last year when I changed my credit card in their auto pay system due to some fraud I experienced (unrelated to Optimum / Suddenlink). Despite updating my card in their auto pay system, one morning the internet stops working. I call and (after plenty of waiting…you know the drill) they tell me my service is disconnected for non payment.

I was surprised because my new card was in the autopay system. They tell me that I was supposed to pay manually because the update can take 30 days, despite it being on my account. In order to restore my service, I would have to pay the bill and a late fee.

I went to the local store and spoke with actual human beings. I explained the situation and they would not budge. I was glad to pay my bill but the late fee seemed inappropriate, as they had my valid card on file in autopay. I explained that I have been a customer since 2011, but if they insisted on the late fee I would leave them as soon as possible. They insisted on the late fee. I said, “Ok, I have to have my internet. I’ll pay it because I have to.” The lady then asked me, “Would you like to pay with the card we have on file?”

Seriously.

Ok, enjoy your $10.00.

This isn’t the only thing. The cable in the picture was taken on June 27, 2022. It had been laying on the ground for at least one month prior to the photo, maybe longer. That cable is still laying unburied in my yard on May 25, 2023. I’ve been mowing and weed eating around it despite multiple calls and requests for it to be buried for a year now.

When I called to begin the cancellation process they first offered to reduce my bill from $144.29 per month down to $100.00. When I told them that I still wanted to disconnect they went down to $60.00 per month and two $40.00 credits. Even when trying to leave, Optimum tries to deceive. If they were serious about keeping my business, why not give me their best deal up front instead of fishing to keep the most money. Oh, and don’t expect any service you don’t use to be prorated back to you. They’re keeping that money.

My service has been terrible, customer service has been terrible, and their business practices are disappointing.

Today is a good good day! Their equipment is returned, I’m on Connect2First / First Electric Fiber, my bill is lower, and my speeds are faster.

Good...

I have to share the horrible experience I have had with this company. I contacted Optimum on June 24th and spoke to a representative who said his name was Tunde A. I explained to him that I would be moving and would like to have my service transferred to my new address on Saturday 07/01. During the contact, the rep was asking me a lot of questions where the information should have been right in front of him. I let him know I did not feel secure because he did not seem to know what he was doing. He assured me that he did and that he would start my service at the new address as scheduled and have it disconnected at my old address on 07/02. I still didn't feel right about it and vowed to call back on Monday to be sure it was right. AR experienced severe storms in 06/25 which left me with no power until today. I get home from staying in a hotel for days & my Internet is not working. I contact the company & the automated system confirms my fear indicating my service was disconnected. I contact Optum and requested a supervisor because I am a work from home employee and I need to get back to work immediately. The rep instead indicated she is relaying messages between me & the supervisor who declined to get on the phone. The rep indicates she is transferring me but drops my back in the queue. I spoke with a rep named Jasmine who assured me that she would reach out to a supervisor. The supervisor never takes the call but again relays my messages. Jasmine assures me this issue has been fixed and to give it about an hour. I gave it 2 hours and tried it since I have work at 8am and guess what....still disconnected. At this point there is no one to talk to because they have officially closed. This is the WORST service I have EVER received from a utility company. No accountability & no haste to fix the issue. I just paid my bill on the 25th and did not see the account as terminated and they definitely took the payment which was on time. I have no idea what to do for work now. But I do know that I will need to find another internet provider because this is an awful😞 situation and I pay this company faithfully. I should not have to go through this. The only thing that changes is the name, the service is TERRIBLE. If you have other choices for ISP, I definitely recommend going that route. Don't get screwed the way I have. The definitely have lost me as a customer because AT&T internet...

Update: So Optimum did finally fix my service after multiple attempts. They also provided a $100 credit which I appreciate. However I missed 3 times that amount of work in the 3 days multiple techs were coming in and out of my house. I dealt with a supervisor who told me they couldn't do anything more than give an $8 credit. I don't believe the credit is sufficient for the situation. My partner handled the interaction for me as I was trying to make up some of my lost time and had already spent a large amount of time on the phone. I hear the Connect2First is pretty good in our area. I think it's time for a change.**So I said I was leaving this company in a previous review but we were able to come to a mutual agreement and prior to my most recent move, there were no other issues with billing or service. In July, I moved about 1.5 miles from my prior address and this is when issues arose. Within 10 days of moving, we began having issues with intermittent disconnections. One evening in July we lost service and stayed on the phone for nearly 3 hours troubleshooting with a tech. He told me that he would have someone come out to check the outside connection as he could see the signal strength fluctuating after troubleshooting the router. No technician ever called or came by to check outside. Fast forward to early October, the service started going in and out. Disconnecting randomly. After multiple calls, they scheduled a tech to come out but it was 3 days later which caused me not to be able to work as I work from home. For my time, patience & loyalty, I was given a full $8 credit. When escalating this to Supervisor Natasha-ID#81T, she called back twice to say that after being with them for the last 3 years, after previous issues, and on top of that, the intermittent disconnection issues still remains, again interrupting my ability to stay connected at work. Another tech is scheduled to come tomorrow so I will lose even more income until this gets fixed.

I know it's time to move on but not before filing a formal complaint. I know I'm not a valued customer, though I pay my bill timely and my service has not been disconnected. I'm being impacted currently and was assured by the supervisor that my business is not appreciated by the lack of empathy or concern about the affect this is having on me...