CUSTOMER SERVICE IS RIDICULOUS

directv requires you drop off the equipment to fedex or UPS they will then package and ship it no charge to you, make sure you keep the tracking number

in my experience in the forums they will only send boxes and call tags if your over 50 miles from the nearest fedex or ups, some have said 25miles

i just really wouldnt wait on call tags as it might incur more charges as you only have a certain amount of time to return them after you cancel.

I agree.  We had a simple receiver error (920) which states signal alignment issue.  The first call resulted in the young lady telling me that I needed to go up and re-align my dish.  Another call back and they scheduled a tech.  The tech never touched the dish, tried to install a newer box; said the box was not compatible with our TV (a 1 year old Samsung smart TV) then put back the original box.  As soon as the system was powered off and later turned on, all recordings, etc wiped.  In addition, we saw the same error and now have zero TV.  He wiped our entire receiver setup and we get a new error saying 0 receivers authorized.  I called back about that and was assured that a supervisor would call at 9 AM and then be at the house.  So we wasted one day to obliterate our system and then today's (7-25-19) appointment never happened.  It took 4 calls back in order to get a straight answer and now supposedly a supervisor tech is to come out tomorrow AM.  So now day 3 of rearranging our schedules.  This is not worth it.  If they come then fine, try to fix it but I am calling our local cable provider at lunch time today for a quote and will be switching.  Also, I have been a loyal AT&T Cell/home customer for many years but their handling of this and repeated dropped cell calls in my home within city limits (yes, reported over a dozen times via Mark the spot) we are very seriously considering moving all of our business away from AT&T. 

Despite the supposed long corporate history of AT&T, everything they touch turns to poop. As a stand alone company, DirectTV was outstanding in its commitment to customer service and fairness. Once AT&T got its hands on the company and started implementing their policies, everything went to crap. When they migrated all of the receivers over to AT&T, they failed to have enough on hand to handle the demand for new customer installations and replacements for existing customers whose receivers malfunctioned to the point of being useless. Mine was so bad it would malfunction within moments of startup going into the blue screen of death. I was told I needed a new one and that I should receive a replacement within 48 hours. Three weeks later I still didn't have a receiver because AT&T failed to plan for the demand of new and existing customers needs for the updated receivers. I made it very clear how disappointed I was that such a large company as AT&T failed so miserably at planning for basic equipment needs during their transition and expected a complete REFUND for those 21 days that I was without service AND that I didn't expect to have to call in again to get said refund. Almost a year later I was still fighting for my refund and getting inaccurate information from AT&T's overseas CSRs in Asia. Instead of getting the roughly $132 I was owed, I was being told the most they could give me was $5. I asked to speak with a Supervisor over there who magnanimously offered me a $25 credit and said that's all she could offer on a dispute. I told her this was not a dispute. This was a verified loss of service due to a documented screw up on the part of AT&T. I demanded to speak to the Supervisor's Manager and suddenly was transferred to a US agent who miraculously had no problems reading the saved notes in my account and issuing the proper refund as well as giving me $20 off my bill for the next 12 months as an apology for the many, many hours of time and frustration I spent talking to agents trying to get my problems solved. She also stated that she didn't understand why I had to be transferred to her as the overseas agents were just as capable of doing what she did. I told her I didn't know, but that now AT&T has ownership, everytime I call customer service I never get a U.S. based agent anymore and always get a Southeast Asian rep who may be able to speak English at a basic level, but has no frame of reference for colloquialisms we often use, context and other important aspects of communication. I told her that I don't hold it against anyone for needing a job; it's not their fault and I'm sure they're doing their best. It's simply a matter of our two cultures  being so drastically different that they simply have no frame of reference from which to draw upon to add that needed context to our language. AT&T needs to stop being so effing cheap and hire more U.S. based call centers to handle their customers. I imagine it would go a looong way in increasing customer satisfaction. For a corporation that makes so much money, gets so many tax cuts, loopholes and benefits from operating overseas in cheaper markets,  you'd think they could spare a little loose change to improve customer satisfaction. But they don't care. AT&T simply tries to lock you down in expensive to cancel contracts in whatever sneaky way they can to keep you from leaving.

I have been with DirecTV for 14 yrs and they were excellent. Over the last year, that has all changed. Tonight was the last straw. I called customer service because a channel I was getting in my package, stopped working and then said we had to pay more to get it. The customer service agent asked 4 different times what the channel was, when he finally got it he says that he can add the channels for $5.99. I told him I was getting the channel for free, why do i need to pay for it now? He puts me on hold for a good 1o mins so he can research it. Comes back and says I wasnt paying for the channel before so I never had it but he could add it for $5.99. I tell him I did have the channel and at this point I ask if I can speak to a manager. His reply, let me see if I can find a manager that can talk to you. I say hold on a minute, where are they located. He says "offshore" I said please transfer me to someone in the U.S. to speak to. He tells me he cant do that because there are no U.S. numbers for customer service. I ask for the corporate number and he just puts me on hold without saying anything. I cant type everything that went on but Horrible horrible service. BIG MISTAKE ATT..DIRECTV IS THE WORST AND I WILL BE SWITCHING MY SERVICE.

@Chart77 

What channel are you missing?

What is the exact name of your programming package?

What happens when you go to the channel?

Companies build the system so that there are no transfer options available to an agent other than department. So location (country, state, etc.), gender, cultural background, etc. are not transfer options available. There is no corporate number available to the public as any such contact info is for internal use only. The only number provided is to customer service.

Could be another reason other than a technical issue. There have been a few accounts out there that have been getting channels they weren't supposed to. It has been suspected that they turned on with one of those free preview weeks and per some error in the system, certain channels did not shut off. But with the system migration, such errors are finally being caught and corrected.

To tell a customer there is no way to contact customer service in the US and then continue to go on with lousy customer service is why Att/DirecTV has slipped from excellent to crummy. That kind of response tells customers if they're not happy, 1. Their problem wont get resolved and 2. You cant speak to anyone who actually gives a crap, cuz the people "offshore" sure as heck doesn't 

All of what you're saying still doesn't address the problem, customer service is lousy and YES that is what happens when you move your call center overseas. Do some research on the internet, social media ect and see how many customers are saying the same things. DirecTV customers for many years up and leaving over poor customer service. You really shouldn't be defending them. 

@Chart77 

I didn't defend them. Simply gave perception on how it currently works.

I did try to address the real problem of your channel, but you have chosen not to answer the questions to see what guidance or information might be provided. Not a guarantee it would solve the issue in the way you want, but it would help to figure out what the correct options are.

I didnt answer the questions because it says you are a customer and dont work for them, I have little interest in debating with someone that cant resolve the issue.

Then why are you posting? You've given us no information at all.