The Earthlink Factor

When I first moved into my new place, I decided to give Earthlink a try for their DSL. I placed my order, waited for the equipment to arrive and installed it as directed. Right from the start there were problems with speed and dependability of connection.

After weeks of working with their support, getting ATT involved, getting rewired etc, still not able to make a connection. Turns out that I'm 500+ feet too far from the closest transmission point and that it is impossible for Earthlink to provide service at my current address.

So, the situation came to be that Earthlink would refund my first months fee and close the account. Great! They were also to issue a call tag for the equipment so it could be returned. Fine. All of this occurred in May.

I waited for the call tag, never came. I called and emailed several times and it never came, neither did the $35. I have the "confirmation number that the account was closed, but was unable to reach an understanding human being within their organization to figure out about my refund nor the call tag. When I'd call, I'd get transferred to several people and have to continuously explain the entire situation. Most of the people I talked to were clearly not American based and it was difficult to explain and have them understand.

In late June or early July, out of nowhere, Earthlink billed my checking account $149.95. No call, no email, just sapped the cash and without warning no less. This caused a series of events that were all bad in nature. The withdraw caused 3 checks to bounce and the associated fees at both my credit union and the businesses that had the checks.

To say that I was angry would be mild. I first contacted the Credit Union, told that it was an authorized debit, to which I responded it was not. I went in and filled out a form to reverse the charges/chargeback and it would take up to 6 weeks. Uhg! I contacted Eartlink and argued for days with them about the nature of the charge etc. I must have talked with 15 different people in a week and got nowhere with figuring out why the billed.

So I waited for the chargeback. In early August the money was returned to my account, though not the fees that were incurred as a result. Last Friday Earthlink challenged the chargeback and the Credit Union again returned to Earthlink the $149.95, causing the same set of problems again.

I was hotter than hell! I bitched out the Credit Union, then I called, emailed and chatted with Earthlink reps for the entire weekend and into the late day Monday. They were to issue a credit for the money and after confirming with the Credit Union that the action had been initiated, I was told that it would be 48 hours or so for the credit to take place in full. The week has passed and as of yet, the transaction has not taken place.

I called yesterday again to Earthlink and was informed by their corp office billing that the woman that I had spoken with on Monday was incorrect and it would take 7-10 days for the credit. Much to my chagrin, this is of little or no help as it has now caused 3 sets of bouncing in my checking account and it seems that it's always the utilities and car payment that are effected.

With my ongoing struggle to make ends meet, having money vanish and reappear in my account has been a terrible thing. Utility companies and Banks are never happy when payments are late or the check bounces. They charge you us the wawa and then they stop working with you. Life has been difficult enough this last year, I barely make it on what I make and when an event like this happens, life is far worse than unmanageable.

While I have had this going on, other events are also taking place and the crux is that it's been a tough summer. I have found the Earthlink reps to be difficult to understand, inform and work with. They are sloppy in their business practices and have several departments that seem to work in the dark of the others. They keep you on hold for long periods of time, they have no idea what you are talking about half the time and they are not working quickly to resolve the matter.

I am greatly disappointed in their customer service and will never use their company again. Earthlink has the same communication flap the Toledo Gov. does and that is unacceptable. It's bad enough I still have not received the credit for the 1st month's fee, but to have them bill me for equipment that I attempted to return several times is ludicrous. Just yesterday, I finally received the USP tag for the box. It's late September and this all started in May.

The short of it is, I have paid out over $600 dollars and have had much drama with various vendors for the DSL service I have never had. I will never get Earthlink to pay me for the series of bounced fees, and it doesn't look like they will ever get my 149.95 or the $35 back to me. Even if somehow I get those monies back, I am still out the bank fees and the drama. The experience has left me with a foul taste in my mouth for them and as a result, I will never recommend them nor will I ever attempt to use their service again!