Reply #13: SBC/Yahoo in S.F. Bay Area uses India for "Level One" tech support [View All]

...in your area it might be different. You may have smooth sailing.

Here, it's the "banging your head against the wall, yanking your hair out by the roots" type of support. Language problems are only the beginning. I had a problem several months ago (drop-offs, slow-downs) that ended up being an actual, outside-of-my-house, nothing-to-do-with-me SBC external equipment problem.

Took a MONTH to get it fixed. I'm talking about several calls a DAY, EVERY DAY, for a MONTH. At the halfway point I got through to a supervisor who let me use him as my primary contact throughout the case. But all told, I had between 15 and 20 SBC techs at my place over the course of the month and they were all coming up with a different "diagnosis"...NOTHING was getting fixed. It took a lot of yelling and persistence. Squeaky wheel gets the grease with SBC (and supervisors have TOLD me that).

I have also found that when I have problems with Tech Support in India (SBC or Dell), I am told about the survey they will be sending me. I've made comments in the past like "GREAT. I look forward to filling it out and letting management know about the non-existent level of customer service I got." And guess what? I have NEVER RECEIVED A SURVEY. NEVER.

But this is what I learned: once you call "Level One" support and open your case, you can DEMAND to speak with "Second Tier" support. This is SBC policy, "written into law" about a year ago. These are the techs who KNOW THEIR STUFF. And it's not just the India thing that is a problem with Level One...I am a long-time customer and SBC (Formerly Pac Bell) Level One support has ALWAYS been a problem. They love to tell you things like "you need to reinstall Windows"...So you can give your name, account info, description of the problem, and after this is all documented and they ask the standard questions about the lights on your modem, you can DEMAND to speak with Tier Two. Tier Two is U.S.A.-based, NOT in India.

:grr:

The other thing is that SBC has a contract with India through the end of 2007. They know that their customers are PISSED, but apparently don't plan to buy their way out of the contract. However, on this last service call, several techs and supervisors confirmed that at the end of 2007, tech support is coming HOME.

So yeah, Earthlink may suck, but please don't assume that you're heading for greener pastures by signing up with SBC.