# Directv is full of cheap bastards..



## StEvEY5036 (Jul 9, 2003)

I just got off the phone with directv and im extremely upset with them. I recently repaired my DSR7000 because the HD died a few weeks ago. During that time I called up Directv to see if I could get myself a new R10 from them, which I did. The replacement didn't come with a new access card so I had to use the old card from my DSR7000. Now that I fixed up my DSR7000 I want to be able to use it again on another tv. So I called up directv thinking that I could just use an access card from an old receiver that I had laying around.. apparently not. I was on the phone for about an hour trying to straighten things out with why I wanted to reactivate such an "old" (to them) unit. After going through about 5 people they came to the conclusion that I needed a new access card for the receiver which costs 20 bucks. Now what does this $20 actually go towards? Apparently making the card and shipping it to me costs that much, which is absolutely ridiculous. So I spent 20 minutes arguing with some supervisor about me not having to pay for this stupid piece of plastic (I am one of their "Alist" customers.. but that doesn't mean anything apparently.) and I decided that I was going to pay for the card then dispute the transaction with my credit card company when I get my statement. 

Just some advice for any of you that might want to reactivate your old receivers down the road, keep the access cards in a safe place.


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## Jerry_K (Feb 7, 2002)

You can buy access cards on Ebay for cheap.


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## StEvEY5036 (Jul 9, 2003)

yeah i know.. but why do they have to charge for an access card? Are they really gonna get killed if they sent out a replacement card for free?


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## tbeckner (Oct 26, 2001)

StEvEY5036 said:


> During that time I called up Directv to see if I could get myself a new R10 from them, which I did. The replacement didn't come with a new access card so I had to use the old card from my DSR7000.


Call DirecTV back up and tell them that the R10 they sent you didn't come with a card and you had to use the card out of the DSR7000, and because of that you no longer have a card for the DSR7000 that you fixed yourself.

In other words, THEY OWE YOU A CARD! And if the FRONTLINE CSRs don't what to help ask for retention.


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## T1V0 (Jun 14, 2006)

Retention can't order cards. Neither can supervisors. Don't waste your time. Ask for the Access Card team, they typically care less about it than the "frontline" csrs do and will probably just order it for you quickly just to get you off the phone.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

> yeah i know.. but why do they have to charge for an access card? Are they really gonna get killed if they sent out a replacement card for free?


You're only paying for the shipping and processing fees and not the card itself. They send you the access card via FedEx overnight shipping, which isn't exactly free or cheap. When you factor in the handling costs at DTV's end then $20 is actually dirt cheap, resulting in the card itself being free.

When you consider that DTV used to charge $50 for a replacement card and a gazillion bucks for an extra receiver you're getting a darn good deal. You'll end up paying a lot more for an access card on ebay when you factor in the shipping and the fact that you have no idea whether or not you're getting a good card.


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## l2bengtrek (May 31, 2006)

I have always chosen the option "technical support or equipment" and they've never given me any problems. I'm on the A list too so after hearing the op's story, I guess it really does depend on who you get on the phone. During May and June, I was changing tivos and cards like clothes and each time I had excellent cooperation! I've read these nightmare stories all over this forum so every time I call them, I brace myself for battle, then get pleasantly surprised! Although I will say....one of my box changes was adding an additional tivo so they did charge me the $20 for a new card...which I personally had no problem with. But I've also switched around existing cards with no problems.


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## 7thton (Mar 3, 2005)

StEvEY5036 said:


> I just got off the phone with directv and im extremely upset with them. I recently repaired my DSR7000 because the HD died a few weeks ago. During that time I called up Directv to see if I could get myself a new R10 from them, which I did. The replacement didn't come with a new access card so I had to use the old card from my DSR7000. Now that I fixed up my DSR7000 I want to be able to use it again on another tv. So I called up directv thinking that I could just use an access card from an old receiver that I had laying around.. apparently not. I was on the phone for about an hour trying to straighten things out with why I wanted to reactivate such an "old" (to them) unit. After going through about 5 people they came to the conclusion that I needed a new access card for the receiver which costs 20 bucks. Now what does this $20 actually go towards? Apparently making the card and shipping it to me costs that much, which is absolutely ridiculous. So I spent 20 minutes arguing with some supervisor about me not having to pay for this stupid piece of plastic (I am one of their "Alist" customers.. but that doesn't mean anything apparently.) and I decided that I was going to pay for the card then dispute the transaction with my credit card company when I get my statement.
> 
> Just some advice for any of you that might want to reactivate your old receivers down the road, keep the access cards in a safe place.


Consider yourself lucky. I have a friend that just signed up with DirecTV and she got a R15 installed. She wanted a Tivo, so I gave her the retention number and told her to tell them she wanted a R10 or another Tivo. Retention told her that they couldn't do it. So, I called myself and sure enough...the retention CSR told me that they can't specify what kind of DVR will be installed...it is limited to the installer's stock on hand. So, bottom line was that she can't have a Tivo...she'll have to stick with the R15.


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## mrowe8 (Dec 29, 2004)

Dispute the charge with your credit card company?

If DTV tells you the cost of something and you don't like the cost then don't buy it. You can't agree to have them send it to you and then refuse to pay. 

I agree that it seems ridiculous for them to charge $20.00 but what grounds do you have to dispute the charge on?


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## StEvEY5036 (Jul 9, 2003)

mrowe8 said:


> Dispute the charge with your credit card company?
> 
> If DTV tells you the cost of something and you don't like the cost then don't buy it. You can't agree to have them send it to you and then refuse to pay.
> 
> I agree that it seems ridiculous for them to charge $20.00 but what grounds do you have to dispute the charge on?


I can dispute anything that I dont feel I should have paid for. You see some of these people on the forum are on the alist as well and they didnt have to pay for a card. I called retention and the woman said she would have to call me back but she understood my situation. Its all about who you talk to.


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## Gluberall (May 30, 2006)

Ok fellas, calm down. The $20.00 is there to deter signal piracy ( makes it kind of annoying to stockpile cards via different accounts). Be happy, a few years ago it was at least $60.00 if I remember correctly. I can't believe anybody will spend all day campaigning with the credit card company over a $20.00 charge that they agreed to on a phone. Grow up!!! There has been an access card fee since since the dawn of directv and they don't send ac's with refurbs because that would hurt the effort to keep AC distribution down. I've always been an advocate of customer service but don't whine and cry to supervisors/retention because you only got a $400.00 retention credit and "my buddy on TCF got $425!!!!!" and then throw a fit over $20.00. Give and take man. Sorry for being rash but I suppose posting anything positive about DTV on this thread makes one an "infidel" so I figured I'd get my money's worth. (regarding the wave of hate replies which could start any moment now...)


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## StEvEY5036 (Jul 9, 2003)

Gluberall said:


> Ok fellas, calm down. The $20.00 is there to deter signal piracy ( makes it kind of annoying to stockpile cards via different accounts). Be happy, a few years ago it was at least $60.00 if I remember correctly. I can't believe anybody will spend all day campaigning with the credit card company over a $20.00 charge that they agreed to on a phone. Grow up!!! There has been an access card fee since since the dawn of directv and they don't send ac's with refurbs because that would hurt the effort to keep AC distribution down. I've always been an advocate of customer service but don't whine and cry to supervisors/retention because you only got a $400.00 retention credit and "my buddy on TCF got $425!!!!!" and then throw a fit over $20.00. Give and take man. Sorry for being rash but I suppose posting anything positive about DTV on this thread makes one an "infidel" so I figured I'd get my money's worth. (regarding the wave of hate replies which could start any moment now...)


Ok well you can do what you want with your money and ill do what I want.


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## classicsat (Feb 18, 2004)

Jerry_K said:


> You can buy access cards on Ebay for cheap.


Yuo are not supposed to be able to. DirecTV is the only legitimate source for bare cards.


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## Gluberall (May 30, 2006)

"finally got it! Took 5 phone calls and I ended up talking to the CS supervisor but he was nice about it. Only had to pay shipping but no biggie."


See why this is irritating? This quote is from another thread from last week where you got a $400.00 IRD for free and then gonna dispute with the CC company for $20.00 .. after calling everybody at DTV a cheap bastard Less than two weeks after they give you an HD DVR for free. Yes, you do what you want with your money but who's cheap?


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## StEvEY5036 (Jul 9, 2003)

hey i was just going with the crowd. If you want to pay $400 for that tivo be my guest


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## willardcpa (Feb 23, 2001)

I get a kick out of the "Directv is full of cheap bastards.. " comment after reading the OP's comments on what he is doing, or going to do re challenging the CC charge.  
Of course, everything is "relative", he got an HDtivo a couple of weeks ago for $19.95 so I guess I can see his frustration at having to pay more than that for a card.


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## dtremain (Jan 5, 2004)

willardcpa said:


> I get a kick out of the "Directv is full of cheap bastards.. " comment after reading the OP's comments on what he is doing, or going to do re challenging the CC charge.
> Of course, everything is "relative", he got an HDtivo a couple of weeks ago for $19.95 so I guess I can see his frustration at having to pay more than that for a card.


My view completely. The op wants everything for nothing and that makes D* "cheap" (I won't embarrass myself with the other word).

Yeah, okay.


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## Markman07 (Jul 18, 2001)

I would have put the DRS7000 card back in the DRS7000 and called their automated system and put in #721 when asked for the error code. It would have married it back to the DRS7000. I then would have called back and told them that your new R10 didn't come with a card and they should have sent one free. Unless I am reading something wrong or missing something this is what I would have done. I know I Have done it this way before but maybe when you use it in the R10 (RID) you can't re-apply it back to the DRS7000.


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## Fleegle (Jan 15, 2002)

mr.unnatural said:


> You're only paying for the shipping and processing fees and not the card itself. They send you the access card via FedEx overnight shipping, which isn't exactly free or cheap. When you factor in the handling costs at DTV's end then $20 is actually dirt cheap, resulting in the card itself being free.
> 
> When you consider that DTV used to charge $50 for a replacement card and a gazillion bucks for an extra receiver you're getting a darn good deal. You'll end up paying a lot more for an access card on ebay when you factor in the shipping and the fact that you have no idea whether or not you're getting a good card.


Sorry, but I call bull**** on this. They charge $20 per card, not per shipping. In addition, they don't HAVE to require a new card. Let me tell you a story that I've tol to the Better Business Bureau recently:

My friend, who has DirecTV, moved into my house. My mom had a couple of DTiVos that she wasn't using, so I got them from her and we called DirecTV to get them added to my friend's account. I was informed that they had no way of moving cards from one account to another and I'd have to shell out $40 for new ones. I did so.

Then when they came, the old card numbers weren't listed on the paperwork, so I didn't know which card should go with which receiver. I called DTV up and the guy I talked to moved the OLD CARDS to my friend's account! I told him that I was confused as to what to do with the new cards now and he got all flustered. he said that he should have moved the old cards over. They refused to refund the money I paid for obviously unecessary cards I tlaked to the frint-line guiy and his manager and between them tey came up with 4 or 5 reasons why they don't let you move cards, but none of them held water.

They told me that they had to activate the new cards and I had to use those becaue the old ones were goign to shut down after a few days, so I let them activate the cards, but immediatly filed a complaint with the BBB.

On top of that, my friend's account was listed in her mother's name, but her mother recently passed away. On Monday, I came home to find the accoun shut off. They claim that someone called DirecTV to demand the account be shut off because the account holder was deceased, but they have no record of who made that call. I know that it was't my roommate or me, so I can only assume that the "someone" they refer to was imaginary and they did this in retaliation for my BBB complaint. We had to pay another $40 for new cards that I KNOW are only required because they say so! (We only reactivated 2 of teh receivers because we bought a new HDTiVo...)

So this crap has cost us $80 in 2 weeks on top of the closed account... Oh, and DirecTV still seems to think that teh HR10-250 I bought from Newegg is leased from them. I imagine I'll hve to get with the BBB again to get THAT problem fixed.


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## Jebberwocky! (Apr 16, 2005)

Someone's a cheap bastard LOL


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## Boston Fan (Feb 8, 2006)

Gluberall said:


> There has been an access card fee since since the dawn of directv and they don't send ac's with refurbs because that would hurt the effort to keep AC distribution down.


Two of my units are refurbs. Access cards came with both of them.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

> Two of my units are refurbs. Access cards came with both of them.


Then they must have been units you purchased from DTV directly. You won't get a new access card if you're sent a refurbed unit to replace one that is defective.



> Sorry, but I call bull**** on this. They charge $20 per card, not per shipping. In addition, they don't HAVE to require a new card.


You can call it whatever you like. OK, so they charge you $20 per card but then they throw in free overnight shipping if that makes you happy to think of it in that way. My question is, who's paying FedEx for shipping? 

As a rule, DTV will usually not move cards between accounts, although they provide boilerplate reasons for not doing so. There are many documented posts that indicate they will actually do it on occasion. It all depends on which CSR you luck into at the time you make your call. The fact is that they CAN do it if they want to.

If you paid another $40 for two additional cards then you were foolish. I'd have hung up on the CSR and immediately called back to talk to a different one until I found a CSR that would work with me and resolve the problem using the cards I purchased. If I was still unable to get the situation resolved then I would have started climbing the corporate ladder to get it worked out.



> Then when they came, the old card numbers weren't listed on the paperwork, so I didn't know which card should go with which receiver.


Nor would the old numbers likely be listed anywhere. The old cards were tied to a different account so there was no reason to provide you with that information since it is confidentential and between DTV and the previous account holder.


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## viruseater (Aug 20, 2005)

StEvEY5036 said:


> I can dispute anything that I dont feel I should have paid for. You see some of these people on the forum are on the alist as well and they didnt have to pay for a card. I called retention and the woman said she would have to call me back but she understood my situation. Its all about who you talk to.


If you agree to purchase something with full intentions of disputing the charges you're being dishonest and in reality you're stealing.

It's not your call what they should and shouldn't charge. It's also a crime to do what you just mentioned. it's called theft by deception.

It's this attitude that creates theft loss and cause everyone's prices to eventually go up.

P.S. you're the one that's being cheap


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## Stanley Rohner (Jan 18, 2004)

I love this crap ! Keep it coming StEvEY5036.

The OP can't possibly be serious. 

Call the credit card company and tell them not to pay DIRECTV the $20 for the new access card ? I'm sure DIRECTV will shut down all your receivers when they find out you did that.


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## DTVPro (Jun 24, 2005)

Stanley Rohner said:


> I love this crap ! Keep it coming StEvEY5036.
> 
> The OP can't possibly be serious.
> 
> Call the credit card company and tell them not to pay DIRECTV the $20 for the new access card ? I'm sure DIRECTV will shut down all your receivers when they find out you did that.


or just add the 20 dollars to your next bill


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## Jebberwocky! (Apr 16, 2005)

or both


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## tbrown (Mar 21, 2002)

lets add another perspective... assume time is money - many people can equate their lives out that way... or what their time is worth. How much time will be spent fighting and *****ing over $20? My time is worth a lot more than that... 

And yeah, on disputing the charge... that'd be asenine - DTV has the call recorded along with your caller id (even if you think it's blocked, it's not when you call an 800 number)... irritate them enough, and they will push the fraud charges which you'd totally deserve. With any luck, maybe your bank will top it off by charging you a penalty as well for wasting their time.


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## Gluberall (May 30, 2006)

tbrown said:


> lets add another perspective... assume time is money - many people can equate their lives out that way... or what their time is worth. How much time will be spent fighting and *****ing over $20? My time is worth a lot more than that...
> 
> And yeah, on disputing the charge... that'd be asenine - DTV has the call recorded along with your caller id (even if you think it's blocked, it's not when you call an 800 number)... irritate them enough, and they will push the fraud charges which you'd totally deserve. With any luck, maybe your bank will top it off by charging you a penalty as well for wasting their time.


I totally agree, can't tell you how many times I've answered the phone and the first sentence is.. " I make $110/ hour and I've been on the phone for 20 minutes!! you ( D*) owe me a paycheck!!!"
If you make that kind of money, regularly, get your personal CPA to call in for you.


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## Boston Fan (Feb 8, 2006)

mr.unnatural said:


> Then they must have been units you purchased from DTV directly. You won't get a new access card if you're sent a refurbed unit to replace one that is defective.


One refurb was a purchase through the DVD4ME deal.

The other was a replacement for a defective unit.

Both came with access cards.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

Getting an access card with the DVR4ME unit was as it should have been. Getting one with a replacement was just dumb luck and an oversight on DTV's part.


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## willardcpa (Feb 23, 2001)

Gluberall said:


> I totally agree, can't tell you how many times I've answered the phone and the first sentence is.. " I make $110/ hour and I've been on the phone for 20 minutes!! you ( D*) owe me a paycheck!!!"
> If you make that kind of money, regularly, get your personal CPA to call in for you.


That won't work, I'm a CPA and charge $240/hour for my time.


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## Gluberall (May 30, 2006)

ack, I am so in the wrong line of work.


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## untouchable (Apr 13, 2005)

StEvEY5036 said:


> I just got off the phone with directv and im extremely upset with them. I recently repaired my DSR7000 because the HD died a few weeks ago. During that time I called up Directv to see if I could get myself a new R10 from them, which I did. The replacement didn't come with a new access card so I had to use the old card from my DSR7000. Now that I fixed up my DSR7000 I want to be able to use it again on another tv. So I called up directv thinking that I could just use an access card from an old receiver that I had laying around.. apparently not. I was on the phone for about an hour trying to straighten things out with why I wanted to reactivate such an "old" (to them) unit. After going through about 5 people they came to the conclusion that I needed a new access card for the receiver which costs 20 bucks. Now what does this $20 actually go towards? Apparently making the card and shipping it to me costs that much, which is absolutely ridiculous. So I spent 20 minutes arguing with some supervisor about me not having to pay for this stupid piece of plastic (I am one of their "Alist" customers.. but that doesn't mean anything apparently.) and I decided that I was going to pay for the card then dispute the transaction with my credit card company when I get my statement.
> 
> Just some advice for any of you that might want to reactivate your old receivers down the road, keep the access cards in a safe place.


Cheap Bastards?? That's funny...but definitely not true...Like previously noted, they gave you a free HR10 and you are gonna complain about 20 bucks?? That seems like someone else is being a cheap b* don't you think??

You should read their agreement on line...I had some problems not too long ago and read it...wanna know what it says about access cards?? It says that they can charge you up to $300 if the card needs to be replaced...I don't really think $20 is worth arguing with someone over in this case...


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## Boston Fan (Feb 8, 2006)

mr.unnatural said:


> Getting an access card with the DVR4ME unit was as it should have been. Getting one with a replacement was just dumb luck and an oversight on DTV's part.


I really have no idea if it was dumb luck or not. The CSR told me that the replacement refurb would come with a new access card, and it did.


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## FlWingNut (Mar 4, 2005)

Can I add my .02? About a year-and-half ago, I bought a D*Tivo and a plain receiver from a local electronics store where they were floor samples on clearance. I saw them in a full page newspaper ad, and the store is a major retailer (although not CC or BB). BEFORE I left for the store I called D* and asked the CSR if I could just take two access cards from receivers I was currently using and put them in the new ones and he assured me I could (the units I was buying had "dealer " cards that only could be removed with special tool). Based on that, I bougt the units and installed them I put the new cards in and called D* to active. No go. They wanted me to buy two new cards. I was not happy -- not so much about the money, but about the fact that I had checked with them BEFORE I bought them. Long story short, after a few more calls I got them to send me new cards, but the hassle was incredible.

Have a policy, but be consistent and give people the proper information so they can make an informed decision.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

If you bought the Tivos from a retailer then DTV should have sent you the cards at no cost to you. I've activated numerous DTivos and told DTV that they were open box items from BB or CC. They sent me a free card every time.



> The CSR told me that the replacement refurb would come with a new access card, and it did.


I'm sure there must be some extenuating circumstances for your situation. DTV has never sent me a new access card with a refurb replacement unit. There's really no need for a new card since they can easily port the old card over to the new unit. I have never had a problem getting a card swapped from a previously subbed unit to a replacement unit.

The only time I've ever heard of DTV balking at activating a previously activated card is if it was previously on a different account, and even then they have been known to make exceptions. It really all depends on which CSR you talk to. I think some of them just don't understand the process involved with swapping cards between accounts, even though it can apparently be done without too much difficulty. You'd think they'd be more than happy to recycle access cards since it means that there's one less card in circulation that could get into the hands of potential DTV hackers. It is quite obvious that many CSRs just aren't all on the same page when it comes to certain things.


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