DirecTV Cancellation

Like most other service companies, DirecTV moved to flat billing. This means they no longer prorate and instead bill for the full service month. Here is the notice from 2018 informing us all of this (ignore the web link as that is no longer current)

Sorry you didn’t know. Directv no longer prorates the final month of service. You pay for the full month whether you use it or not. That change was made over two years ago and everyone was notified. Nobody likes it but it’s not an issue if you know and plan for it.

It is legal. In fact this is how most service providers handle billing now. AT&T/DirecTV were not the first and certainly not the last to make that change. My landline provider did the same within the year following AT&T/DirecTV's change. It is legal as notice was sent prior to the change and since has been in the Terms of Service.

Saying you didn't read the contract/Terms of Service that you agreed to doesn't work in your favor. So if you started service after the January 2019 date, then it was part of the Terms of Service which was your responsibility to read.

I'm not disagreeing with the "Read Your Contract" part of this.  What I AM saying is, while "legal", it's not ethical; it takes advantage of the normal consumer who doesn't either take the time, wouldn't understand what's written, or doesn't expect this kind of treatment from a company (hence, first two reasons). Companies depend on customers to maintain their bottom line- whether through exceptional service, a desire to retain said customer, or just good ole plain good will- all lacking here.

I'll reiterate... DirecTV... NEVER AGAIN. And my eyes are wide open for future abuse with other providers as well.

Juniper and sandblaster, thanks for your feedback.  No quarrel with either of you.

I did prefer the old way better. However from a logistical standpoint, people who could not (or would not) understand prorated billing, dealing with refunds (cost of sending out, people not being patient enough so calling about them, people who forgot/lost their refund, etc.) this was a way to simplify billing and save costs (including reducing calls to customer support).

Upon cancellation it should still work thru the end of the service month so you do get what you pay for. Disconnecting equipment and having a new provider installed before then would be personal choice.

I wouldn't say it is unethical, but more a decision that was in favor of the company instead of the customer. My preference would have been staying with the old way but I can see the reasons for the change. Unfortunately some decisions are not going to make both company and customer happy. Disagreeing with it on the principal of the matter is fair.

Umm "future abuse"? That seems to be taking it too far. Just read the paperwork, including anything that updates the Terms of Service (as that is a living document for companies). If you "never again" over this, might as well not have any TV or other service provider at all since this has essentially become the industry standard.

I completely understand how frustrating it could be to pay for the days you didn't use the service.

As mentioned by the experts above, AT&T has stopped prorating the charges for service cancellation which means when you cancel, you'll be able to enjoy the service through the end of your billing cycle.

However, I believe there could be some manager override options to bypass this and schedule the cancellation on the requested day during rare cases like customer moving to a location where AT&T service is not available (Not sure if it is feasible, just a thought from common sense)

Alright! It's done and cannot be changed. Moving forward, I recommend you to check with your current service provider about Pre and Post cancellation procedures before starting a new one to avoid any future inconvenience.

Disclaimer :  The information shared here is only to help the community and I recommend you to verify the same by an AT&T representative before making any informed decision. I'm not responsible for the consequences that may arise due to the information shared.

@John2296 

Unlike AT&T services that are tied to a physical infrastructure, DirecTV is nationwide. Though if a customer has a Movers order that cannot complete and instead has to cancel account because of no good line of sight (trees in the way, etc.), I do wish they prorated for that reason. That situation waives the ECF as there was still a good faith attempt to keep the service, so on principal I say at bare minimum that should result in proration. Unfortunately even managers in the end have to go by the billing policies set down by corporate.

Hi, Juniper.

Thank you for the response.

Please don't take me wrong. Just curious about the possible rare case scenarios, what if the customer was deceased and his relative/friend had to cancel the service?

PS: Assuming that the account holder was the only one using the service.

Disclaimer :  The information shared here is only to help the community and I recommend you to verify the same by an AT&T representative before making any informed decision. I'm not responsible for the consequences that may arise due to the information shared

The spouse can take over the account if they want but if not then it still applies.

With a deceased customer, the surviving spouse can choose to take over the account (including service agreement). Otherwise the account gets closed with an ECF waiver, similar to a Movers order. Final bill is sent to the Executor of the Estate.

Both Movers order that cannot be completed, and a customer who has passed, in my opinion should be the exception to where they can be prorated. But I don't make the rules, so can only abide by them like every other customer and do my best to understand correctly how it works at least so I know what to expect.