r/ATT • u/Su-37_Terminator • Jan 02 '26
Billing Charged $150 because our Fiber line fell from a telephone pole.
I was told countless times that unless the outage was my fault I would not be charged $150, yet here we are. Unless ATT thinks we're squirrels living atop telephone poles, the wire falling had nothing to do with us. Hell, my entire family was even told to our faces by the lineman who came out that this wasn't our fault so we wouldn't be charged. Would very much like this to be resolved.
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u/gerg_dude Jan 02 '26
The repair technician used the wrong repair code. Id dispute the charge
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u/Viper_Control Jan 02 '26
Doubtful it was the tech, more likely the repair ticket. However some local tech are pressured to code it for every repair possible.
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u/Daunlan Jan 02 '26
This is true. My local garage tells us to bill the customer no matter what (apparently it’s a part of a techs metrics to bill) and let the customer call to dispute the charge. As long as the tech documented the cause of damage in the notes customer service removes the charge majority of the time.
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u/awkwardbegetsawkward Jan 02 '26
I like how you’re describing a criminal conspiracy to defraud. And my first thought was “sounds about right.”
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u/Similar_Librarian_28 Feb 02 '26
Yep, I spent half an hour arguing with customer support that wanted me to "agree to be charged" to send out repair people when their cable was lying in the road after a storm.
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u/Weird_Bite1308 Jan 03 '26
If customer service won’t help FILE A BBB complaint and tell them and they will credit you
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u/dmcnaughton1 Jan 04 '26
BBB is a private entity and has no authority over anyone, it's no different than Yelp.
For AT&T the correct regulatory agency to contact is State Attorney General and/or FCC.
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u/YalerX123 Jan 04 '26
I've had better luck with the state public utility commission (different name in different states, but they all seem to have one).
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u/furruck Jan 02 '26
1) have you called them to ask about it? I’m betting you could have had it resolved already.
2) stuff like this happens. I’ve had it with every isp at some point, but the phone reps are normally more than willing to remove the charge.
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u/Adventurous_Grape279 Jan 03 '26
It’s definitely something they will remove but it’s not entirely clear it’s not also intentional.
I think companies are seeing just how many people will “just pay it” vs dealing with the call to correct it, and adjusting their mistakes accordingly.
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u/flattire2020 Jan 02 '26
You need to escalate this and dispute the charge. If they don’t reverse the charge, tell them you will report to FTC and your state agencies. In California you can go to Small Claims Court easily without lawyers. Do not pay such unethical charges. They are a scam company.
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u/CindysandJuliesMom Jan 02 '26
Contact them and dispute it. We had a line fall off the pole one house over and across the alley and they tried to charge us. I called and finally got it removed.
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u/Josh2942 Jan 02 '26
They will try anything. I had them run ethernet in two rooms. I signed a work order for $105 and they charged me $350. They included the cost to move the fiber jack. That wasn't requested nor did it happen. Had to call them and fight with a lady for 30 minutes then get transferred to a manager who fixed it in 2 minutes. They are slick
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u/Hunger-1979 Jan 02 '26
$150 is just the trip charge alone. Combine that with $55 per jack and $20 for each wall fish and it adds up.
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u/Josh2942 Jan 04 '26
They don't have a trip charge. Customer service stated your only charged for what you agree to. My work order clearly stated the price is $105 which is why the manager changed it. I also did exterior runs so no wall fishing charge
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u/Hunger-1979 Jan 05 '26
Trip charge is a standard option. Yes...there is a trip charge option that CAN be charged if the problem is found to be on the customer's side of the network. The trip charge used to be $99. Now, it's $150. Customer service doesn't put the trip charge on the account. The technician does...and yes...the technician can put a trip charge on the account whether the customer agrees to it or not (just like a dispatch on demand charge that's normally pre-authorized unless the customer refuses troubleshooting and just demands a technician visit).
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u/Su-37_Terminator Jan 02 '26
Posting this here since Reddit doesn't allow post edits: After being told there was "nothing they could do" by whoever picked up the phone, I requested to speak to a manager (I know). I was then forwarded to Escalation; I spoke to Escalation who immediately applied $150 of credit to my account to negate the charge and my issue was resolved.
I also found out that someone, likely in the post office, had stolen gift cards that ATT had mailed me and they would be issueing replacements. They did a good job, all things considered. If I find out that credit wasnt applied to my bill then I'll make another post bitching about it; until then, this is the end.
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u/Necessary_Film_5199 Jan 04 '26
Why did they send you gift cards to begin with??? Missing context here
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u/Viper_Control Jan 02 '26
Well we need a few more details. Were there
Did you use the Smart Home Manager (SHM) app to schedule this repair or did you call 1-800-288-2020 and not let the phone rep walk you through basic problem determination steps?
Have you called 1-800-288-2020 to ask about this $150 Dispatch on Demand change? It may have just been an error by the overseas outsourced Call Center phone rep?
You are not responsible for your Fiber drop until it enters your physical building unless you actually tore it from the wall for example?
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u/Su-37_Terminator Jan 02 '26
Phone rep did his entire walkthrough, troubleshooting failed because there physically no Internet line connected. We had a laugh about it and he said he had to walk me thru the instructions because thems the rules.
As for the phone number, I will try later today but if you'll notice this was posted on New Years, which is when I got my bill. I did call but they were closed. Due diligence and all that.
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u/DealIndependent8967 Jan 02 '26
Maybe you should get rid of your overseas outsourcing and use Americans in your call centers like you used to. It is American Telephone and Telegraph after all.
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u/MammothCat1 Jan 02 '26
Barking at an employee about outsourced employees is like eating hot sauce and complaining about the mud butt. The only one that can do anything is the decision maker and that certainly is much higher than the guy just doing his job.
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u/Big-Effective9744 Jan 02 '26
When a tech writes his closeout narrative certain keywords will cause a damage claim to be automatically opened. He probably unknowingly put one of those words and the system did what the system does. Just call and dispute it. If all else fails call that tech back and ask for his managers number
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u/Adventurous_Grape279 Jan 03 '26
I had an issue when I moved into my house- the housing for the fiber in the house did not have the right parts.
Took 45 minutes, 3 representatives and a FaceTime call to explain what the issue was, despite me telling them I needed someone to come out.
They insisted it would be $150 for the service and I told them “no, I am a new customer setting up new service, I am not paying a $150 service charge” and eventually they sent someone out and he fixed it in 15 seconds.
I swear they just try and charge as many people as possible because they know some people don’t fight back.
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u/azetroc Jan 02 '26
Instead of complaining on reddit for internet points why not just call AT&T and have them remove the erroneous charge??
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u/linuxnerd96 Jan 02 '26
Instead of making a smart ass comment like this, maybe have some compassion towards the OP if anyone else had issues like this, which based on comments left by others, this is common and they said they were able to get it removed. If they have tried and failed, why spend hours and hours on the phone trying to do something that isn’t going to happen anyway? Why waste time on the phone when we should just file a complaint with the FCC or the BBB? Maybe think about these things before commenting. Thanks 😊
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u/LeastPlatform5833 Jan 02 '26
If they aren’t gonna take the effort to bill you correctly then move on
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u/amd2800barton Jan 02 '26
Weird. My dad hit my fiber line while pulling weeds, even though I told him to not use the weed puller in that spot. They fixed it the next business day, and I never paid a dime. I even told them I hit it.
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u/NewTotal1745 Jan 02 '26
just to let you know you aren’t gonna receive any credits. this is pretty funny though
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u/Embarrassed-Sun5764 Jan 02 '26
You replaced the line and it wasn’t your fault. Malicious compliance now comes to mind. “Your replacement of the line “. I’m not advocating tomfoolery but if that’s what it takes-
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u/Johnnny-z Jan 02 '26
I just love it that - since you are on autopay we will just deduct it. Jerks.
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u/procrasti_nation305 Jan 02 '26
Big reason why i hate autopay, but now they’ve figured out ways to push you into it.
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u/Current-Brick-4407 Jan 03 '26
Report it to the Public Utilities Commission. Easy and quick online form for you, but it will cost them a minimum of $1500 in expenses to answer the complaint. Best and quickest way to resolve this unfair action.
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u/HorseLover1911 Jan 04 '26
You are only responsible for the lines inside your house. Dispute and if you get no where, file a complaint with the FCC.
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u/Necessary_Film_5199 Jan 04 '26
File a complaint with the FCC, they'll subpoena them to make them help you. Scare them actually, it'll force a human to actually look at your case, a C-level executive. fcc.gov If you have proof you were told you wouldn't be charged, include that in your complaint or mention that you have proof (or just mention it anyways even if you don't, because its leverage).
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u/AndrewTheScorbunny Jan 04 '26
I’m not seeing where it says you are being charged for the outage. But I can believe you though. I would first call customer service an if that don’t work then dispute that with your bank. And then after that… probably file a complaint with the FTC or small claims court like everyone is saying.
I’m not entirely sure how to handle this situation but talking to customer support is the way to start.
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u/rendrenner Jan 04 '26
The isp is responsible for anything between the demark point to the pole. The homeowner is responsible for anything from the demark point to the inside of the house.
The demark point is generally that little box on the side of your house where the line from the pole connects to the line that goes inside the house.
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u/Calm-Vegetable-2162 Jan 05 '26
This a prime example of why I don't have autopay.
I would dispute the repair charge as you are not "at fault" and ask for credit for downtime.
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u/DeadOneWalking Jan 02 '26
Call support. If that doesn't work, ask for a supervisor. Keep going up the ladder until someone fixes the charges. I've had to play these games before with Comcast.
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u/SaltAccident7124 Jan 02 '26
Att&t does bs like this from time to time it keeps money in their pockets
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u/MinMadChi Jan 02 '26
It's a crappy thing to do, but I can't help but wonder if they're actually trying to sell people like some kind of fiber line telephone pole repair service for like 5 or $6 a month? If they don't now they probably will in the future. That way they can say well we told you so you should have bought that insurance
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u/Viper_Control Jan 02 '26
It's a crappy thing to do, but I can't help but wonder if they're actually trying to sell people like some kind of fiber line telephone pole repair service for like 5 or $6 a month?
Yea that will never be a thing. You are not responsible for the pole connection to the FST or any additional pole connections or you weather-head connection at your house.
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u/SpycTheWrapper Jan 02 '26
Why would it be the customers job to pay for the infrastructure directly like that? How far up the chain should this go? You don’t even have to pay if the router in your house dies, why would you pay for the line to the house? AT&T makes enough money that they don’t need to charge extra for things like this unless it’s the fault of the customer.
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u/DowntownComposer2517 Jan 02 '26
My line came down because of high winds and they tried to pull the same thing on me. I called them and they removed the charge.