Greed

We understand your concern and have reached out to you via another Social Media platform. Please check your inbox, and let us know if you need any additional help. John, DIRECTV Community Team

@Gforce7172 

Before you shipped back the boxes (I hope that is what you meant by "turned-in" and you didn't do something else), you call DirecTV close the account. The following month you should get a courtesy statement showing a $0 balance verifying cancellation and nothing further owed (unless final one-time charges, like ECF or unbilled PPVs discovered on returned boxes).

DirecTV has a 60 day billing dispute policy, as like practically any company they require to be notified within a reasonable time if there is a billing issue. At 4 years of payments every month that goes far beyond any reasonable time. In the end it is your personal responsibility to review your finances. I get if you have to PCS that things get caught up in the move, but with counting in years you should have reviewed your finances long before then. Just like you should review your LES on a regular basis.

If corporate (their Office of the President) has "ceased communications" then sounds like they had considered the matter closed. Once to a collection agency, DirecTV no longer owns the balance so is normally between you and that agency to resolve.

Sure as long as you did your part in the beginning it was on DirecTV for not closing the account. However by going years still paying the bill, that was you confirming it was ok to leave service open and you accepted all charges. If the forum team resolves anything through their social media contact they offered, that would be great but I wouldn't expect much.

@Juniper No doubt it is my responsibility to review my finances. I have a couple properties and autopay-easy to miss what house has what-sounds like first world problems, I understand. None the less, my ignorance and poor financial scrutiny is not a consent to be charged without service provided. The sale of the house 4 years ago is evidence that no service could possibly have been received. As for the closing of the account, again, I assume once the equipment is returned the account would be closed. Poor assumption. I am not claiming innocence. However, once my credit card finally expires and they send the charges to collections-I have issues. A reasonable company would have understood the circumstances and forgiven the $305 charges. The representative themselves have the authority to forgive up to 3 months of charges. I am only looking for the current charges to be dropped and collections to stop calling. Out of principle I will not pay the additional $305 of charges. Any reputable company would not add insult to injury. Again, you are knowledgeable on Directtv procesures-I am not. I messed up. Obviously. Business is business and if they want their $305 so bad they can take me to court. 

@DIRECTVhelp  no live people are responding on instagram. I have asked for contact information for the legal office at Directv. Please provide. Silly over $305, going to cost me a lot more but I’m willing and able 

@Gforce7172 

Shipping equipment back isn't you speaking to the cancellation department. If you didn't call to cancel, then it wasn't even DirecTV's responsibility at the beginning.

The consent to be charged was within DirecTV's 60 day billing dispute policy of their Terms of Service. You didn't dispute until 4 years later, well after they wrote off the balance to a collection agency. At that point as the collection agency owns the balance any dispute you try is now with them.

I'm not aware of any company that considers 4 years of ignorance reasonable. With that billing dispute of 60 days, in practice it has been the last 2 bills and current cycle to date (so about 3 months). Problem is you are disputing a non-cancellation from 4 years ago, which from your assuming sending back equipment did the cancellation sounds like you may not have even called them at that time so there wasn't a cancellation request to begin with.

DirecTV is not taking you anywhere. They have done their part that after whatever time thresh hold it was written off/sold to a collection agency. So they already got their money from the collection agency. DirecTV no longer has a part in this. If you want to try anything further, check the arbitration clause in the Terms of Service. Beyond that, legal discussions haven't been permitted in the forum as that is private between the involved parties.

This is just a realistic perspective of the situation at hand. If you had actually called and requested to cancel, it would be nice if they did something. But the bottom line is at 4 years they have no obligation. Spending more on "principal" to me just seems cutting off your nose to spite your face, especially when the dispute is clearly in their favor.

For the T&C check their official page and the following section:

https://www.directv.com/legal/directv-residential-terms-of-service/

13. Dispute Resolution

@Juniper I am not even trying to dispute the 4 years of payments. That’s not my argument. I am disputing the recent charges since November. They have every means to cancel those charges prior to collections. I spoke with an agent last month and she said she would cancel them before sending to collections and did not. I am not arguing any technicalities of my 4 years of ignorance. This is a matter of principle and poor customer relations. There is a subjective component to operating a good business- they have failed. Thanks for your input

Only charges since November, understood. It may come down to the specifics. If it is disputed because of what you expected 4 years ago, then likely it doesn't get credited.

However, if in November is when you found out about the situation and you officially requested closing of the account and it still remained open, then the bill cycles after the one in which you called could be disputable.

It will most likely come down on what was (or wasn't) done and when on if they have any obligation to credit anything. Be prepared that your view on principle and customer relations may not change the outcome. Difference of what we think should happen compared to what actually is required to/will happen.

You've got realistic and understandable views, looking at both sides of the situation, and the Terms and Conditions on where you may be able to further proceed with any disputes. You make the choices you can live with at this point. I just hope it doesn't end with you losing out more funds in the end and not even a win on principal to wrap yourself in at the end of the day.

@Gforce7172 DIRECTV's Mailing Address is 2230 E Imperial Hwy El Segundo, CA 90245-3504.  You can address it to the Legal Department or the Office of the President.