UNITED STATES—It is indeed a question I have been asking myself; when do you know it’s time to switch providers? Whether it is your mobile provider, electric or gas company, internet provider, insurance company, Cable company the list goes on and on. I like to think I am fiercely loyal to the companies to whom I pay for their service or goods, however, with one of my providers I think the time may have finally come for the plug to be pulled because I’m just annoyed.

Customer service means a lot to me, and if I’m paying someone for a service and the customer service is lackluster or nearly invisible that is a problem. Look, let’s drop the elephant out of the bag as I’m probably terminating my service with my internet, cable and landline provider for more than 15 years because the service has just gotten worse to me.

The internet has been an issue for a while, but as of late it feels like the amount of dead zones I have in my home is frustrating me to no end. The internet seems to go out in the wee hours of the night and if I’m not calling the provider to complain about the issue nothing is done to resolve it. Making the situation worse is that I LITERALLY HAD A REP TELL ME IF YOU DON’T REPORT AN OUTAGE AND CALL THEM, THEY WILL NOT CREDIT YOUR ACCOUNT! That is brazen as hell to just say that to the consumer.

The most frustrating aspect is I can never speak to a live representative. They are always pushing me towards their stupid mobile app and it is like pulling teeth to try to speak with someone because you’re getting a chat agent who is never in the United States and chatting via app versus talking on the phone is different. It just is, it’s a much easier way to communicate the issue at hand, and the worst element of all is not being able to talk to a chat agent because they’re all busy. So what the hell am I supposed to do with my issue? Each time I call about an issue they are trying to shove the notion of their mobile service to me. I don’t know how many times I’ve told them I’m NOT INTERESTED in utilizing your mobile service.

I have a mobile provider already and I’m very happy with their service. My price NEVER changes, it is always the same and it’s reliable as hell. With you guys the price for my internet, cable and landline changes every freakin’ month and then it’s like pulling teeth to get a definitive answer as to why? Why am I paying for Broadcast TV? It’s free with an antenna, yet with cable I have to force out more money and for what?

Don’t sell me on a new service or product if you haven’t fixed the problem that I am already dealing with. The solution, well you can upgrade to our new package that is more money, but does that guarantee the problem is fixed? No, I don’t know that. Why would I want to pay more for something if it’s not guaranteed. I need a guarantee on the service I’m forcing a ton of money out of my pocket into the provider’s pocket.

There was talk about re-wiring things from top to bottom because the way my provider wired my home is the reason I have encountered some internet issues. All they gave was an estimate that any damage down to your home they would ultimately compensate, but I don’t know how long it would take to recoup those damages paid out and how much drilling and chaos would be impacted into the home as a result.

The contract is up and guess what, I am ok with that. I sometimes hate the contract lock in deals because they really are no deals and if they are my providing is NOT PROVIDING ANYTHING OF SUBSTANTIAL VALUE TO ME. Sometimes you have to be willing to part with the old and consider something new because change matters and it can help your budget in the long run. It might be scary, but sometimes change is good.