Welcome to Frontier Communications your new service provider

[Lakewood90712]

Those of us lucky former Verizon customers are on Frontier as of April fools day. Internet went down sometime after midnight. Called tech support,15 min wait, got a vary courteous and equally useless offshore csr. wasted about another half hour.

" Are you located near sepulveda california ? " (me) no.

then no conversation for about another 15 minutes.

"So sir, our crews have been notified and will fix the outage as soon as possible."

(me) Uh, can you give me a trouble ticket number for my internet outage ? " Uh, no sir, because california already has an outage, I cannot start a new ticket"

( me)Uh, ok, have a nice day.

From the background noises and the confused state of the csr, I think he was working from his apartment.

So the monthly cost of service is the same dollars, but the real cost just skyrocketed in cost of my time.

I will call during USA business hours monday and see if all the calls go offshore.

Not going to get stressed, have a 4g usb modem as backup. Time to enjoy the sunshine.

 

[Ready]

I have Verizon as well, in Southern California. No issues yet, but I'm skeptical that Frontier will provide comparable service to Verizon. At least Verizon provided US based tech support. When you end up speaking to someone in India, you know it's not going to be good.

Maybe it's time to go back to Time Warner Cable.

 

[ronin]

Verizon stopped autopay without notice (unless I missed it) and sent us a bill for the final month and an overdue notice for last month. Frontier says one option is to use express pay on their website to pay it off, except you can't do anything financial like set up autopay or use express pay on the Frontier website. Assume they'll straighten things out eventually. Other than that, everything else seems to work the same as always.

 

[Souschef]

Frontier

I logged into the Frontier website and set up my user name and password. I then tried to log into the bill pay section using my Verizon account number, which I know is correct, but no luck. I called the CS line and asked about autopay, and they said it would be switched over. It will be interesting

 

[eytonxav]

Frontier is getting chewed up by thousands of negative comments on Facebook. So far, my FIOS TV, internet and digital phone are working, but setting up an online account with Frontier was ludicrous. Had problems logging in, linking my Verizon account, and then when asked to validate my cellphone, it sends a text message to the phone with a validation code to key in, however, that text message didn't come for almost 12 hours. I am not sure how long it is going to take Frontier to stabilize the network and account management, but this might go down as one of the poorest large scale conversions ever. They screwed things up in Connecticut years ago when they took over from ATT, but the problems up there seem to pale in comparison to what CA, FL, and TX are seeing. FIOS is a bit more involved than running a POTS or even DSL service, so I wonder if they will ever be able to do it without all the tools/techs Verizon had in place.

 

[bUU]

So the monthly cost of service is the same dollars, but the real cost just skyrocketed in cost of my time.

Yes. I was concerned when I read comments from folks saying that things wouldn't change. I thought that was nonsense - there was a reason why Verizon dumped that customer base, and it was clear to me that they did so because it was too expensive to provide their standard level of customer service to that customer base, due to how their operations are structured. It was clear to me that they off-loaded it to a company that didn't have to live up to Verizon's superior service standard.

I'm sorry for your situation.

 

[eytonxav]

Yes. I was concerned when I read comments from folks saying that things wouldn't change. I thought that was nonsense - there was a reason why Verizon dumped that customer base, and it was clear to me that they did so because it was too expensive to provide their standard level of customer service to that customer base, due to how their operations are structured. It was clear to me that they off-loaded it to a company that didn't have to live up to Verizon's superior service standard.

I'm sorry for your situation.

Costly yes, but the primary reason is that Verizon wants to be a wireless only company. For the time being they will keep their landline business on the east coast where they have their heaviest customer concentrations, but its only a matter of time until those landline assets are sold off. Thanks to the vision of Lowell McAdams!

 

[Lakewood90712]

Any retired telco workers on ER-Org chuckling right now

 

[eytonxav]

Any retired telco workers on ER-Org chuckling right now

I haven't been chuckling for a long time, and by chuckling I mean disdain for Chuck Lee.

 

[bUU]

This is along the lines of what we all were saying would happen when Judge Greene's decision came down.

 

[Lakewood90712]

On the Frontier outage page, they say the company is "working tirelessly" to resolve the outage. Hard to operate service vehicles without tires.

They must have taken the service trucks to goodyear and got some tires, internet is now back up after 30 hours.

 

[ronin]

I was told today that the website would be ready April 9th. Awesome, since they switched over April 1.

 

[harley]

Any retired telco workers on ER-Org chuckling right now

I've been smiling almost continuously since the day I became a retired Telco worker. Many of my old compadres now work for Frontier, and are not smiling.

 

[GravitySucks]

Any retired telco workers on ER-Org chuckling right now

Not at the customers troubles. Overjoyed I don't have to deal with this stuff anymore.

I was involved in an earlier Verizon Frontier buyout and am glad I don't have to deal with that mess or worry about being transferred to that company. All my ex coworkers that were close to prepared left this round instead of being transferred.

 

[Cobra9777]

I feel for the people with outages. So far, I've had no issues with the FiOS move to Frontier. I have 50/50 internet and only the broadcast tier TV. Everything is working perfectly, same as before. Speed tests are identical, possibly slightly better on the upload.

I set up a Frontier ID on their website without any problem. But like others, I can't actually do anything on their site until April 8 (if they actually hit that deadline). Verizon billed my CC today for the final invoice, as scheduled. According to the online FAQ, auto-pay info will be transferred to Frontier. I'll confirm that after the 8th.

FiOS internet is such a solid service, Frontier will have to screw things up a lot more than this to drive me back to cable.

 

[bUU]

FiOS internet is such a solid service, Frontier will have to screw things up a lot more than this to drive me back to cable.

From where I'm sitting, the two are converging back toward each other. When we moved to Georgia we were "forced" to "give up" Verizon FiOS. Our only option (because of how far we're from the CO) was Comcast Xfinity.

Quality-wise, it has been every bit as reliable as FiOS ever was. I'm perturbed by the surcharge if we go over 300 GB/month, but that's my only concern. Cable television service has been rock solid, we get On Demand on my TiVo now, something that FiOS never offered me.

Incidentally, as a parting gift, Verizon FiOS charged us for an extra month, and then held the money for six months before returning it. So billing-wise, Comcast's track record has been better for us.

And it makes sense. The people at Verizon aren't in business to evoke our gushing admiration for the largess they bestow on us. They're after dollars every bit as much as Comcast, and they are both big enough that a long-term difference in overall, customer-impacting quality of service doesn't make sense.

 

[fidler4]

Another Frontier story about crappy service: Last Tuesday woke up with no Internet (FIOS). Called Frontier talked with Mary and went through the routine of resetting everything but no luck a tech would have to come out. She said first appointment was Saturday. No time just between 8-5. She asked if I had cats or dogs. Yes I have a dog. She then gave me a ticket #. Saturday rolls around I get an automated call from Frontier saying they would have to reschedule my appointment to Tuesday but I would not have to be home when the tech arrived. I guess they forgot about the dog.

A couple of weeks ago I read in the paper about Frontier getting lit up at our local council meeting so Saturday I sent an email to my council rep. Later in the evening I get an email back from the council rep saying they have forwarded my email to a Frontier VP. Sunday night I get a call from Randy from Frontier. He said he would have a tech out Monday to fix the problem if it could not be fixed remotely. He left his cell number in case the tech didn't show up.

Within an hour of talking with Randy my Internet was up and running! Looks like it was handled remotely. I sent an email to the Frontier VP and my council person thanking and letting them know my problem was solved. I also went to Frontier's tech support page and did a quick Chat with a tech saying my problem was solved and they could cancel my ticket.

So today (Tuesday) I did my patriotic duty and voted. When I returned home there was a note on my front door from Frontier saying they showed up to fix my service but I wasn't home so I would have to call their tech support to get a new appointment.

So I went to the Charter Communications web site (Time Warner now I guess) and laughed when I saw this banner:



I think it might be time to switch


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[rodi]

So I went to the Charter Communications web site (Time Warner now I guess) and laughed when I saw this banner:

View attachment 24075

I think it might be time to switch


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

Charter bought Time Warner... not the other way around. The new name is "Spectrum".

I'm predicting my Time Warner rates will go up as soon as Spectrum rolls out their new stuff.

 

[Lakewood90712]

What really need to happen is for the public utilities commission to impose a stiff monetary penalty when the provider fails to restore service in 24 hours, other than so called "Acts of god" ( Flood, tornado, earthquake etc.), Like $25 per day after the first day. Money is always a motivator.

 

[bUU]

What really need to happen is for the public utilities commission to impose a stiff monetary penalty when the provider fails to restore service in 24 hours, other than so called "Acts of god" ( Flood, tornado, earthquake etc.), Like $25 per day after the first day. Money is always a motivator.

Of course, the cost of that would just get added to the cost of the service itself. There is no free lunch.

 

[eytonxav]

I recently lost all my FIOS services (TV, phone, internet). I could tell the problem was not in my home, despite the fact that Frontier's front line techs thought there was. I am a Verizon retiree, and was one of the early FIOS adopter. I just opened the NID cabinet outside my house and saw both status lights were red and that told me it was a remote problem. Unfortunately, Frontier did not purchase all the network tools that Verizon had at its disposal, otherwise it most likely would have detected the problem existed in a hub cabinet up the street from my neighborhood. Anyway, I received a $25 credit for 3 days without service. If anyone has a problem in the future, Frontier set up an Office of the President group to assist and expedite fixes, and I had to escalate there to get the problem resolved, otherwise, I could have been out for weeks. If you have problems you might try calling this number, 844-320-4445.

 

[Chuckanut]

I have had Frontier FIOS service for three years. I have had two unexpected outages which I managed to fix with a call to their customer support.

A third outage occurred after a huge windstorm. My electrical service was out for about 14 hours and when it came back FIOS was not working. I called Frontier but all the usual tricks I could do at home did not work. The first tech spot open was a week later. That seemed long to me but I made the appointment. About three days later I woke and and while making breakfast noticed that my modem now seemed to be flashing its lights in a 'normal' pattern. I turned on my computer and FIOS was working again.

Obviously, they had had a significant outage in their equipment somewhere and finally got it fixed. My only real complaint is that the tech support people did not know this.

Overall, I am happy with Frontier and vastly prefer it to the local cable company.

 

[eytonxav]

I have had Frontier FIOS service for three years.

Just curious, I was not aware that Verizon sold any FIOS franchises to Frontier prior to April 1 of this year, although I know other areas had been sold to them some time ago, but didn't think those were FIOS enabled. What state are you in and when did Frontier take over?

 

[Chuckanut]

Just curious, I was not aware that Verizon sold any FIOS franchises to Frontier prior to April 1 of this year, although I know other areas had been sold to them some time ago, but didn't think those were FIOS enabled. What state are you in and when did Frontier take over?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontier_Communications

In May 2009, Frontier announced the signing of an $8.6 billion agreement with Verizon Communications to acquire Verizon's 4.8 million landlines leased to residential and small business customers.[26] The deal meant Frontier would acquire all wireline assets in Arizona, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin, placed into a holding company called New Communications ILEC Holdings. Also included were several of Verizon's exchanges in California, including those bordering Arizona, Nevada, and Oregon.[27] I

 

[eytonxav]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontier_Communications

Thanks, I did not realize FIOS was included in some of these prior wireline sales. Given that, Frontier's rollout in CA/FL/TX should have been much better. In these states it has been a disaster, but hopefully will get better over time.

From the wiki link:

In addition to the purchase of copper lines from Verizon, Frontier also acquired the fiber-optic system built by Verizon in Fort Wayne, Indiana, around Portland, Oregon , southern California, and in some eastern suburbs of Seattle, Washington.[35] The company kept the name "FiOS" for the fiber systems and licenses it acquired from Verizon. The initial transition was rocky, with Frontier initially claiming that it had no plans for changes after the transition, but later attempted to institute a $500 installation fee for new television subscribers, backed out of franchise agreements in some cities in Oregon, and increased rates by 50% in Indiana.[36][37][38] Frontier later retracted the rate increases and installation fee, but has not reclaimed franchises in the cities that it relinquished and not before losing FiOS TV subscribers.[39]