I am so annoyed, and I am sure you can all relate to this.........

Where we live we have two main cable/telephone/Internet providers. In our case its Bell Canada and Rogers. We were with Bell for quite a while, then a couple of years we switched completely over to Rogers. I have to say other than minor things, we have had pretty good service with Rogers.

Of course Bell has tried to lure us back, and generally I just throw what ever they send in the mail, or if they call I tell them no. For some reason a couple of weeks ago when this woman rang from Bell, I let her give me her speech, and I actually wrote down her pricing etc, and to be honest I was pretty impressed with the pricing and services. I told her though we were going on vacation and could she call me back in a couple of months. She said no problem.

I was telling dh all about this and he said well give Rogers a call and see what they say. I had to call Rogers anyhow, as I reckon who ever had my cell phone number before me was a drug dealer.......I mean people are always calling me, and now people keep sending me text messages? That confused me no end, as I didn't realize I had signed up for text messages?

So last Monday called Rogers and got the text message thingy sorted out.....turns out everyone can receive text messages at no charge, but if you send a text message they charge you....who knew????? At this point I would love to be able to read these messages.........I am technically challenged.........

So when I finished with that I was put through to the "customer retention department." So I start chit chatting with this woman telling her all about the Bell Canada call and how I was thinking of switching and what can they do.

I pay around $185 a month for home telephone, Internet, digital cable and cell phone. With Bell I was only going to be paying around $150, and that included two more digital boxes. To cut a long and boring story short, at the end of the 45 minute telephone conversation I ended up with an HD PVR box free for a year ($240 value), $10 off per month ($120 value) on my home phone for a year, three months free for HD Speciality channels ($27 value) and 20% off on my Internet. So I probably saved $400 over the next year.

So I say to the lady, why couldn't you have just done all this in the first place, instead of me whining on and wasting both your time and mine..........."we're not allowed." I have rang before to try and lower my bill but haven't had any luck. I can't see why they can't just offer customer's with accounts in good standing these promotions just to keep them happy???

So anyhow, I hummed and haa-ed over that for a few days. Then today I am reading some posts over at Frugal Shopper and one caught my eye about getting the Toronto Star newspaper for free. Well we have been subscribers to that newspaper for years. I enjoy reading the paper while I have my breakfast in a morning. We always got a newspaper in England, so I guess its a tradition we have always kept up.

So I thought I'd give them a call to see why I can't get the newspaper for free. When I talk to the lady she says well you're getting the best promotion at 50% off and the promotion for the free newspaper is not in your area. So I say fine, well what promotions are available in my area, so she tells me 40% off. I say well why can't I carry on with the 50% off (that ends in October), no she says 40% off is the best I can do now. I said well why do I have to ask for this, why couldn't you just keep me on that rate forever. She says they don't do that.

So once again I have to keep calling them and whining on at them to lower my rates.

So why am I annoyed..........well my time is an important as everyone else, as is yours. Why do I have to spend 45 minutes on a call having to threaten to switch my account, just to try and wrangle out of them what promotions I am entitled too? Luckily I am a whiner, but a lot of people are not aggressive, or whiny like I am. Also a lot of people just don't have the time to spend 45 minutes on one telephone call. Which I suppose that's what these big companies are hoping for, so that way they don't have to give you any more than they have to.

To my mind that $400 that I saved with Rogers is a heck of a lot better in my pocket than in theirs? I don't expect to get everything for free, but I would like to be rewarded for being a good customer, wouldn't you?