# So Long Bell



## Arcaneind

Today the straw finally broke the camel's back!

After years of not switching from Bell for home phone, long distance and Internet because I didn't want to change my e-mail address, an add-on fee finally did it. Not only had Bell quietly upped my Long Distance plan from $7.95 to 9.95 but I learned that the $5.95 "Network Charge" on my phone bill was actually a additional long distance fee in disguise!

I have been looking at TekSavvy for a long time in RedFlagDeals and DSLReports so I made the call and switched.

Based on my math:

Home phone - $11.20 _per month_ cheaper (based on line, call display & non-published number)
Long Distance - $10 _per month_ cheaper (based on my 6-month average of 242 minutes @ $0.029/minute)
Internet - $21.16 _per month_ cheaper (but I do have to buy a modem for $60)

That's over $400 a year (closer to $500). I was considering Yak for long distance until TekSavvy told me their based rate per minute is cheaper.

*I'm not pushing TekSavvy because I cannot speak for the quality of their service yet BUT that is significantly cheaper!


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## CanadianCapitalist

I don't have any experience with Teksavvy but Yak is great. Also, I'm planning on signing with National Capital Freenet (available only in Ottawa) for internet service. I'm tired of paying close to $50 with Bell. NCF is $30 with a modem purchase.


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## mfd

I went through the same experience with Bell. I finally had enough and decided to move my internet service. Unfortunately I still have a bell land line  . I have yet to deal with teksavvy support but I have plenty of friends using the services and they are happy with it.


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## FrugalTrader

CanadianCapitalist said:


> I don't have any experience with Teksavvy but Yak is great. Also, I'm planning on signing with National Capital Freenet (available only in Ottawa) for internet service. I'm tired of paying close to $50 with Bell. NCF is $30 with a modem purchase.


I second YAK for _long distance_ on home and cell service.


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## Ben

Yes, my wife gets the credit a year ago for telling me about the long-distance charge cleverly disguised as a network charge. We have Bell basic phone line, with YAK LD plan (3.5c/min I believe). About $30/month, after tax and average LD charges.


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## Elbyron

Here in Alberta, Telus also has a similar scam, where they charge you hidden LD fees on top of a monthly "long distance plan" charge, which gives you the "privilege" of paying a ridiculously high rate (I forget what it was, but several cents per minute at least). My fiancee used to pay for this until I showed her that you can get long distance plans such as Yak for $0/month that give you much better rates than Telus.


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## Leading Edge Boomer

Oh No! Don't deprive Bell of revenue people. I need those nice dividends they pay me.


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## Sampson

Yeah, those telecomms - they just don't get it. They had a monopoly for so long that they stopped focusing on service, and innovation within the field.

I can't say I'm too surprised those dinosaurs are beginning to lag and get hit hard by the two big cable companies - who interestingly enough, are both family business - operated at the core with a somewhat 'small business' mentality.

Good for consumers, finally.


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## Arcaneind

*Opps!*

I sent out an e-mail to my friends and family telling them that I'm switching from Sympatico and to use my new e-mail address. Of course I used the opportunity to knock Bell, as well. 

I forgot that one of my friends has a new job working at Bell and made an attempt to keep me as a customer. I apologized for my insensitivity but still declined out of principal (plus I figured that they still wouldn't match that price point). I was then told that there is a "big push" internally at Bell to address some of these issues. Hope it works for them.


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## pwo

CanadianCapitalist said:


> I don't have any experience with Teksavvy but Yak is great. Also, I'm planning on signing with National Capital Freenet (available only in Ottawa) for internet service. I'm tired of paying close to $50 with Bell. NCF is $30 with a modem purchase.


Wow... Freenet is oldschool. I'd like to know how it works out. I'm currently paying Bell their premium for average service.


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## DMat

Ben said:


> Yes, my wife gets the credit a year ago for telling me about the long-distance charge cleverly disguised as a network charge.


It's really sad how few people question it. In 2002ish, it was $1.25/month, but that doesn't make it any less a clever disguise.


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## GregR

*Tried to loose BELL Three times!!!!*

I've been trying to rid myself of Bell Satellite service for three years now.....

But every time I call to cancel due to thier poor customer service they either give me free satellite for six months, half price for a year and this time half price for six months.

Almost worth the cost at half price.....

Even if you don't want to cancel your dish or internet service try calling and tell them you want to cancel thier service and switch to someone else and see what they come back with.


https://www.networthiq.com/people/GregR


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## mfd

GregR said:


> Even if you don't want to cancel your dish or internet service try calling and tell them you want to cancel thier service and switch to someone else and see what they come back with.



I wrote an article about calling your providers about getting discounts. Its amazing how apprehensive people are to making a 5 minute phone call that can save you hundreds of dollars over the course of a year.


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## cheapo

*Bell then Rogers now Atlantic Telecom*

Im now on my 3rd telephone service provider, which isnt all that bad considering. At first i was with Bell for many years and finally got tired of their "take it or leave it" attitude and high bills. Rogers offered a pretty good deal and so i went with them and again, after time they start bumping up their bills and charge crazy amounts in additional add on charges, such as "system access fees" - total scam!

Anyway i have my internet with cogeco and my TV (i refuse to bundle it all with one supplier as then they basically have you where they want you).

I am now with atlantic telecom and have to admit i am impressed at the savings i have made. No set up fees, no "system access fees" etc and a lot of features which i may never use, but heck for once i have more than i need for less than i could expect.

I was a little hesitant about switching once again, but a saving is a saving and im saving $50.00 month and i can talk all i want in canada, the usa and europe and i pay $20 bucks a month!

Hopefully i wont be switching again in the future, i think i found my "happy medium" good service, good price and great savings, so pat on the back for me!

Anyone thinking about giving bell, rogers or any other "rip off" phone companies the boot should try this voip company, it works well and i even kept my number - for FREE!


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## George

Elbyron said:


> Here in Alberta, Telus also has a similar scam, where they charge you hidden LD fees on top of a monthly "long distance plan" charge, which gives you the "privilege" of paying a ridiculously high rate (I forget what it was, but several cents per minute at least). My fiancee used to pay for this until I showed her that you can get long distance plans such as Yak for $0/month that give you much better rates than Telus.


You might want to look into Shaw's basic home phone service ($21/mo, includes 4 cents/min long distance and call display). If you'd like to stay with Telus, you can call them and ask for the retentions/loyalty people, and they'll match Shaw's offer.

I called Telus today and dropped my local line from $25.90/mo (without call display or a long distance package) to $22.95/mo (with call display and 4 cents/min long distance). In both cases the number is unlisted (an extra $2/mo).

There are deals to be had, but often you have to threaten to cancel your service to receive them.


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## Arcaneind

*Just as an update.*

For those apprehensive about switching.

My phone and ADSL switch (internet) to TekSavvy was a seamless transition. I didn't realize that the phone had even switched over at first. I had to buy a modem for the internet switch, but five minutes to input my new password and I was done.

This months saving will pay for the modem alone!


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## CanadianCapitalist

Any updates on whether you all are happy with Teksavvy phone & internet? I've decided to say goodbye to Bell. I currently pay $75 for phone + Internet. Looks like I'll be paying $60.37 for the exact same service from Teksavvy. That's enough of an incentive for me to switch.


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## Toronto.gal

Only have internet with them and no complaints at all thus far [been with them for only 1/2 year].


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## brad

We've managed to reduce our Bell fees by dropping services we don't need and going to cheaper plans, but I agree that the continuing price hikes make it very tempting to leave. I will say this about Bell, though: their on-the-ground repair techs are fantastic. Every time I've called with a problem, the people who came to fix it were professional, efficient, and conscientious. Some of the best service I've ever gotten from any company anywhere. Over-the-phone tech support is of course not at the same level, I'm not referring to that here.


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## HaroldCrump

CanadianCapitalist said:


> I've decided to say goodbye to Bell. I currently pay $75 for phone + Internet. Looks like I'll be paying $60.37 for the exact same service from Teksavvy. That's enough of an incentive for me to switch.


If price is the only reason, you can call and simply ask for a discount.
If you have been a long-time customer, your chances are good.
In the past few weeks, I have called and received $10 off each of my services.
I'm now paying $24.95 for landline (including CID, call waiting, etc.).
I'm paying $40 for Fibe internet.
And (I believe) $30 for basic dish.
Each of these is about $10 off regular prices.

Every time they increase prices, I call and ask for a discount.
I couple of times I had to threaten to cancel, got escalated to their retention dept. and they re-instated the discount.
I have been doing this for at least 3 years now.

Now, if you hate Ma Bell from the bottom of your heart and nothing will make you stay, that's another matter....

Switching is a hassle, so I'd rather spend a few mins. calling and asking for a discount.
I'm willing to walk as well, if and when this strategy no longer works.


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## marina628

I called Rogers complained about my high cost and they took off 30% for next two years.I then hung up called bell and told them my new price with rogers and I have identical services with Bell AT my cottage ,Bell does not price match but they took off $66 a month from a $182.00 package.So i am now paying $142 +tax less a month now .We have two phone lines and fully loaded tv x3 and the fastest net packages at both residences.I have internet business so my use is higher than most.

Marina


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## Berubeland

I recently switched to Tek Savvy and Rogers has little tricks they play to piss off their ex - customers even more. 

For example every time I called the Obligatory Cancel Your Service line it took over an hour to get someone on the phone. (I don't mean retentions here, I mean the people after to make arrangements to cancel) I had to call them several times. 

Rogers also sent an email one day before the change over saying that I did not own my modem, something that had already been cleared with them on a phone call before. Then Tek Savvy had to send them an email to straighten it out, they don't reply to their emails with in 48 hours. I also had to call them again, they claimed they didn't know what I was talking about. 

It was worth it, not only is it cheaper, I have no caps on downloads and my download speed is about 10 times faster than before. So it's about the download speed Rogers advertises and never gives you  I did not have the fastest internet package when I was with Rogers, there was no point. They don't make their throttled traffic faster with the higher priced faster internet. If you do things on your internet that throttle you, such as P2p sharing, you may as well have dial up almost. Plus, they didn't have a plan that I could pay for that would allow for my usage. At first when it was 25$ a month extra I sucked it up, but when they increased the penalty to $50 they really upset me. 

So my advice is to be prepared for an outage. Not good news I know but that's worst case scenario.


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## CanadianCapitalist

Thanks for your feedback guys. Bell isn't willing to budge on the internet price and the best they've done in the past is extend an offer for a limited time. I figure I'll set up once with a lower cost provider and be done with it. Reliability is important for me, that's why I wanted to know if you are happy with Teksavvy. Looks like you are, so Teksavvy it is. Even if I switch just the internet, it is still $15 less than Bell (I have to buy the modem & filters but that's a capital expense that will pay for itself in about 6 months).

So, it's goodbye Bell for me as well.


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## carverman

CanadianCapitalist said:


> Also, I'm planning on signing with National Capital Freenet (available only in Ottawa) for internet service. I'm tired of paying close to $50 with Bell. NCF is $30 with a modem purchase.


So it's only $30 a Year with the modem purchase?
..., but what if you don't have inservice copper line to your home
such as a home phone? I used to be on Rogers internet
(cable modem), but then went to Bell Wi-Fi (very expensive) and now
I'm on WIND Wi-Fi. 
Wind is has still more reasonable rates than Bell, but certainly not
for "free" or for a donation of $30 a year.


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## carverman

CanadianCapitalist said:


> . Even if I switch just the internet, it is still $15 less than Bell (I have to buy the modem & filters but that's a capital expense that will pay for itself in about 6 months).
> 
> So, it's goodbye Bell for me as well.


After several years as a Bell Customer, the final straw for me with Bell was
when they wouldn't budge on cell phone air time for phoning THEM.
Because of billing errors (I will never allow thes Cell phone/ISP providers
carte blanche to take their bill off my CC...I did that and it resulted in\
TWO charges last fall..It took several phone calls and emails to get them
to give me a credit and send me a check finally. 

Those long duration cell phone calls to them ,resulted in my monthly cell phone usuage 
exceed ing my monthly contract air time and they charged me 25c a minute for the excess.

When I complained to them that the reason that I went into excess usage because of phone calls to them..
they
basically told me.."so what?..everyone charges air time for 1-800 calls"
( the calls I made to Bell TV on their billing error).

I was so p*ssed off with their attitude that I signed up with Wind and sent
Bell a 30 day notice of service cancellation in November. They still withdrew
a monthly charge in January, and that took another phone call to straighten out to
get a refund. 

Now I have to wait up to 6 weeks for partial credits on my cell and internet.
They are very archaic company when it comes to customer service,
and definitely need to change with the times..otherwise
the consumers will continue to leave them.


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## CanadianCapitalist

carverman said:


> So it's only $30 a Year with the modem purchase?
> ..., but what if you don't have inservice copper line to your home
> such as a home phone? I used to be on Rogers internet
> (cable modem), but then went to Bell Wi-Fi (very expensive) and now
> I'm on WIND Wi-Fi.
> Wind is has still more reasonable rates than Bell, but certainly not
> for "free" or for a donation of $30 a year.


NCF is $30 per month. I think I'll go with Teksavvy. $32 isn't too bad and I prefer to go with a provider that others can recommend.


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## SW20 MR2

We've been using Teksavvy phone and internet for 3 years with no problems at all. The customer service has always been good, and if they need someone to come to your home, it ends up being a Bell/Rogers person anyways.


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## liquidfinance

GregR said:


> I've been trying to rid myself of Bell Satellite service for three years now.....
> 
> But every time I call to cancel due to thier poor customer service they either give me free satellite for six months, half price for a year and this time half price for six months.
> 
> Almost worth the cost at half price.....
> 
> Even if you don't want to cancel your dish or internet service try calling and tell them you want to cancel thier service and switch to someone else and see what they come back with.
> 
> 
> https://www.networthiq.com/people/GregR



That's a good point. My fiancee is with Rogers for TV, Net and Wireless. Every time she calls with a complaint / threat to leave they offer discounts or alternative deals which you don't see online. Could be worth the call 

As a side not don't these small companies pay the likes of Rogers, Telus, Bell for their network space? So either way it's win win for them whoever you end up with.


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## m3s

liquidfinance said:


> That's a good point. My fiancee is with Rogers for TV, Net and Wireless. Every time she calls with a complaint / threat to leave they offer discounts or alternative deals which you don't see online. Could be worth the call


Once you figure this out you almost hope for them to screw up because they give away amazing deals when they do to retain customers. There's sites that explain exactly how to manipulate and exploit this

In the end, it's just annoying for those of us who would prefer to be loyal customers and not have to jump through hoops for deals

I wish people would wake up to the power the internet gives to consumers. The fact that insurance brokers still exist is proof they haven't. On the other side you get things like Car Cost Canada which I think the dealerships have manipulated but it's still better than jumping through marketing hoops

I swore off Bell over 5 years ago and never looked back. I'll buy the stock though


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## carverman

GregR said:


> But every time I call to cancel due to thier poor customer service they either give me free satellite for six months, half price for a year and this time half price for six months.
> 
> Almost worth the cost at half price.....
> 
> Even if you don't want to cancel your dish or internet service try calling and tell them you want to cancel thier service and switch to someone else and see what they come back with.


I still have a year to go on my 2 year Bell TV contract. Up to now, they
have given me a $10 discount on the HD receiver, and I really don't
use the HD service. However, as of this month, the 12 month (promotion)
on their H-D receiver is going to expire and I expect to see an increase
for the February bill. 

I would prefer to just take the H-D receiver back to a Bell Store and
exchange it for a regular satellite receiver and save myself the $10 on
my reduced pension. I still have a year to go and to cancel now would
involve about a $150 penalty, which is more than 3 months of TV service
for me.

Has anyone tried this with Bell..exchanging the H-D for a regular rate
or negotiating for them to waive the extra H-D fee?

*UPDATE: February 26, 2011*
Well , the 12 month promotion expired with Bell on the H-D receiver, so my cable bill went up about $11.30 (including HST
on the receiver rental on my current bill. I decided I'm not going to pay that much when I hardly ever watch the H-D
channels, so I exchanged it for a regular satellite receiver. 

The difference is about $6 a month + HST..might as well be in my pocket rather than Bell's. 
With my company pension fund being wound up this year, getting scary "heads up info" that
my pension will suffer as much as a 36% reduction, I really can't afford to waste money these days.

Sock away as much as I can in my TFSA for the "lean years"...and they can last longer than the 7 years
of biblical times. 

Ok, I could cancel the TV althogether and install some kind of old antenna in the attic, but these are hard to find now
and with the TV stations going digital, I would need to purchase a box to convert the signal at significant cost
to me..*not to mention early termination of the Bell TV contract that would cost me an additional $100 penalty.*

I may suspend the TV for 3 months in the summer when I am away mostly from my house at a trailer camp.
I was informed that if I do it online it will only cost me $10 a month + hst versus calling them..and they
will charge $15 a month + HST. Obviously Bell want me to subsidize their TV support staff with the additional
$5 if I call them.

Cable TV is a bit of a ripoff these days..but the Canadian winter is long, so you have to watch something at night.


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## carverman

CanadianCapitalist said:


> NCF is $30 per month. I think I'll go with Teksavvy. $32 isn't too bad and I prefer to go with a provider that others can recommend.


Ok, I misunderstood. If it's $30 a month, then it's not such a great deal.

Right now, I'm getting the "charged laptop" tier from WIND..regular $35 a month for $17.50 for 6 months. 
This is for 3 Gigb threshold a month and (.02c per MB) after that. 

(I'm not sure if their over threshold rate still applies since the CRTC had
to backtrack on their ruling). 

However, i haven't exceeded the 3Gigs per month yet, so it's not a problem
for me. After 6 months, I could switch to "social laptop" at 1GB a month,
but then if you are over, it costs .04c per mb..and that can add up.
Again..not sure if those overage rates still apply. 

But if they do, and I did exceed the 1 GIgb of data in a month..it could
be pretty expensive for me! 
The difference between for the extra 2Gb would be (1000mb x .04 = $40!)
So if you are doing a lot of downloading..the lowest tier plan wouldn't make sense.


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## Toronto.gal

CanadianCapitalist said:


> Teksavvy it is.


CC: just got this from Teksavvy:

Dear TekSavvy Customer,

Because of your support and participation in reaching out to the
various MPs and the Minister of Industry we're pleased to announce
that the March 1st UBB implementation date has been suspended indefinitely.

With over 460,000 signatures having been sent to Parliament Minister
Clement and the Industry committee requested the CRTC review its
recent decision in full, which it has obliged and are now doing. 
Until this review has occurred UBB over DSL has been completely
shelved. Minister Clement also added they would overturn the review
should it resemble in any way to the previous outcome!

So, congratulations to all who've spoken up about this issue, you've
made a huge difference. As a Canadian, today, I can honestly say it's
refreshing to know politicians do listen and will affect change when
the public at large shows concern!

Effective March 1st we are going to move forward and make changes to
the Usage, but we're going to make it a positive one!

We are reinstating the Unlimited package but the 200GB package will be
changed... to 300GB! UBB is about Internet Costs, and as a result of
lower costs with our providers (Peer1, Lime Light, etc...), costs
outside our relationship with companies like Bell, we are extending
the savings on to you, the clients... Enjoy!


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## kasmca

I switched to Teksavvy a couple years ago as well and am extremely happy. The biggest reason is that I was sick of having to constantly call Bell to fix my bill for what was promised me. My time is worth more than that. With Teksavvy, the price is the price. $32 for high speed internet with 300 GB caps. $28 for home phone with call display and long distance. 

Also very happy with the service. You call their support line and you get someone immediately from the Chattam, ON call center that is knowledgable.


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## the-royal-mail

Toronto.gal said:


> CC: just got this from Teksavvy:
> 
> Dear TekSavvy Customer,
> 
> Because of your support and participation in reaching out to the
> various MPs and the Minister of Industry we're pleased to announce
> that the March 1st UBB implementation date has been suspended indefinitely.
> 
> With over 460,000 signatures having been sent to Parliament Minister
> Clement and the Industry committee requested the CRTC review its
> recent decision in full, which it has obliged and are now doing.
> Until this review has occurred UBB over DSL has been completely
> shelved. Minister Clement also added they would overturn the review
> should it resemble in any way to the previous outcome!
> 
> So, congratulations to all who've spoken up about this issue, you've
> made a huge difference. As a Canadian, today, I can honestly say it's
> refreshing to know politicians do listen and will affect change when
> the public at large shows concern!
> 
> Effective March 1st we are going to move forward and make changes to
> the Usage, but we're going to make it a positive one!
> 
> We are reinstating the Unlimited package but the 200GB package will be
> changed... to 300GB! UBB is about Internet Costs, and as a result of
> lower costs with our providers (Peer1, Lime Light, etc...), costs
> outside our relationship with companies like Bell, we are extending
> the savings on to you, the clients... Enjoy!


Wow. That sounds like a great ISP!


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## humble_pie

persuaded by this thread, i also visited tek savvy's website & even contacted them w a couple questions.

it's hard to believe this. Everything efficient, well-organized, friendly, quick n easy, at just over 2/3 bell prices, at least for me. 

haven't made the switch because i still have to check was this real or was i dreaming.


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## m3s

humble_pie said:


> it's hard to believe this. Everything efficient, well-organized, friendly, quick n easy, at just over 2/3 bell prices, at least for me.
> 
> haven't made the switch because i still have to check was this real or was i dreaming.


Pinch yourself it's real. Isn't the lack of marketing smoke and mirrors refreshing?


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## humble_pie

it's amazing. I contacted them to ask if the extra modem i already have would work for them. He said yup it's fine. No effort to sell me one of theirs.

mode i'm wondering, if it's this easy to create & run a serviceable, pleasant, give-ya-all-the-basics-ya-need company at such low prices, why aren't more business people doing it.

there are only a few times in history when they've been able to do this on a really grand scale. Like the people's car. The volkswagen. That cheap low-cost brand prevailed across decades, although in the end VW did morph into a fake quasi-luxury euro car with spotty technical records.

i guess before that it was henry ford & the model-T.


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## travelgeek

humble_pie said:


> persuaded by this thread, i also visited tek savvy's website & even contacted them w a couple questions.
> 
> it's hard to believe this. Everything efficient, well-organized, friendly, quick n easy, at just over 2/3 bell prices, at least for me.
> 
> haven't made the switch because i still have to check was this real or was i dreaming.


once you made the switch from bhell, you'll wonder why you didn't do it earlier.


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## m3s

humble_pie said:


> mode i'm wondering, if it's this easy to create & run a serviceable, pleasant, give-ya-all-the-basics-ya-need company at such low prices, why aren't more business people doing it.


There are lots of great direct business ventures online now if you can find them. For example I recently bought my ski doo track directly from a family run business, everyone on the ski doo forums swear by them. I'm sick of big box and big telcos games, this is the kind of business I will support now:



> First of all, we run a tight ship. Every marketing dollar is carefully spent. We have no accounts payable, no frills like fancy chairs and desks, and we do not waste money on unnecessary things like toll-free telephone numbers that end up being abused.
> Second, we work off of volume. No tricks, we just rely on good, old-fashioned, reliable business principles. We buy right in quantities and pass the saving on to our customers!
> Lastly, we try to provide the highest level of customer service and product quality in the industry. Kathy, Tony and I are very knowledgeable about our products


I also recently bought some rain gear directly from a family in Peterborough, Froggtoggscanada.com Amazing product sold directly from their home, shipped within days in a big envelope. I've never seen this stuff in stores, and it should seriously replace all rain gear

I recently bought a backpack online directly from the distributor. Best backpack I've ever seen, the kind that will last for life and is guaranteed to do so. I read a forum post that one guy managed to break his, the owner sent him a brand new one, fixed the broken one and gave it back to him too for the trouble. That is the kind of service you don't see in stores anymore

I could give a lot of other examples of great direct business I've found only where I talk directly to the person who knows and backs their product. The internet should change the way we do business, I'm sure there's an example in every industry. You just won't hear about them on TV commercials etc

As for cars I don't know if any such brand exists anymore.. Besides other issues VW have had to purposely make their cars worse and worse lately to make a profit. People don't want a car that has been rigorously tested and improved for years, they just want one that looks somehow "different" and "better" than last years, and wonder why they cost so much to maintain


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## CanadianCapitalist

Add me to the list of people saying adios to Ma Bell. Thanks to everyone who have shared their experience with Teksavvy, I finally made the jump. Called Bell to cancel internet that currently costs me $52. 

Of course, you get transferred to the customer loyalty department, who ended up offering a $52/month for both Internet and Home phone on a one year contract. But, I'm tired of Bell's bait-and-switch tactics (as in after the one year period expires, you'll have to do the negotiate a "deal" all over again). I'd rather pay a bit more for no contract and a regular low price.

Couple of tips (apologies if other members have already posted this):

Make sure that the last day of Bell service is on a weekday. Unfortunately, I didn't know this and would likely lose Internet service for a weekend. Not a big deal but maybe something you want to keep in mind.

If you want to switch both home phone and internet, Teksavvy recommends switching internet first and after it's done switch the phone.

Teksavvy sells a modem for $75 + $10 shipping. You can save by buying the modem locally. Here in Ottawa PC Cyber sells the same modem for $60.

The bottomline:

Bell Phone + Internet = $75
Teksavvy Phone + Internet = $60

Ignoring startup costs, that's a saving of $180 per year.


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## webber22

Bell charges me $40 for the 5M high-speed DSL. This is about the same as Teksavvy once you work in all the extra charges they put in. I'm very happy with Bell, plus I wouldn't be surprised if Teksavvy starts jacking up the rates once they've hooked everybody in ... sound familiar ...


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## carverman

Sampson said:


> Yeah, those telecomms - they just don't get it. They had a monopoly for so long that they stopped focusing on service, and innovation within the field.


The big three monopolies still have at least 95% of the business.

*Dinasours* (deliberate sp mistake here), when it comes to customer service that is for sure!

I had a bad experience with Bell TV when they double billed me for TV service (3 months worth!..and then didn't want to refund me promptly once I pointed out to them that I was doublebilled..telling me it would take up to 6 weeks..yada yada for investigation and then a refund check could be mailed after that.

When I told them clearly that it was THEIR BILLING ERROR, and why not just reverse the charge on my MC, they told me they couldn't do that.......huh???? Any other merchant can give you a CC refund!
So they held on to my money (charged against my MC) for several weeks and after many phone calls finally someone "higher up" called me to apologize and told me that a check was in the mail.

After that, they had the nerve to charge me for air time on my cell phone for 611 (free call) and calls to the Bell TV 1-800 number to straighten out the billing fiasco and be put on hold for 10 minutes while they consulted with each other what to do. 
I had only 200 min per month of air time and those phone calls to Bell well exceeded my monthly contract..so then they had the
nerve to bill me at 20c per minute for the excess! 

While this only amounted to $10 or so, when they told me there was nothing they could do to adjust my bill.. telling me over the
phone that "everybody charges air time for a 1-800 number" I told them these were Bell (My Bell) numbers and I shouldn't
be charged air time for calling them on a problem..no luck...so I told them... that was the final straw...and went over to WIND.


AND THEN
Even though I sent Bell a letter with my billing information 6 weeks in advance of terminating my internet/cell phone service with them..*they still continued billing me *,taking money out of my account and then sending me a check to
cover their billing errors..just more aggravation..as well as annoying auto calls.."leave us a message to help us serve you better next time".

I felt like telling them..*BELL, if you had served me better THIS TIME, there probably wouldn't have been a switch..and as far as I'm concerned, there won't be a next time.* You need to give all your employees courses in better Customer service!



> I can't say I'm too surprised those dinosaurs are beginning to lag and get hit hard by the two big cable companies - who interestingly enough, are both family business - operated at the core with a somewhat 'small business' mentality.
> 
> Good for consumers, finally.


The cable companies are just as aggressive for the cell phone /internet market.
One that I won't mention here, because I haven't had any phone experience with them, is a bit better than Bell in responding to customer billing issues, but still charge more than the smaller and hungrier new "kids on the block" competition.


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## K-133

webber22 said:


> Bell charges me $40 for the 5M high-speed DSL. This is about the same as Teksavvy once you work in all the extra charges they put in. I'm very happy with Bell, plus I wouldn't be surprised if Teksavvy starts jacking up the rates once they've hooked everybody in ... sound familiar ...


You've neglected to share your download cap and overage charges. Mine is 300GB / month with Teksavvy. No contract.

Teksavvy is also rolling cable in more areas, meaning the dry-loop costs for DSL will soon be gone for those who switch over to the cable format. 

Do you have home phone with Bell as well?


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## CanadianCapitalist

For those switching from Bell to Teksavvy, make sure that your last day of service with Bell falls on a weekday. That way you can sign up with Teksavvy with that same date as the start of service.

That was the only hiccup in my switch from Bell. My service ended on a Sunday and I had to go an entire day without Internet service.


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## yupislyr

webber22 said:


> Bell charges me $40 for the 5M high-speed DSL. This is about the same as Teksavvy once you work in all the extra charges they put in. I'm very happy with Bell, plus I wouldn't be surprised if Teksavvy starts jacking up the rates once they've hooked everybody in ... sound familiar ...


Those extra charges are actually charged by Bell and are typically just passed on to the end user. They would probably be even higher if they weren't at least somewhat controlled by the CRTC.

And I'm not scared of Teksavvy raising prices. Even if they did I'll just switch to another local provider who provide no caps, MNSi...


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## larry81

CanadianCapitalist said:


> For those switching from Bell to Teksavvy, make sure that your last day of service with Bell falls on a weekday. That way you can sign up with Teksavvy with that same date as the start of service.
> 
> That was the only hiccup in my switch from Bell. My service ended on a Sunday and I had to go an entire day without Internet service.


oh no, not an entire day without internet !!!  i personally could not function properly


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## carverman

*Did Bell "rip" you off too?*

Whoa! Another satisfied Bell customer!

I got ripped off by Bell on my Cell rates and I even had the Nortel employee
discount plan with them..but a monthly cap on the air time (200 min).

Last fall I they overbilled me (2 CHARGES on my CC) and when I called them 
(1-800 Bell TV), they charge me excess air time, because they had "problems" understanding how to correct the overcharge (around $150!)

This dragged on ....phone call after phone call, email after email..I was so fed up! They just couldn't credit my CC like normal business do..and they had to "investigate" my overcharge, and then 6-8 weeks later... issue a check to me.

They finally did that, but I was deprived of *MY $150 *to pay the MC..so I had to use $150 of my monthly pension budget for that!
I finally did receive a check in the mail around 8 weeks afterwards.

Then the $%^&* had the *nerve to charge me .20c a minute* for cell phone
air time because all those phone calls to Bell pushed my monthly airtime
well over 200 mins because of their overbilling issue.

So I call them about that, and asked for some compensation (ok it wasn't much about $8)..but the point is..these were *calls specifically to Bell *to fix their billing overcharge!

They told me "no can do..every service provider charges for cell phone air time"...so that WAS THE LAST STRAW for my cell and internet with Bell. 

I gave them adequate notice (6 weeks before terminating my cell/internet with them (which did not have any contract)..and they still kept billing me and taking money out of my debit acct for *2 months after termination of service*..more emails again.

I went to WIND in December and been very happy. I got a great deal from
them $25 a month for unlimited air time and calling to anywhere in Canada
that is serviced by WIND...Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, Vancouver.
Any other calls are considered roaming..but I have a YAK acct for that
so that's only 3.5C a minute LD.

Bell tried to screw me over again when I downsized my Sat TV receiver 
after the 1 yr promotion, (no charge on the HD receiver ) expired, and 
they started charging me $20 a month extra. I called them and asked to be
downgraded to a standard TV receiver at $4 a month.

First, they tell me they need to rip out $50 from my MC for the service call, to be
applied against my monthly programming...but I'm a existing Bell TV customer!..
WTF!!! anyway...I wanted to downgrade to save money,so I complied and
gave them my MC number over the phone.

Then I get a bill for $95...
(for a $47 monthly programming charge + standard receiver! )

I was furious! I called them about the new bill, and they tried to scam me by telling me that downgrading the receiver was in fact... like breaking the 2 yr contract with them, and there was a $75 charge for that!
"What about the $56 you ripped from my MC..where is that being applied?"
Oh?...wait a minute...(turns into several minutes before some dude finally
came on the phone to talk to me..at least this time they can't charge me
for air time!)

I threatened to quit Bell TV right there and then! The call "ramped up" the
"chain of command" and someone told me.."oh did they not mention there would be
a $75 SC to downgrade your receiver? We had to send a technician to
your house for that to "install" the receiver"? 

I said "no". 
"ok, they said, we will cancel the charge this time"

thanks..you scum sucking $%&&**! As soon as my 2 yr contract will
Bell TV is up next Feb..I'm switching again..and I'm NEVER going back to
them to my dying day!


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## CanadianCapitalist

larry81 said:


> oh no, not an entire day without internet !!!  i personally could not function properly


Normally, I would welcome it. Unfortunately, I was swamped with work and was working that weekend.


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