# Tivo deactivated my Bolt and wants me to pay for replacement!



## Riftur (Nov 1, 2016)

When Tivo added the new ad feature when you play recordings, my Tivo bolt started rebooted itself. After 3 months of the rebooting which was getting worse, I contacted support and was told there is a hardware issue and I need to buy a replacement Tivo (I made a mistake taking their word for it because after I did research and found tons of people complaining about it). So I paid $150 for the Tivo and another $200 deposit. After I got off the phone, they deactivated the ads and my Tivo worked perfectly again. I contacted them before I got the replacement and told them what happened and that I was returning the box they sent me for a full refund. Getting my refund turned into 3 weeks of craziness. I would call and I would be told it would be another 10 days every time. So on November 3rd my Tivo stopped working with error message Tivo service interruption. The same day, I only got the $200 deposit back in my account. Apparently they thought for some reason I switched boxes. Even though I had called multiple times requesting my refund (money is tight because of covid). I contacted them right away about the issue. Over the last 4 weeks I have spent over 6 hours on the phone with their tech support and they can not figure out why they can not turn it back on. I spoke with 1 supervisor who said they will get authorization to send me a replacement for free. When I called back and spoke with a different supervisor, they said its their policy that I pay $150 for the replacement and there is nothing they can do about it. They deactivated my box and I am supposed to pay for their mistake? I have been a Tivo customer since the series 1 Tivo and currently have 2 bolts and a series 3 which are still in use. I will never give Tivo money again after this. BUYER BEWARE!


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## shwru980r (Jun 22, 2008)

Riftur said:


> When Tivo added the new ad feature when you play recordings, my Tivo bolt started rebooted itself. After 3 months of the rebooting which was getting worse, I contacted support and was told there is a hardware issue and I need to buy a replacement Tivo (I made a mistake taking their word for it because after I did research and found tons of people complaining about it). So I paid $150 for the Tivo and another $200 deposit. After I got off the phone, they deactivated the ads and my Tivo worked perfectly again. I contacted them before I got the replacement and told them what happened and that I was returning the box they sent me for a full refund. Getting my refund turned into 3 weeks of craziness. I would call and I would be told it would be another 10 days every time. So on November 3rd my Tivo stopped working with error message Tivo service interruption. The same day, I only got the $200 deposit back in my account. Apparently they thought for some reason I switched boxes. Even though I had called multiple times requesting my refund (money is tight because of covid). I contacted them right away about the issue. Over the last 4 weeks I have spent over 6 hours on the phone with their tech support and they can not figure out why they can not turn it back on. I spoke with 1 supervisor who said they will get authorization to send me a replacement for free. When I called back and spoke with a different supervisor, they said its their policy that I pay $150 for the replacement and there is nothing they can do about it. They deactivated my box and I am supposed to pay for their mistake? I have been a Tivo customer since the series 1 Tivo and currently have 2 bolts and a series 3 which are still in use. I will never give Tivo money again after this. BUYER BEWARE!


If you're walking away, then initiate a chargeback for the outstanding $150.


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## Riftur (Nov 1, 2016)

shwru980r said:


> If you're walking away, then initiate a chargeback for the outstanding $150.


I contacted my bank and opened a case for the refund and a few days ago it was resolved and I got my money back. Also, I decided on my own to do a master reset, which actually fixed the issue. I do not understand why 2 months (8 hours on the phone, no exaggeration) working on this issue with Tivo, no one told me to do it. Before this happened, I was thinking about getting their new streaming service, but I will never give this company money ever again. When a real company makes a mistake and they are not able to fix it in a reasonable time frame (a few weeks tops) they usually take responsibility and replace the product. They do not try to make you pay for their mistake. I do not know what changed at Tivo, they used to be a great company. I bought a Tivo as soon as they came out and have owned multiple units since the beginning. I guess when they already have your money (I buy lifetime subscriptions with all my units) they stop caring about their customers.


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## chiguy50 (Nov 9, 2009)

Riftur said:


> I contacted my bank and opened a case for the refund and a few days ago it was resolved and I got my money back. Also, I decided on my own to do a master reset, which actually fixed the issue. I do not understand why 2 months (8 hours on the phone, no exaggeration) working on this issue with Tivo, no one told me to do it. Before this happened, I was thinking about getting their new streaming service, but I will never give this company money ever again.


Glad to hear that you finally got this resolved to your satisfaction. Persistence pays!



Riftur said:


> When a real company makes a mistake and they are not able to fix it in a reasonable time frame (a few weeks tops) they usually take responsibility and replace the product. They do not try to make you pay for their mistake.* I do not know what changed at Tivo, they used to be a great company. *I bought a Tivo as soon as they came out and have owned multiple units since the beginning. I guess when they already have your money (I buy lifetime subscriptions with all my units) they stop caring about their customers.


What happened, in a nutshell, is new ownership (several times over) and a change in corporate philosophy.


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## shwru980r (Jun 22, 2008)

Riftur said:


> I contacted my bank and opened a case for the refund and a few days ago it was resolved and I got my money back. Also, I decided on my own to do a master reset, which actually fixed the issue. I do not understand why 2 months (8 hours on the phone, no exaggeration) working on this issue with Tivo, no one told me to do it. Before this happened, I was thinking about getting their new streaming service, but I will never give this company money ever again. When a real company makes a mistake and they are not able to fix it in a reasonable time frame (a few weeks tops) they usually take responsibility and replace the product. They do not try to make you pay for their mistake. I do not know what changed at Tivo, they used to be a great company. I bought a Tivo as soon as they came out and have owned multiple units since the beginning. I guess when they already have your money (I buy lifetime subscriptions with all my units) they stop caring about their customers.


It's galling to me that they won't add an OTT app to their new streaming device to allow access to their legacy DVRs.


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