Pause/unpause at vacation home...ever-changing rules and policies...I'm screwed now

[David Taylor]

This is really unbelievable. I've had a vacation home with Dish for years. I'm there maybe 4 times per year, so not that often. I always unpause/pause the account while I'm there. I was told by Dish and through my own research that this was the way to handle it.

I just got onto chat today to have it paused again after unpausing it a few days ago and they told me that I can only pause an account once in any 12 month period. I've done this for years and this is the first time I've heard this policy. It must be new. Here is the chat transcript:

Customer Chat
Chat Transcript
Please wait while we find a representative to assist you...
Welcome to DISH Network Chat.
Alfred (ID: F10): How may I help you today?
David Taylor: yes...this is the account for my vacation home....i had unpaused it a few days ago...i need to pause it again.
Alfred (ID: F10): I will be happy to assist you with your request.
Alfred (ID: F10): For security purposes, would you please verify the 4 digit PIN on the account?
David Taylor: xxxx
Alfred (ID: F10): Thank you.
Alfred (ID: F10): Please give me a moment to access your account.
Alfred (ID: F10): Your patience is greatly appreciated.
David Taylor: no problem
Alfred (ID: F10): Thank you.
Alfred (ID: F10): David, I see that on your account you have paused the services on 05/16, am I correct?
David Taylor: i unpaused on 5/16
David Taylor: and now I wish to pause again
Alfred (ID: F10): Okay.
Alfred (ID: F10): Dish Pause can last a maximum of 6 months. After 6 months your services will be restored automatically. You may only participate in 1 Dish Pause in any rolling 12 month period.
David Taylor: that is a new policy
David Taylor: are you saying you cannot pause my account?
Alfred (ID: F10): Yes.
Alfred (ID: F10): David, Let me check what can be done.
David Taylor: then i guess you will have to cancel it
David Taylor: i've done this for 10 years
David Taylor: i visit my vacation home maybe 3-4 times per year...and i always pause/unpause
Alfred (ID: F10): I am sorry.
David Taylor: this has never been a problem...
Alfred (ID: F10): I understand your concern.
David Taylor: if you are telling me the policy has changed, then I'm going to have to cancel Dish for good.
Alfred (ID: F10): I apologize for the inconvenience.
Alfred (ID: F10): One moment please.
Alfred (ID: F10): I am very sorry that I was unable to resolve your issue today. We do have a specialized department that handles all cancellations. While I transfer your chat to loyalty?
Alfred (ID: F10) has left the session.
Please wait while we find an agent from the (20) Loyalty department to assist you.

Every time I pause/unpause recently it seems like there is a new hassle. Last time it was the new $5 per package downgrade fee when pausing. Now they are saying I cannot pause it because I just unpaused it. I'm getting so sick and tired of hassling with this. One of the big reasons I keep Dish at home is so I can have a secondary account at my vacation home. If they take that away from me I'll have much less incentive to stay with Dish at my home.

If the DiRT guys are reading this, any help would be appreciated. I'm still in a chat with the loyalty department. I'll update the thread as needed.

 

[David Taylor]

Ugh. Now that they have agreed to pause my account, they cannot do it due to technical issues. Here is the chat transcript. Bottom line, it sounds like I'll be fighting this battle every time I want to turn Dish on at my vacation home.

Robert (ID: GCN): You have been successfully transferred to me, please give me 1-2 minutes to access your account and review your transcript with the previous agent.
Robert (ID: GCN): I see that this account is for a vacation home.
David Taylor: correct
Robert (ID: GCN): How long until you are there again?
David Taylor: i've had it for years...i always unpause/pause it
David Taylor: i'm usually there 3-4 times per year
Robert (ID: GCN): Okay.
David Taylor: but they just told me that they can only pause it once per 12 months
David Taylor: which must be a new policy because i've been doing this for years
Robert (ID: GCN): Please give me 2-3 minutes to research this for you.
David Taylor: sure
Robert (ID: GCN): Thank you.
Robert (ID: GCN): To help I've left a note on the account for you David.
Robert (ID: GCN): The account can be paused immediately or, up to 30 days from today. What day would you like?
David Taylor: go ahead and pause it now
David Taylor: please
David Taylor: but what happens next time? do i get the same runaround?
Robert (ID: GCN): You're welcome.
Robert (ID: GCN): You can reference by operator id of GCN.
Robert (ID: GCN): DISH Pause can last a maximum of 6 months. After 6 months your services will be restored automatically. You may only participate in 1 DISH Pause in any rolling 12 month period.
David Taylor: but i'm going to have to ask for special treatment every time i want to pause/unpause? why is Dish making this so difficult all of a sudden?
Robert (ID: GCN): Normally the pause is used as a temporary solution.
David Taylor: well, that is not how it was presented to me years ago when i set up the account for the vacation home...but ok
Robert (ID: GCN): One moment.
David Taylor: so i am going to have to go through CSRs to find someone to get me special treatment each and every time i need to do this?
Robert (ID: GCN): This is why I noted the account for you.
David Taylor: ok...and honestly...they've done that before if i recall correctly...there have been similar problems in the past...maybe not the exact same problem, but something similar...but i thank you for doing that
David Taylor: next time i'll ask them to look at the notes...
Robert (ID: GCN): Please give me 2-3 minutes to process this for you.
David Taylor: but the account is paused now?
Robert (ID: GCN): One moment.
David Taylor: ok
Robert (ID: GCN): Thank you.
Robert (ID: GCN): Due to a technical issues. I am unable to complete your request. I would recommend contacting DISH later on so that we can pause the account again for you.
David Taylor: seriously? i'm going to have to go through all of this again?
Robert (ID: GCN): I apologize for the inconvenience.
David Taylor: i've been on this chat for ~ 30 minutes
Robert (ID: GCN): I can understand your frustration.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Today is a bad day to do anything as today is the new promo day which means their computer systems are screwed up and in a state of flux.

Try again later tonight or better yet wait until tomorrow if you can.

 

[David Taylor]

Yeah, I'd forgotten about that. Thanks, Scott.

Anyway, does anyone else out there use Dish Pause the way I do? Have you run into similar issues? It seems like I randomly get hassled about it depending on what CSR I happen to get that day. :-/

 

[David Taylor]

And FWIW, they always promise to note the account...and it never seems to help. :-/ Years ago, there was a specific number I would call to get this done. That worked beautifully. They did away with that and ever since it has been a major hassle.

 

[Laddyboy]

I have my winter home on the same account as my permanent home. I only have to change the service address when I relocate and take a receiver back and forth. It seems like a long time ago when Dish allowed multiple pausing. I'm surprised they allowed it up until now. Maybe they grandfathered your account previously. I'm sure the DIRT people can probably help out. If you can take receivers back and forth, I'd set up the vacation home on the same account as your permanent one. The noting on accounts doesn't seem to work. I don't know how many times they've told me they've made notes and the next time they say there is no record of it.

 

[pabeader]

i would have just carried my receiver back and forth. pause is really for minimum 1-month intervals...

 

[Teehar]

i would have just carried my receiver back and forth. pause is really for minimum 1-month intervals...

Yep gotta agree,way less hassle.

 

[pabeader]

in fact, i would cancel the vacation home service and just carry the recevier as needed.

 

[lakebum431]

I wonder if the OP has dish at his regular home though?

 

[David Taylor]

If I'm not mistaken, I was told I could not do that (carry receiver from home to vacation home). I'm trying to play by their rules. They said if I took my receiver I'd have to call and change service address which would shut off my receivers back at home (which would then miss DVR recordings).

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

DISH just recently introduced "The Tailgater" which is in direct violation of their rules. They tell you to take a receiver (211k) from your house and watch your TV anywhere using the special Tailgater dish. If anything they are pushing this type of behavior themselves.

 

[rocket69]

Dish has no idea what the hell is going on . they have contracts with content providers that customers wont be moving boxes around and will only stay in one location yet at the same time they tell you to take them out of your home. Your way of doing it is the corecct but dish is all messed up and not every CSR knows what your doing as its not a standard issue .

Like scott says tail gating is a Big no no per the rules. But if you have an Rv you can get a Form filed out and take it with you but even with this the now Ex Ceo has told customers via Charly Chat to take it with you and fail to talk about the froms . He even knows of one account that he installed personaly that violates this the first dish account ever sold was installed on an RV

 

[bigwillieb]

If you have two accounts and one account is for a vacation home, the DISH Pause rule once per 12 rolling months does not apply. You can also have a snowbird account, simply move your receivers from on house to the other, call DISH up to change the address. Only issue is that you cant have service at two different homes on the same account.

 

[Laddyboy]

Only issue is that you cant have service at two different homes on the same account.

at the same time.

 

[MattG@DISH]

To the OP: send your phone number/account number in a PM, and I'll see if I can get it done (there is an exception for dish pause for customers with two homes).

We may be having system errors, but I'd have to check. System errors are common after they update them (due to the 5/18 business changes). I know yesterday we couldn't RA remotes for a bit (had to do a workaround)

 

[bigwillieb]

at the same time.

Ya, that is right little bit of info at the same time.

 

[Frank7004]

Campers do this all of the time. I wouldn't feel bad, your still paying for the service, its under your name at your residence.

Now if you were to have 3 rcvrs at 3 locations and everyone tossing in a few bucks on the bill, I'd say that's a no no.

 

[David Taylor]

there is an exception for dish pause for customers with two homes).

That is great news, but it seems like most of your CSRs have no clue about this. They were ready to cancel my account rather than let me pause again and it took 30 minutes to get it straightened out. Is there any way you can get the word out? I know it likely isn't that common of a scenario, but as a customer I hate having to be the one to educate your employees on this. :-/

 

[bigwillieb]

That is great news, but it seems like most of your CSRs have no clue about this. They were ready to cancel my account rather than let me pause again and it took 30 minutes to get it straightened out. Is there any way you can get the word out? I know it likely isn't that common of a scenario, but as a customer I hate having to be the one to educate your employees on this. :-/

If you would of got me, I would of known, LOL.