There are two major reasons to have cable: to watch live sports and to watch Bravo. Most shows can be found online for free, but sports need to be watched live to be enjoyed properly, and it’s nearly impossible to find Bravo shows online.
Our Cable Went Out During Monday Night Football!
I was watching Monday Night Football and in the fourth quarter, in a tight game, the cable went out. I couldn’t watch any channels, I couldn’t watch saved shows on our DVR, and the box required a full reset, which can take 5-15 minutes (in the meantime, I watched on my computer). That was simply unacceptable, so I called Time Warner Cable.
Time Warner has some great features that save us money, but having the cable box turn off randomly is completely unacceptable. They offered me $3.46 off my current bill. I think that was supposed to represent one day’s worth of service (when not taking discount into account). I explained that while I appreciate the gesture, I don’t pay for the monthly service with the hopes that my cable will work, and if it doesn’t, I won’t pay that day. Part of what I pay for is the reliability that when I turn on my TV to watch a show, I’ll be able to watch that show.
They Offered Me a Big Upgrade and a Big Discount
The customer service representative understood, and after a few minutes, came back with a $10 discount. Figuring that was the best I was going to be able to do, I accepted. Then the representative said she’d see if we were eligible for any other discounts. She said that if we upgraded from the Standard TV package to the Preferred TV Package, we could save $5 a month. While that sounded great, I asked for some clarification: Could I save $5 off the current price I pay or it is just $5 off the price of the upgraded service? To my surprise, by upgrading my service, I would save $5 each month for the next 12 months. And I would get some great channels that I could actually use, like some additional sports channels and even some movie channels.
We’ve Saved Nearly $25 Per Month On Cable
Back in February, our bill was just under $91 per month. I didn’t like that, so I called to see what they could do to help reduce the price. They did, and after buying my own modem, I was able to get that price down to $74 the past few months. Now when I log in, I see that my bill is just $66.23, about 27% cheaper than what it was in February.
Anyone Can Save Money Like We Did
I didn’t do anything special. I just got myself a new modem to save about $5 a month, I called and asked if there were any new promotions, and I complained when I thought the service was sub-par. I didn’t use any tricky techniques, I didn’t threaten to cancel, and I never spoke to a customer retention team. I just asked some simple questions and they rewarded me with some significant discounts.
Looking at my bill, I was given $18.33 credit for some reason, but who am I to complain? I guess good things happen to those who ask.
Glad to hear you were able to get a discount from TWC. I wish I had the same luck in my area. TWC has a strangle hold on the area. They know it, so if you want a discount, you better be prepared to leave for satellite. Since I don’t have cable, I can only deal with saving on internet, which TWC owns almost all of the infrastructure. You really can’t get a deal with them if you are an existing customer. Only way is to jump ship to DSL and then go back. Just not worth it.
The weirdest thing is that the CSR told me that the offer was for existing customers who had been with TWC for over a year. It was so unexpected, I almost hung up too soon.
Just another reminder that the squeaky wheel gets the oil. It is about calling and asking for a better price, anything can be negotiated about this is a good reminder of that.
Well done Daniel! When we cut the cord, the cable company did offer freebies, but we were so sick of Comcast, we simply did not want anything to do with them. Now it is just rabbit ears and Netflix! Can’t say I miss TV much!