The Wheeler-Young Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) post in Waterbury was charged more than $1,200 after canceling their services with a television provider.
The veterans of the VFW post in Waterbury are a close-knit family, getting together almost daily to share memories and stories. The post, which recently relocated to a new building they designed and built themselves, is proud of their mission to support local and national veterans organizations and the active military through fundraisers, hall rentals, and food and beverage sales at their canteen.
In an effort to increase sales and boost camaraderie, the post’s leadership looked for ways to accommodate more of their customers'
wishes. According to the quartermaster, Larry Valletta, clientele made it clear that they wanted to be able to watch New York Yankees games at the canteen.
The post contacted their television provider, DISH Network, and learned they do not carry the YES Network, the regional sports network which broadcasts Yankees games and programming. Intent on getting the channel through a different provider, the post canceled their DISH service, however, charges for DISH kept coming through the post’s phone and internet bill with Frontier Communications, which had originally bundled DISH service into a package deal.
With charges adding up to nearly $1,300 being added month after month, the post was still unable to get the problem fixed after nearly a year of trying.
“It’s ridiculous to be put on hold and wait and wait and wait and do this numerous times and they get nowhere,” Valletta told NBC Connecticut Responds.
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NBC Connecticut reached out to DISH and Frontier Commutations.
A Frontier spokesperson recognized the post should not have been charged for DISH and said in a statement, “We apologize for the inconvenience the customer experienced because of this situation. We are pleased to report we found the cause of the mistake, worked with DISH and have corrected the VFWs account to make this right.”
DISH acknowledged the post followed correct procedure when they canceled their account, but declined to comment on why it took more than a year to resolve the problem, explaining, “We can’t share specifics about an account, but we are pleased to have resolved this for the customer.”
Valletta confirmed that $1286.31 in charges and fees have been waived from their Frontier account and they continue to be happy customers of Frontier phone and internet services. Meanwhile, the post was able to get the YES Network from a different television provider in time for Yankees fans to enjoy the season at the post.
With the team currently ranked first in the American league, Valletta said, “Everybody’s enjoying it, or the ones that watch Yankees. The Yankee fans are!”
