Incompetence

I had to pay a double premium to watch the Coronation but my day was ruined in any case. The debacle started when I requested a statement so I could pay my account (on time as I have done for 25 years). The new figure would be different due to my upgrade and I wanted to be sure.) The statement said Total Due R154. 96 which surprised me but I noticed there were many credits too so I duly paid on 1st May. In the early hours of 6th May I was disconnected with no warning messages or phone calls. In a panic about missing the Coronation, I called immediately and consultant number 1 told me I needed to pay R844. 86 but could not explain statement amount. She told me if I made an eft I'd be connected in 5 minutes. I literally begged her to be sure! Obediently, I did this. Half an hour later no connection. I phoned again. Consultant Number 2 told me I needed to email proof of payment and my connection would be restored. I did this. Still no connection. I phoned again. Consultant Number 3 told me I had to send proof of payment to myself and then forward that to Dstv in order to generate a reference number. I went back into my bank and did this. Still no connection. I phoned again. Consultant Number 4 kept me on hold for ages and then told me it appeared my payment was scheduled for Monday. She suggested I phone the bank. At this point I was desperate and my husband took over the call. He was told it would have been instant if we'd gone to a store such as Checkers to pay. My husband made the decision to do this even though we were cash strapped. So... Two payments to DSTV. when we got home, we were connected but missed most of the Coronation and anyway I was too distressed to bother. I will never understand 2 things. 1) Why my statement said R154. 86 and 2) Why Consultant Number 1 led me on this terrible path instead of saying "just go to Checkers quickly". I would like an explanation and I would like a statement reflecting BOTH payments. An apology would be in order too but most importantly.,train your staff to do the right thing. This was the worst experience ever.