CenturyLink
Reviews and Complaints

I would send a registered/certified letter to the CEO of Qwest with cc's to the FCC, FTC and your state attorney general. Hopefully you will get the positive response that you are looking for but if not, you will be creating a good paper trail in the event that you do end up in small claims court. I think that Qwest is hurting right now and they are pulling a lot of shady stuff with a lot of their customers! Good luck to you...

I want to COMPLIMENT this company! These people were absolutely stellar with their interview process and I don't know what the other complaint was all about! It was the singular most streamlined, efficient and organized interview I've ever been on. They didn't waste my time making me dance around a bunch of questions. They cut to the heart of the matter, giving me a test on my programming skills to see if I was qualified. My guess is that the people complaining probably FAILED THEIR TEST, and are now just try to save face. My advice to them, don't lie on your resume!

I didn't love working for Qwest, but I did, and thought it was fine. It's a real job (the check was real enough) even if the interview processes are bizarro.

My Three Stars SCAM experience

I recently went for two interviews at Three Stars Media and this was my experience. I am hoping someone closes this company down ! It's hard enough to find a job in this market but when you get scammed like this, it becomes VERY demoralizing.
I applied for TWO jobs on CareerBuilder.com : Administrative Assistant and Human Resources Assistant.
Click here to see the actual postings as they appeared on Careerbuilder.com : http://i44.tinypic.com/11rrxa9.jpg and http://i39.tinypic.com/jj5qgy.jpg . NOTE: CLICK the pics to make the image larger to be able to read it. This applies for all future photo links.
I received and automated e-mail back from Three Stars, Inc. the next day requesting to set up an "initial interview" : http://i42.tinypic.com/s4t6br.jpg .
I went to the website and registered for an initial interview. The ENTIRE interview set up process was automated.
I received a confirmation e-mail for the "initial interview" : http://i41.tinypic.com/6hi88n.jpg .
And a reminder e-mail : http://i43.tinypic.com/wbz5mp.jpg . This reminding cements the thinking that the job interview is important. They want to make sure you show up.
I put the words "initial interview" in quotes above because there was NO interview on my first visit to Three Stars. Here is how the first visit played out.
I arrived at Suite 211 and the receptionist asked for my resume. She then handed me a white binder with laminated pages to view information for a "Verification Specialist". I quickly paged through this booklet because I already knew what was coming next. I have to admit, I didn't pay attention much to the laminated pages because I had a friend who interviewed a few weeks prior for a Sales Manager position and she told me the first interview was just an assessment test.
After flipping through the laminated booklet, I then handed the book back to the receptionist. She told me I needed to take an assessment test (I think the binder info alluded to this too) and she told me she needed to take a picture of me as they "have so many people coming through their doors" and needed to take the photo for "identification purposes". I complied and let her snap my photo. She then guided me through a door opening to a room with several computers and little cubicles dividing the individuals taking the test. She opened the test on a PC, told me I had 30 mins. to take it and she told me I could use a calculator and she opened the calculator on the desktop. She told me to log in to take the test using my e-mail address and my last name. I then saw all my person info (name, address, etc. as well as the pic she just snapped of me) and then was taken to the test. I don't remember all the questions but I found a few questions quite odd. One asked "Are you over 24 years of age? " another asked (not sure of exact wording) "We have part time work at home positions for individuals. Would you be interested in this position or would you like to stick with the position you applied for?" I selected to stick with my current job I applied for. And there were some questions on advertising: "What are advertising verticals?", "What are five of the top 100 Internet websites?". There was also three vocabulary questions (the only one I remember was the meaning of the word "CONVERGE", there were two other vocab words used in sentences, I can't remember, something about Freud). There were also some Math questions. From memory, I think there were three in total, two word problems (one something about cutting a piece of wood into three pieces and the other was an algebra question, I think it was "2x - 4 = 6") and another odd question was "If you knew you would be fired for admitting a mistake would you lie to save your job?" . There were other questions on the test but these certain questions stood out to me.
I left the computer room and the receptionist handed me a business card (http://i44.tinypic.com/p7vus.jpg ) and told me to log on to their website with my e-mail address and last name after 10am the next day to check my application status :
When I logged on the next morning the website had a message (after I logged in) showing that my "aptitude test was impressive" and they wanted to meet with me for a second interview. I scheduled the second interview and got another confirmation e-mail : http://i40.tinypic.com/97440m.jpg .
And again, another reminder e-mail for the second interview : http://i43.tinypic.com/30cuc8o.jpg . They really wanted to make sure I showed up !
I arrived for my second interview at Suite 217 and walked into a foyer with dark lighting and no one to greet me. I saw a big conference table with better lighting and big leather chairs and a projector. I sat down next to two women who were waiting for their "interview". One of the women asked me "what are we doing here? What's going to go on I wonder ?" - the both laughed nervously. I told her that first we would get a presentation, then tour, then have individual interviews. This was the experience of my friend. In reality, I misunderstood my friend - there was no individual interview after the tour, it was a group interview telling everyone that they would be getting a phone call if they were interested. Again, my friend when there for a sales job, NOT the jobs I had applied to for Admin Asst. and Human Resources Asst.
Eventually, more people filtered in. We had 10 in our meeting. A woman named Crissy W (WAH Advisor Regional Manager - according to their website. Go to http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=9 and click on the little girl being hugged by Mickey Mouse to see her pic and info) was our cheerleader for the next couple of hours. She first asked us to go around the room and introduce ourselves. She then told us about herself (she was a dancer and worked at Disney, although that didn't pay the bills and then she spoke about the company. Started in 2004, now has over 500 employees and also a team in India. She explained the role of the Verification Specialist and explained that they don't show the job name in their listings online because "no one would know what that job is and no one would apply for it". So she admits up front that the jobs that brought all of us in DID NOT EXIST, but not in those exact words. My Human Resources Assistant and Administrative Assistant jobs were not real open jobs at the company! We were told that Three Stars also had a website called "Career Network" and that they are going after Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com. She said that it costs a company $ 400 to post a job on those websites while their Career Network offers postings for only $ 99 and they initially started out by posting those ads for FREE in the beginning. She also showed up a clip on News Channel 13 where the company donated toys for charity (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxXZd0u0dOE&feature=channel_page ) and talked up how they give back to the community. She also talked about their free happy hour, dinners at the Executive Managers house, and their co-ed flag football (http://threestarsinc.com/fun/eventsIndex.cfm ) . She then proceeded to give us a tour of the company. We all piled in the elevator and headed up to the 4th floor (from the 2nd floor) and first toured an office of people posting jobs on Craigslist and other websites, according to Crissy. The workers pretty much ignored us, except for one guy who watched the whole show. All of us idiots, in suits, all there for fake jobs. I could only think as I saw them sitting at their desks that these people were creating the same fake jobs that brought us in. Crissy said they were creating jobs from "their business clients". We were then lead to Human Resources and introduced to a manager named Dahlia who told us she has been with the company 7 months and LOVES it. She told us that "it's a long interview process, but stick with it" and she wished us all good luck.
Next up was the division that we saw the people in action who were Verification Specialists. Basically an auto dialing system will call applicants to tell them that they need to verify information for a job they applied for. When they call back, they go to this department. These people follow a script, verify certain info and then plug at the end to try and sell school admissions. For some reason a select few people work here vs. the at home position we were offered at the end of the interview. See below.
Next we walked into the webmaster division. First Crissy proceeded to flirt with Darvin K. - Director of Operations - as he showed her a photo that they laughed over, then we were introduced to Kelly R. - Executive Vice President (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=1) and were told that she was the third person hired at the company when it was created out of someone's apartment. Kelly was wearing a flag football jersey. She explained the department was broken down into four departments. I can't remember all but one to come up with design ideas for a website, one to create the website, one to "break it" - quality control, and then it was released. Crissy proudly told us that Kelly created MANY websites. We were then lead to the next department "Employer Services" and met Scott D. - Career Network Director (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=7 ) . We heard him give his spiel. He basically stated that he talks to companies to find out more about the jobs to make sure they post the correct information to get a qualified individual and also to make sure that there employees ask the right questions when they do their verification to pre-qualify candidates for companies. A good story anyway.
Next up, we met Ben D. - Senior Business Analyst (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=1) . Ben told us that he handles SEO and making sure that the websites they create show up in the featured listings on search engines like Google and Yahoo!.
Lastly, we met Matt A. - WAH Advisor Regional Manager (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=9 ), who was located in Suite 211 in the back offices, behind the computer testing area, who told us what a great company they had because one woman (can't recall her name) had a Mother that fell ill and she needed to move back up North (New Jersey I think?) and how great the company was because even though the woman had to move away she was still able to log on to a computer up there at 9am in NJ the following Monday and continue working. He said they had many employees talking about how expensive gas was and they realized it was a GREAT idea for their employees to work out of the home. Matt was planting the seed here.
And then we were lead across the hall again to Suite 217 and back to the conference room. Crissy's tone TOTALLY changed. No longer a cheerleader and full of friendly energy, she was somber and matter of fact. We were then given two hand outs : one detailing the job outline for the Verification Specialist : and the other for the computer requirements to work at home and the script for the education spiel : . Crissy told us that training started us at $ 10 per hour and we could earn extra money from there, depending on how many people said YES to wanting more information on signing up for education. She claimed she made $ 600 in her first week. She said they like for you to receive 80 -100 calls a day but the record was 150 calls in one day. She estimated that in 15 minutes at least TWO people would say YES to wanting more information about education. She said we were not to push the education, only plant the seed, mentioning it twice, the second time to confirm it. She said they only wanted people who were serious about signing up for classes. She then told us that she realized this job - Verification Specialist - was not for everyone. If we didn't think it was something we'd be interested in, we could leave now. Otherwise stay behind and she left the room to "get paperwork". Everyone was like a deer in the headlights. No one moved. She came back and then asked "ok, we have openings for tomorrow for the phone interview, who is available tomorrow ?" So then, with the peer pressure of everyone watching, she proceeded to ask everyone. Many set up times, signing up by stating the time and then telling Crissy their First name and last initial. One person said "Well, can I have some time to think about it?" "Of course!" - Crissy replied. That was a snowball effect then. Others said they too wanted to think about it.
Here are links to view the Verification Specialist handout : http://i44.tinypic.com/2ishbm8.jpg, http://i39.tinypic.com/wbz5w5.jpg, http://i44.tinypic.com/23rtx8y.jpg, and http://i39.tinypic.com/1y7h8o.jpg .
Here are links to view the Computer requirements and the Education script : http://i44.tinypic.com/1zpqst5.jpg, http://i44.tinypic.com/15x71qp.jpg and http://i41.tinypic.com/n3kht0.jpg . This was what was to be covered in the phone interview. They wanted to hear you read the script and make sure your home did not have background distractions like "a baby crying or dog barking".
I realize this is lengthy but I wanted to give you all a firsthand account for what the Three Stars interviews entail so you don't have to waste your time like I did. If you want work at home job that pays $ 10 an hour plus commissions for planting a seed for education, then this job is for you. It's just a shame they scam, as they say "600 people a week walk through our doors", into thinking they are on REAL interviews for jobs they applied for online, only to learn it's a telemarketing work at home position instead.
Does Three Stars offer job s? YES, but ONLY the Work at Home "Verification Specialist". NOT the jobs that were posted online. Here is a listing of ALL the jobs supposedly available on the Three Stars website : http://threestarsinc.com/careers/jobIndex.cfm?type=1 . The jobs were the SAME, none were "filled" from the time frame that my friend applied weeks prior. Now I know it's because they simply DO NOT EXIST.
Their claim is that once you master the Verification Specialist job they then like to move you up in the company, depending on what areas you would be best suited for. I wonder how many people are actually moved up. Of course Crissy said she started out (7 months ago, oddly the SAME time Dahlia started with the company) in the Verification Specialist position and worked her way up. Oh and Crissy did tell us all that we did really well on the aptitude test, we were the best of the best, which I now know is a load of bull. The whole thing was a HUGE sales pitch. They made the place look like a fun, young, energetic place to work..and hey ! They even give to charities ! How could they be bad. Forget that that LIED to us to get us all in there in the first place ! I found it odd though that most of the offices did not have fluorescent overhead lights...only desk lamps. All offices were decorated very attractively. Staging here was key. Another odd thing ? NONE of the suites had the "Three Stars" name on the nameplates...which was odd because ALL the other offices DID show their names on the nameplate with the Suite number. Their suites simply had the suite number listed on the nameplate.
I just saw on the news today that Channel 9 News WFTV will be showing ANOTHER piece on Three Stars and their false job listings. They even show footage, the room that had the Verification Specialists/Education Counselors in it. Should be interesting to watch. http://www.wftv.com/
Lastly, as I mentioned, my friend also went through this process. Why on earth would I want to go through this? Well, she again went for a Sales Manager position and her second interview included info about the company, the company tour, but then also a pitch to the individuals on the interview to partake in a website called Monkey Jar (http://www.monkeyjar.com/ ) where you create your own "online mall" and you make money supposedly if your friends shop your "mall" by clicking the links to visit the store websites. Interestingly enough, if you click the "About Us" link on Monkey Jar you will see cartoon caricatures of both Kelly and Darvin from Three Stars. So I went on this interview to see how well I would do on the aptitude test and to see if I would do well enough to get the second interview. My friend who went for her Sales Manager second interview was told if they were interested in her they would call her. It makes me wonder what Three Stars got out of her second interview. Maybe advertising to get people to use the Monkey Jar website. Or maybe the whole thing is just a scam to get our personal info : they have our home address, work numbers, employment history, aptitude ratings, heck even a photo of us - that they can use to sell to marketing companies. Here is info about this take on the whole scheme : http://www.nowpublic.com/tech-biz/three-stars-media-new-name-same-scheme . I know this is long, but I hope it helps others from going through this.
Early on in my search, I also received these two e-mail (and many more - too many to post) from Career Network which I now know is also Three Stars : http://i41.tinypic.com/xqgaw3.jpg and http://i39.tinypic.com/2rgjm2o.jpg . I did not like the fact that the company name and phone number were not listed. I e-mailed back asking for this information and did not receive a response. I think these e-mails were generated off jobs I applied for on Craigslist.com. Once you click the link for the fake tech support job you are brought to this website: http://perfectcareercenter.com/JobOffer/Register.cfm?JobPositionID=92050 . Notice the questions at the bottom regarding education. You guessed it...this is so a Three Stars work at home Verification Rep. can call you back and ask if you are interested in furthering your education. The website is called : perfectcareercenter.com but if you click the about us link it shows that this is Three Stars. So when you search for a job online today you have NO IDEA if the job you are apply for is real or if it's yet another Three Stars fake job website. I think networking to find a job today is best way to not get scammed. Happy job hunting everyone...be careful out there. At least Three Stars didn't ask for my social security number at any point. I feel very sorry for job seekers that DO offer this information online. :-(

I just went to my "second interview" which is still not a f2f interview. It was basically a group of about 10 people and they gave us a tour of their offices. I guess they were trying to prove they were legit. I tried to ask questions about why they had so many openings and why they seem to post the same positions month after month. They said it was because they were expanding because the business was doing so well. I had applied for a Director of Marketing position and thought it was odd they already had this position filled and they were adding another one. I have worked as an advertising director before and there were not several directors only one who ran the whole show. Not several different ones doing the same job. The whole thing seems pretty shady. Beware!

Yea uhm im gna have to agree with everything. Ive been working there for like 2 weeks and they told us that youd be amazed how many people put something wrong on theire application and the company cant even get in touch with them so we just verify the info is correct..desperate for a job, said ### it ill do it. But then i started to notice all the jobs were calling about are complete ### the titles are like Secretary---UP TO 25$ AN HOUR! Like obviously not legit job titles or pay. And then you donmt even get paid unless the people sign up for info on the school which is like a 10 minute procedure with no transfer so it seems like they need to for the job and even then people will say during the middle of it, wait what does this have to do with the job? So then i did some research and im bout to quit this ###. Thanks guys.

I can vouch for everything Tedjay mentioned in his/her comment. No sinage, guilty looks, etc...

I actually got called in for the follow-up interview, which was F2F. It was all of 10 minutes while I spoke to someone in "HR" who told me he thought I had a good personality and would put my name through to the higher-ups. Okay... I left after less than an hour, and as soon as I drive the hour back home I got a call from another manager wanting me to come back immediately for another F2F. I was desperate, so drove BACK down there for it. I spoke w/ the hiring manager who told me my job would be to "verify information on resumes" for companies to screen their hiring process. Okay, cool, but the catch was this was all information that would have been o the resume anyway Non of the questions would have been unanswered if I had the resume in front of me. The whole point is to ask the people who call in if they're interested in furthering their education. If they were, which I'm betting everyone says yes to because it sounds like the right answer in regards to interviewing for a job, I was to put them through to someone else who would try to sell them the idea of signing up for online college-type programs. The $$ is based off how many people you can transfer over. If they took the bait and signed up for whatever school program I got $10. Only $3 for transferring them, or something like that. Luckily I did some research after being hired and found out what was going on. Never showed up for my first day. These people are still out there on both monster and careerbuilder. Any "Company Confidential" or nonspecific posting I suspect comes from them. They were "hiring" for bout a bajillion different positions - copywriter, admin asst, management, HR, etc.

You have got to be kidding me -- failed the test? Lying on their resume? The test I was given had absolutely nothing to do with my profession - media. The took a Polaroid picture of all applicants - which is illegal as it infers race or age discrimination. They ask for personally identifying information on the application (i.e., SSN, DL# which is only required after you have been hired. You can use that information to run background or credit checks, which is only allowable with the applicant's expressed permission and is a separate document from the application.

This is obviously a fake complimentary comment made by someone @ Qwest Marketing.

Did you get the job Thomas? Or did they test you and pat you on your back? Save your compliments for if/when you actually get a real job.

Let me be very clear - when I went I applied for a position that I have documented experience and publicly available recommendation for. The problem is the process and their business model. This is not - in my opinion - a legitimate marketing company. They are true scammers by aggregating either applicant information or running a bait & switch marketing program. The program, based on someone I know who used to work there is they ring up "applicants" and during the "vetting process" offer them programs. "Recruiters" are paid by the lead + hourly. Performance is based on the number of leads you get and conversions. I have no doubt that some of the jobs might be legit to work for them but the end-result is working for a company that wastes people's time & lifts their hopes.

If you get a response from a recruiter or verification specialist from Qwest, do yourself a favor and don't return the call. You will only have your intelligence insulted and your time wasted. This company and their so-called supporters make me sick. I really think the BBB (which they have a plaque saying they are members of and the FL BBB says they are not) or the state attorney investigate this nefarious company. I despise scammers - especially those posing as legitimate advertising agencies, which they clearly are not.

Yes they are indeed scammers and I would also like to know what is the deal with this company. It is stange that what they are doing is not illegal.

I wanna know exactly what that company is about though.

I saw a posting online in the summer for a copy writer position in the metro west area. looked ligit, applied and they contacted me a few weeks later. Qwest wanted me to come in but then they had no address. I emailed for an address and also company website. They did not email me back untill a week later after I was suppose to set my appointment.

So about 3 weeks ago I saw another posting online and applied. I got a responce the following day and to my suprize it was the same company. I did not want to respond but then I was thinking if they contacted me again they must be interested. So i contacted them, got an appointment and their address.

I went to the intervew in metrowest area. I was impressed. Building was clean, pretty new and the staff members seemed pretty nice. But thats when I started havign some doubts. The company had no signage like others in the building. Every one seemed young and I was like...Hmmmmmmmm pretty strange, even the HR persons.

Anys I filled out an applicatioin for the copy writer position, gave them my resume, they TOOK A PICTURE - which I found weird and gave me an interview questionare to fill out. Then another HR person called a group of us into a room. Did not say much about the company all she did was tell us about some test we had to take. 50 questions in 12 mins. Was not that hard but no way could be finish them all in 12 mns.

The HR person had a quilty look on her face especially when I was being nice to her. She seemed cold and quilty. I then thought well i should be having a f2f anytime now. NOPE ...I was wrong. NO F2F. All the HR said was, "well contact you if were interested"...At this time I was pissed cuz I felt they wasted my time. But I left feeling good.

Never heard from them and I did my research. found out they scam people.

Some things I also ound out.
They are not the same Qwest that deals with internet technology etc
The go by several names. Three stars media being one of them. The even have a youtube page and in the video that is suppose to be about Three Stars medai you see the big Qwest sign
They seem like they are a company but I don't think it's a marketing firm
But what I want to know is, WTF they do will all the information they collect from people?

Who ever is incharge of QWEST MARKETING are professional scammers cuz they DUPED ME BAD!

Unfortunately there were no comments on the internet before I went on my interview. It is a scam. They also have no license in Orange County to do business. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

I dont know how qwest can stay in business everything they say is a lie! We hooked up phone and internet through them back in mid June (08) they told me when I got service that the bills would be anywhere from $70-$80 a month LIE our bills have been anywhere from $90-$120 and we only have phone/internet. Not only that but their internet connection sucks when we first got it, it was fine but over the last few months its gotten slower and slower to the point where it takes up 5 minutes to load a page and up 20+ minutes just to load a video and when the video does finally load it buffers every 2 seconds or it doesnt load at all. I would go to Comacast if we got it where we are if you dont have qwest I suggest that you dont get it. Also we are on our second modem since June!

Your company over charges their customers and then says its Direct TV's fault. when i call Direct TV they say it is Qwests fault, neither company will take responsibility. What is the customer supposed to do? I am still getting over charged, i spent 2hrs on the phone with Qwest and Direct TV and got nowhere. Is this how you treat your customers? What am i supposed to do when neither company will take responsibility? Neither Qwest or Direct TV will help me with my problem, I am still getting overcharged. Now i know why you are changing your name, even you don't wan't to be associated with the name Qwest.

vince.casella@yahoo.com

I've recieved a collection notice dated 7/31/2017 from afni regarding a Qwest bill from 2017. the address provided from the anfi agent was not ever an address I've ever been affialiated with. I live and have lived and owned is 6215 NE Multnomah st portland oregon 97213 since August 2 1997. please investigate and remove this from my credit report, thanks

Phil

I have had qwest phone service since 2017...and have had TONS of problems, mostly incorrect billing. Over the 4 years I have called over 30 times! I have kept records of all calls and have been lied to numerous times...one person saying one thing and someone else something different. I have been spoken to rudely on several occasions by the cutomer service representatives and am writing a complaint letter to their corporate offices. I have been trying to discontinue service with them since 4/09 and am still in the battle. I can not
recommend highly enough that you DO NOT use qwest service.

I ordered a DirecTV / Qwest phone and TV bundle package last March. One bill instead of two, and it costs less! How can I go wrong? Many, many ways. First off, the installer for DirecTV was a no-show on the day they were supposed to come to my house- after they made me take half a day off of work to be home for them.

So, I complained and DirecTV gave me a $100 credit on my bill. Qwest, of course, processes the bill.

Qwest never honored the credit. I called DirecTV customer service seven times and Qwest customer service nine times in the past two months. Each time, they assured me I would be credited the $100.

DirecTV swears they told Qwest about it. Qwest says, "yes, we see it in the record, but it'll be reflected on your bill next month." In the meantime, I paid every bill in full, allowing for a $100 credit, as I was instructed to by Qwest.

So, I come home from work on Monday and guess what? Qwest ordered DirecTV to shut off my service. When I called DirecTV, they seemed puzzled... why?

DirecTV told me that, according to their records, the bills were up to date, and in fact they'd been overpaid by $37. I would call Qwest, but they keep bankers' hours and are unreachable past 6pm pacific time.

Have you ever been shut off for paying your bill on time? Beware the bundle, my friends...

I was charged $900 to cancel my telephone service! When I inquired as to why there were these exorbitant charges I was told I was in a special business plan and could not cancel my phone service without $300 per line for 3 lines. I told them I never signed up for this plan and asked to see my contract. They told me it was verbal. I called multiple times to complain and they told me they would investigate. I never received a call back. I finally spoke to them and they said the charges would stand.

I was offered a really good deal on long distance/ local phone service from qwest communications. I had takled to a person in July when business was booming and had a phone service connected at my business. About three weeks after my service was initated I recieved a phone call from a Qwest communications phone number and a represenitive wanting to review my bill and make sure my serivice is what i wanted. We went over my personal information quick like and he asked a few questions about my services. After telling him i was happy and all was well the phone cll ended in a thankyou and have a good day. Little did i know I just had my longdistance switched on me...USBI is the culprit! I made several phone calls to both businesses. Qwest told me to call them and get things cleared up and USBI, well they just hung up on me several times in a row...oddd! Now i refuse to pay the bill because of this scam! Also when i talked to Qwest about this and trying to get my old services back she said someone put something in the computer wrong and i wasnt supposed to get sucha good deal so they could not offer me my same services at the smae price which raised my bill considerably, she told me that she was sorry and thats all they could do. I asked to cancel services and she said it would be a fee...this company is an all around scam and needs to be regualted on, seems the federal agents knew what was going on and havent done anything...anyone have any ideas? please email me saksa420@gmail.com

In September I found a notice on my door from Qwest, they had upgrade our neighborhood to high speed digital fiber, and were offering deals of $29/mo for the low end which I was using and paying $42/mo or $44/mo for their new 12GB service. I called them and was assured that yes I could be upgraded for just a few $$ more than I was currently paying. After a lengthy discussion with the Qwest rep I upgraded to their new service. By November I was being charged $65 for the service plus an additional $14 for MSN which I specifically did not want. I called them and was told those charges would be removed from my bill and I would be charged the $44/mo originally quoted. A month later I get another statement with the charges they were going to remove now listed as past due and my charges are back to the $65 +$14, when I called again I was told the only way I could get the (now) $46/mo rate was to sign a 2 year contract and there was no way they could roll back the price over the last 2 months. This is a ripoff from a company that now controls most of telecom.

Qwest is the absolute poorest excuse for Communications I have EVER seen! I live in Clarkston, WA, which is a town across the river from Lewiston, ID, which Qwest classifies as a "Border Town". I had a SIMPLE request. All I wanted was a residential Phone line with internet. Simple enough, right? WRONG! I spent an hour on the phone each day for 3 days (using up my entire lunch hour at work each time) just trying to get somebody to put an order in. YOu see, because Clarkston is a "Border Town" I couldn't just simply hook up service. Nor could anyone I talked to at their center help me or figure out HOW to even put an order in! One of these times I tried to get 'Hooked up", I was given two 800 #'s to call. One of the 800 #'s was a DIRECT TV # and another, a Qwest REPAIR # ! Finally I got "John" in Tucson, AZ who submitted a "handwritten" order. He told me he'd personally submit it. Since I had no phone # for them to contact me (OBVIOUSLY, this is why I was trying to get it set up) "John" told me to give a certain 800 a call in a few days to get my new phone # and see that it went through. Ok...SO...I called a few days later. The lady who answered checked and they had NO RECORD of me in their system at all! After wasting about 5 hours total of my life over about 2-3 weeks, I was back at square one. I am now happily telling my story and asking everyone who reads this to spread the word about this "quality" service. I actually worked for this company years ago when they were US WEST...before Qwest bought the company and the service went from already shaky to abyssmal!

I switched from Qwest voice (not cell) and DSL to Comcast Broadband on November 9th. After a day of verifying that my new service worked I contacted Qwest to make sure they terminated my voice and internet service and asked for a final statement. After the end of the billing period, I called to get the final ballance which was $99 and I paid by credit card on December 6th. The agent told my that there was still a long distance charge that was on a different billing cycle of about $15 but she did not have the exact amount. I told her to send me the final statement.

Yesterday, Jan 20th, I received a call on my cell phone from a collection agency reguarding my Qwest account. I hung up and contacted Qwest. They had not terminated the internet portion of the account and claimed I owed them $146. After 3 calls and over 2 hours of my time they dropped the internet charges and came up with the ballance that I was waiting for of $14.26 which I paid by credit card.

My complaint is with their inept customer service in their failure to verify that my service was terminated. I was also under a 2 year contract. I called several times to a termination date and was given incorrect information until I confronted them with my records. I also take exception to their collection practices since I called to make a final payment on December 6th and was called by a collection agency on January 20th. Qwest also gave them my cell phone number which was not part of their service. I did a bundle deal with Qwest when they offer Verison. I switched that service over a year ago to AT&T.

What are you talking about?

AFNI is a recource for telcos. They are a partner for many telcos. They are an outsource call center solution for companies like Qwest, Embarq, etc. They are used for collections, customer service and many other solutions. They are not fraudulintly collecting for Qwest. Check out their website. www.afni.com

Aften AFNI will purchase deft from companies as well.

Hope this information was helpful.

SOURCE: In the Telcom industry for over 10 years and worked with AFNI while employed with Sprint.

I switched from DirecTV a year ago to Embarq's bundle with Dish network because of the free offer. Now that my year was up I called to see what my new charges were going to be only to find out I had been paying full price all along (I did have some billing on my entertainment section because I upgraded the TV package and had additional receivers). First they told me I didn't qualify and when I pushed and asked why, they came back and said I did qualify but it didn't go through their system, then another rep told me again that I didn't qualify and around and around and around. They said it would have been better had I checked my bill and called back earlier; so I dug out last years paperwork to find I was given a credit on my first months bill - I was sure I had checked it, but no subsequent credits after that. I didn't notice because I have a billing with so many things on it (LD, Local, Internet, TV, etc) so I just assumed the billing would remain correct. When I talked to a 'supervisor' about this I was told that was a Dish Network credit - well how would I know that when I called Embarq to connect and the only credit I was expecting was their?
On top of all that, a few months ago Embarq called to review my services and see if they could 'optimize' what I have. We decided that I don't use enough long distance on one of my lines to warrant the Unlimited LD so we changed with the understanding that my work line NOT be changed. Low and behold, the next month bill they had changed it and instead of me saving money, now I was being billed for a ton of LD charges. I called and thought it was resolved but the next months bill came and the same thing...
I think Embarq has some sort of scam going and I will be reporting them to the BBB. Every change on my account, whether I initiated or they did, has cost me more money than it should.
Finally, I cancelled my Dish and I have to pay $120 early cancellation fee even though I never got the free TV I was promised for 12 months!
I didn't realize that customer service has gotten so bad that you literally have to peel through every bill every month in minute detail. That is really too bad. I remember when companies were honest.

I have also fallen victim to the free TV offer thats not so free. The best part about the whole thing is this company could not have run my credit for the offer. They messed up the names on the account and added my husband's name and my social security number. I am currently in the process of trying to find out what my legal options are. I have spent more than 6 hours on the phone with different customer service reps who have all given me different answers as to why I am being billed so much. I have been left on hold for long periods of time and promised someone would call me back with a resolution. So far no resolution and no return calls. I think its ashame that a company is allowed to get away with something like this.

This company may be one of the most unethical if not fraudulent in existence today - the telecommunications version of Enron. Count me as another duped consumer via Embarq's false advertising. Like John above I made the ridiculous mistake of subscribing to their service based upon billing estimate's from at least 6 ignorant Embarq CSR's. Low and behold the bill arrives with more hidden fees than you could possibly dream up yourself. Then the real kicker, like John above my 12 month free TV deal and the corresponding $39.99/mo credit doesn't exist (even though I was told at the time of ordering of the phone that I was qualified). Apparently my 780 FICO score isn't good enough?! If I were John I would strongly recommend doing what I will do on Monday, find a law firm that is prepared to go to bat for me and surely the thousands of other consumers that have been similarly lied to.

Hi- My name is Jenny and I work with Embarq online support team. I would like to help you with your issues that you are having with Embarq. If you would like for me to assist you please email me anytime at Embarq_Jenny@Embarq.com.

Thanks
Jenny R.
Embarq online support
Embarq_Jenny@Embarq.com

I wanted the Big Ten Network. I had it at first, now I don't because I'm not in the right zip code. The Bar around the corner has it and we are in the same zip. Some body is ripping me off I believe. Whats the real story here. Dick

Seems like its too much aggravation to stay with this stupid company. I hope you have better luck in the future

My name is Jenny and I work with Embarq online support team. I saw that you were having issues with your small business account over several months. We would hate for you to leave us due to these issues. You stated that Dianna has straightened out everything for you. I want you know that I am here to help you with any future issues that you may have with your business, toll free or local home account. You can email me anytime at Embarq_Jenny@Embarq.com .

Thanks
Jenny R.
Embarq online support team
www.Embarq.com/FreeTV

You are an idiot, you need to pay your bills. You make a committment to a company when you sign up with services that you will pay for your usage. You broke that committment and now you receiving calls about it? GROW UP!

And you're mad at the company? You should be mad at yourself. As far as your car payment goes, pawn some stuff to get it paid. And take your money order stub down to the storefront where you purchased it from. They can't cash the money order, you know this, it will be mailed back to you, however I fear it will take 2 to 4 weeks because that's how the cookie crumbles. I sure hope you cashed out the money order for 100 bucks in order to pay part of your car payment. If not, I would assume you mailed it off to the company in question to make sure at least that bill is paid. Keep your car hidden, keep calling the car finance company to let them know the status at all times, pay what you can to them even if they say they only want full payment of the 400 and keep thinking positive. It was a mistake and you'll pay dearly for it with worry. But in the end the numbers will come out even, although you'll never feel totally good about it. I know it's not what you'd want to hear, but what else is there?

Embarq is the absolute WORST so called telephone company ever! They make service appointments that they don't keep. Have people sitting around all day for a technician that never shows up! I can't believe they are still allowed to even operate. I hate them!

I agree completely with the complaint against Embarq. What a scam and fraud, this company are ripping off consumers, and nothing is being done to stop it.. Wake up people -- and file --file- file many more complaints, and maybe we can truly help ourselves and others . Embarq sales rep who telephones you ..believe me all he /or she says it is a complete lie.. don't fall for the pitch they give you.
Lets get it stoppped NOW..Everyone file a complaint to Flordia Public Service Commision [protected]

I couldn't agree more-- Embarq is without a doubt a company so arrogant and incompetent in the most basic of services it is hard to believe they are still in business! I would NEVER have dealt with them under any circumstances based on my previous horrendous experience with them when they were Sprint (whose motto is "we hate the customer") but was forced with gritted teeth to get local phone service and high speed internet with them because they are the ONLY option for those of us without access to cable. I have probably spent 3 or more hours on hold with customer-no-service for various complaints ranging from standing us up 3 separate times waiting for installation that never arrived, a phone line that didn't work after 3 days, assigning us a number already assigned to a company, and now i get my bill and I am being charged for "optional" services I absolutely did not sign up for or agree to. Attempts to contact them on line were complete failures as they only have tech support despite what they SAY on their dreadful website designed by monkeys with ADHD. I only hope these kinds of customer complaint boards will finally get their attention...

Embarq should be renamed Embarf to reflect their true mode of operating!

My hi speed dsl suddenly slowed to the speed of dial-up. No help from Embarf tech support. BUT just today i received an amazing offer from Embarf to increase my dsl speed for only an additional $5.00 per month. This is a damn scam attempt by Embarf. LET THEM KNOW ABOUT IT! I have already.

I agree with the above complaint-- these companies DO NOT HAVE ANY REMORSE FOR THEIR ACTIONS AT AT ALL.
They think because they are a large corporation that the individual has absolutely NO RIGHTS WHAT SO EVER and that they can treat people in any way they see fit to do so.
Case in point: I was making regular payments of 35.00 dollars on my local service. Then someone told me I broke a payment arrangement-- (I honestly to do ever recall this) and so just in case there was a mistake, I called another Embarq agent who told me that "no, you're just fine. You can go ahead and make that 35.00 dollar payment". And I did so. And have been doing so for the past 3 months (fortunately all checks by phone) and yesterday they advised me that my service is being shut off because they have split my bill and I now owe 95.00 dollars on my local service-- to pay or be terminated. I find this incredibly outrageous because I HAVE been making payments and their people have been accepting them for months now. THEY ARE IN THE WRONG and they are about to disrupt the service of a single mother on disability who is the care provider for her father (dad is terminally ill disabled veteran with lung cancer) and a mother who is ill as well. I need to have phone service.

Hi Cherish-
My name is Jenny R. and I work with Embarq Customer care. I noticed that you had an issue with paying your billing online. I want to apologize to you first off and would also like to help you. If you would like to email me i will be happy to pull up your account, and correct anything that is incorrect. Feel free to email anytime at SMNP.Jenny.R@Embarq.com

Thanks

Jenny R
Embarq Customer Care
Johnson City TN

I ordered long distance unlimited calling from Embarq I tried to get internet to my surprise it did not come to our area. I had to use dial up. new to the area I did not realize that it was long distance to use the phone options to dial up internet I received a curtousy call from Embarq telling me I could not use my long distance for dial up internet. After calling around no one could give me internet in our area so I asked Embarq which numbers can I use they included Vernon on my list of cities. so I started using the Vernon number. I came home to get on the internet my long distance was cancelled. I called to find out why? they informed me I am not allowed to have long distance because I am using it for dial up. I received my bill it included a rate for long distance service without the privalages of the use. Did I mention that within a 1 mile radious they have all Embarqs privalages. internet and phone. there is about twelve or more houses in the area who if paid what I was charged would make them about 1200.00 or more a month. income if they would extend a little further.

I did not authorize such services and being billed for them on my phone bill.I would appreciate all help to remove this mess from my phone bill..I have paid these outragous amounts once and won't again being that i did not authorize such to be attached to my phone or internet... L a credit to my phone bill should be ...This has been a source of great inconvenience to me...I am a honest hard working citizen being scammed and do not deserve such heartache.. Your attention to this matter is appreciated...

I was sent three promotion deals from enbarq in May i went to the store to start service on May18th 2009.They said i would receive a $100 gift card it is Oct 1st have not gotten anything except there bills ever month.Called the store starting in July they said it would take 4 - 7 weeks to get it. Please help i really need the gift card Shirley Casimates

I am sick of Embarqs internet service. They steal my homepage and replaced google with theirs. I hate their lame green looking search engine.

embarq refuses to refund or anything my 150.00 termination fee on the wireless phone I had. said they had not been formally advised by the public utilities commission

I have just had my first bad experience with embarq. My internet keep getting disconnected when I am receiving or placing calls. Call Tech support, they said it was a poblem with the phone line. Call Embarq to check the phone line, they tell me that is not their problem. However, I am paying extra for the maintance of the line's. So here I am getting billed monthly for service I am not receiving. Still fighting to get someone to clear the problem up.

you guys have nothing better to do. my internet runs faster than any company i've ever had. my internet has never went out on me in over 3 years. they don't change prices every month like cable does. if your internet is slow guess what, your dumb butts never scan for viruses. any time i can't even get my printer to work i call embarq and they take care of it. never had a company that would do that for me! they have a customer for life

Shirley,

Sorry you've had trouble obtaining the promotional gift card. I can help if you send me an email with your telephone number. My email is EMBARQ_Joey@embarq.com. If you need to verify my identity check out my Twitter page, http://twitter.com/EMBARQ_Joey.

Thanks,

Joey H.
EMBARQ Customer Outreach
reachout@embarq.com

You can change your homepage back to google very easily. In Internet Explorer go to Tools->Internet Options and it should have a "home page" box at the top. In Firefox it's Tools->Options. Google Chrome, it's under Options on the Settings tab. That should help.

I have cancelled a long distance business plan with Embarq every month since February. Each month I get the same bill, again call the same customer service that does not care, get the run around, get promised that the problem is taken care, get promised that they will credit my account, get confirmation numbers, get ID #'s. It all means nothing. The last supervisor sounded like a recording "Ma'am the problem is taken care of, the problem is taken care of" but they are already telling me I will receive another bill next month because we are in the middle of a billing cycle. I will need to call again when I get my next bill, again in the middle of the billing cycle. Of course they promise to keep crediting, but I want this resolved, not the buck passed till next month when some other custer rep will again repeat that there is no problem. I do not think there has been an honest attempt at any point to resolve this.

Title: Mr.
First Name: Sai
Middle Name: B
Last Name: Kolli
Suffix: Sr.
Address: 11111, T plaza
Address 2: #207
City: Omaha
State: NE
Zip/Postal Code: 68137
Country: UNITED STATES
Daytime Phone: [protected]
Evening Phone: [protected]
Fax:
Email: saibabu.kolli@applabs.com
Business Information
Parent: Qwest Communications
Name: Qwest Communications - Main Center
Address: 1801 California Street
City: Denver
State/County: CO
Zip/Postal Code: 80202

I am not satisfied with quest services and it continuously disconnected for days.i have chat over with technicians and they could not able to fix, technician came one day and he fixed the problem again i see same issue in next day.
finally i would like to say Quest services are not satisfactory and paid $59 with out using internet

The stories I see are very unfortunate for us poor little people, I'm not even a customer of QWEST, yet am being harassed by two of the Company's hired GOON COLLECTORS-WEST ASSET MANAGEMENT, & ALLIED INTERSTATE.
I have attempted to convey this to them REPEATEDLY! WON'T LISTEN! (I'ts like the Mafia-wether or not you use our service-"PAY & NOBODY GETS HURT!)
Edward A. Mueller is the BIG CHEESE there, QWEST USERS-THINK YOUR RATES ARE EXTREME?! HERES WHY:
HIS TOTAL COMPENSATION PACKAGE EQUALS: $10, 344, 577.00
SEE: salary.com
Americans are told tighten your belts, cut-back, so the super rich can get richer.
Hey QWEST workers, how decent was your last raise?, if you got one!
If you did not, it most likely went to Eddie.

Those interested in a Qwest class action suit for early termination fees go here:
http://chimicles.com/case/qwest-communications-early-termination-potential

Best of luck. They have done lots of us wrong!

If you do file a class action suit I would like to be included. I also signed up for Qwest and had Direct TV and internet bundled. Direct TV went to the wrong house and installed HD services and had charged them to my account. When we found out we didn't have HDD we called DTV and they had charged me over $300 for services we had not received. Qwest said they could not reimburse but agreed we did not owe the amount that we were billed because the house they had put the services on did not have HD either. Because we had paid the bill we were told they could not reimburse us. On top of that my internet never worked and I would go days without internet because they could not help me get online. I was on the phone for hours with Qwest trying to rectify my bill. Each month they said they would fix and then did not. The last month Qwest sent me a bill for over $700 and I closed my account. I was charged a $200 early termination fee for the internet and $200 for closing my account. Then after making arrangements to pay this off in installments they sent it to ER collections who were very rude. Qwest said I had never talked to them but I have ID numbers and names and dates. Also because I became so frustrated my son my husband had also called for me. Qwest needs to get their act together or go out of business. Maybe if enough people complain they will wake up.

I contacted Qwest to cancel my wireless service because it does not work in downtown phoenix, even though the qwest building is visible fronm my 16th floor office. I was told by a rep that their IT person says it does work. I had been contacted by Qwest months earlier to re-up my contract xcomplete with the 4150 credit, blah, blah, blah. I was told that no one could remove a deactivate fee of $200. I told them I was disatisfied with their service. I had a 750 minute plan and lowered that to 200 nminmutes because 40 hours of my week are spent in the CEntral corridor and the network is horendous, the phone rarwely works, drops calls, etc. But they'll get your $200for early twerm no matter what. I am seeking an attorney to file a class-action suit on behalf of all Qwest Wireless customers who have suffered the same injustices.

To Whom It May Concern,

I cancelled DSL service with Qwest in February 2011. At the time that I cancelled, I was told that I would not have to return the modem because I had purchased it. This made sense to me, as I had easily paid for value of the modem several times over during the many years I was a Qwest DSL customer.

However, a couple of weeks after I cancelled my service, Qwest sent me UPS shipping labels to return the modem. I dropped off the modem at UPS on March 28, 2011. I have delivery confirmation from UPS that states that the package was delivered to Pueblo, CO April 4, 2011 at 1:34 PM and signed by DOUGLAS.

On May 13, 2011 Afni sent me a letter stating that they were a debt collector attempting to collect a debt on behalf of Qwest. When I called Afni to discuss the letter, I was told that the debt was owed for the modem mentioned above. I told Afni that I would like to dispute the debt and provided them with the UPS tracking number, which shows proof of delivery.

I received another latter from Afni May 24, 2011; which stated that Afni had verified the debt was valid, and intends to continue to pursue collection of the debt.

On May 24, 2011 I contacted Qwest customer service and talked to someone who gave me the ID KLMason. She told me that she worked in Qwest Billing, and that she could not find a record of the returned modem; and that there was nothing else she could do.

I am finding that in every detail in this matter, Qwest has shown poor customer service ability. From telling me that I would not have to return the modem, to turning the account over to a collections agency to denying that they had received the modem, despite the clear UPS paper trail from me to the Qwest facility in Colorado; it is difficult to find anything that is not disappointing about Qwest in this matter.

I have begun to pursue legal options with Afni. The federal government is very clear about what those options are. It seems that I could pay the amount requested, but I returned the modem and I believe the facts are clear in the matter. I would have no reason to lie under oath regarding such a thing, particularly because Qwest sent me shipping labels; but also because the modem is essentially worthless, not only to me, but also in the general sense the value of the device in question in year 2011. The federal government has various mechanism in place to protect honest consumers like myself from being harmed in circumstances such as this.

Regards,

Name Removed

In October 2006 we changed from Dial-Up internet access to the Qwest offer of DSL Bundle Package for a price of $26.99 for a lifetime. The add indicated that the service would be up to 1.5Mbps. Instead we only received 256 kbps and after repeated calls are told we just have to wait until faster service comes to our neighborhood. This is interesting as our neighbors across the street have at least 1.0 Mbps up and down as well as a neighbor about 100 yards north of us who has service even better than that.

I do not believe that Qwest is being forthright with their customers before hand and I find it hard to believe that I get a service that is 1/4 less than my neighbors yet I have to pay the same monthly fee. I repeatedly am told that they have to wait for more customers to get me and the others on a faster hub, yet Qwest cannot tell me when this will happen. Recently, I was told that I could go around and petition other neighbors who currently do not have DSL and perhaps this would speed up the process. I will not do this!

I continue to see ads on TV and in the newspaper which state that Qwest DSL provides "blazing speed", even faster than COMCAST cable. What can BBB do about this?

Thank you,

Rudy Drautz, a disgruntled customer of Qwest

I returned my modem with tracking. It was received at Century Link months ago. Still no refund received by this company. Can’t even call in and get customer service to understand or sometimes get them on the phone. One more week before I file an FTC complaint.

been trying to get my home phone repaired for 2 days they said they would call me back but nevr did. keep getting disconnected after an hour. called a supv today no call back. tried chatting , person had many people on the chat and finally disconnected. need my home phone fixed but can not get through to them.

Century Link was down for 24 hours from 3/24/23 uintil 3/25/23 in my area which is 1170 n. Opal Dr., Prescott, AZ 86303. I believe cenuiry Link should issue a credit to my accout for the outage. Especially since Century Link has increased my monthly charge by 20%! Please inform me when the credit will be posted to my account.

I currently have a telephone outage [protected]) which is causing severe problems as my credit card processing relies on the phone service. Paying extra for a business line, which is frequently out, and the long wait for repair service is not accectable. I need immediatly assistance.

It is July 1st and we have been attempting to have internet installed since early March! Horrible communication, no return calls, technicians haven't shown up, unable to speak to actual humans, and redirected to a new person and having to restate the issue every time. Rural and our only option is Century Link

CenturyLink had an internet outage for four days. Each day they told me it would be back on by the evening. On the fourth day I gave up and canceled. They only refunded the four days service was out. They told me I would receive a full refund.
Most inconsiderate poor customer service I've ever dealt with. Abusing customers with no accountability.

I'm getting 15-20 calls AN HOUR from soliciting foreigners. MAKE IT STOP, PLEASE!

Why does my Centurylink bill show $83.90 for packages (internet and phone) and $13.98 for broadband and $20.70 for voice? That's double billing and seriously has me irritated beyond comprehension.

they set up services you don't ask for, when you get a bill 3 months later, they wont credit you and charge an early term fee..
FRAUD is Century link.

reading all these reviews I know I am not the only one.

YEAH- CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT

we are getting calls with no name no number or [protected] no name or MN DFL Dept. the no name and no number or [protected] no name is every half hour from noon until 9:00 at night. We would like them blocked or put our name on the no call list.