Why Does Verizon Not Value Loyalty?

[Deeg67]

I'm going to be terminating my Verizon account, and as someone who's been in customer service for my entire career what shocks me is that the resolution to my issue would have been so incredibly simple, and would have kept me as a loyal customer.  It was the complete indifference and short-sightedness of their response that left me no option but to terminate.

I have been a loyal Verizon customer for many years.  I am in Japan for a short duration (about a year) and when Verizon informed me that there was no cost-effective way to continue my service while I was here, the rep suggested that I suspend my services online.  At no time did she warn me that there was a limit to how long service could be suspended, and as I had no wish to terminate my account - especially with an ETF - I chose this route.  However, without informing me in any fashion Verizon began billing me again - which I did not discover until I was shocked to open an email statement that had charges for a full month.

When I followed up via chat (after a ridiculously long wait for a rep) I assumed they would be happy to help in some way.  After all, all I want to do is defer my charges for a few months and stay with Verizon long-term.  They were completely unwilling to assist in any way.  No flexibility on extending my suspension time, no willingness to waive the charges that I was not told I was incurring, no willingness to remove or even reduce the ETF.  Simply, "there's nothing we can do."  As as a result of this not only are they forcing me to terminate my contract - as the ETF is less than the balance of the monthly charges I would be incurring for a service I cannot use - but their complete lack of concern and loyalty has ensured that when I return to the United States I will never again give Verizon a single penny worth of my business.

Why is it that a company is willing to lose a customer for a lifetime rather than offer a few months of flexibility, or admit their error and waive a few dollars in charges that should never have been incurred?  It's hard to believe anyone with an ounce of concern for their customers could be so short-sighted and greedy, but I'm left with no other choice but to believe that after their complete disinterest in offering me even the slightest help.  That isn't the sort of company that I want to do business with, and I most certainly will not be doing business with Verizon in the future.

[rcschnoor]

Deeg67 wrote:

At no time did she warn me that there was a limit to how long service could be suspended

And I assume "at no time did she warn you the suspension was indefinite"? It appears you simply "assumed" the best possible scenario for you. It also appears possibly you should have asked.

For the record, you can suspend your account without billing and you will not be billed during the suspension. This suspension will last for 3 months. You can do this 3 times within a 1 year period. So you can start the suspension again to last for another 3 months.

Good luck.

[Ann154]

I thought it was only TWO times in the year that the can be suspended. Did it change recently?

[rcschnoor]

You could be correct, however I thought it had always been 3 times in any 12 month period.

[Deeg67]

No, in fact the only thing she did tell me was that I had to renew the suspension of service every 90 days - which I did, as she instructed.  No mention whatsoever that there was a limit on the duration of the suspension during the year. 

The issue is that I had no interest in terminating my contract early or leaving Verizon as a customer - merely in deferring the contract for a limited period.  After incorrectly instructing me on how to do so, when I sought their assistance after the error became apparent they were completely disinterested in helping me in any way.  All they cared about is the ETF and the money on the current bill - my goodwill as a customer after I return to the US never seems to have entered the equation. 

[rcschnoor]

I simply think this only means there is a limit to Verizon's goodwill as there is ALSO a limit to yours.

From your story, it appears as if you DID have the service suspended for at least half a year without billing. It seems there is a disconnect between your definition of a short duration and Verizon's definition. They did give you SOME leeway, it seems it is just not enough for you.

Good luck with your new provider.

[commonsense101]

What company does?

[Sethmexrunner]

I was on the phone with a customer representative (as I am preparing for my last upgrade before going abroad next year) and she confirmed that 2 suspension periods of 90 days (suspension reactivation required after first 90-day period completed) are allowed per 12-month period. Whatever allowance you get in general, you should always inquire about the limit of such.

[Sethmexrunner]

On another note, it would be nice if Verizon would facilitate more than 2 90-day suspension periods per year, without having to terminate the contract and instead return to the country with the same status of the contract where it was left off before leaving the country. With more and more people traveling globally or going global, I firmly believe Verizon should adapt to the needs of their customers traveling non-stop or extensively.

[ifishgreg]

I will be moving to ATT. I wonder if they ever studied how many long term customers they have lost.

I have been in Service and product marketing for 35 years and have set up many loyalty programs with great success.