Cutting Back the Bills

We have totally "haggled" :-) with ATT and the cable company. It is totally worth it. They CAN give you that promotional price. Tell them what company you are going to if they don't work with you! Good luck!!!!!

Your best bet is to call back, talk to a supervisor, and ask them how long you must be off of their service before you are eligable for the newer promotions. When they ask why, tell them that you have beena loyal customer for years, and that you are now being charged more than someone who is just signing up, and you will go somewhere else for service until you are eligable.
I know they can work with you at AT&T, not sure which cable you go through, but verizon has some pretty good deals, you can get your cell phone, house phone, cable, and internet all on one bill...

I would call back and haggle as others already suggested. It is extremely common for companies to have "new customer" promotions all the time. But we have found that if you complain enough you can usually get what you want. My husband and I recently cancelled our cable altogether because we felt it was a waste of money. We still get all local channels (including PBS kids, not sprout) that we weren't getting before. We also have the netflix that streams to our blueray player so we really are only missing our DVR but for an over $100 a month savings we are just home when we want to watch tv or we watch shows online the next day.

Usually you can complain enough you will get a much better price!

We don't have cable, instead, we subscribe to Netflix @ $19/mo. Our internet through Verizon is $30/mo (we got in as new subscribers a couple of years ago), and we can watch all kinds of things on Hulu. If you have the right set up, you can watch Netflix on demand on the computer, too, and those movies/shows don't count toward your 3 movies at a time (or whatever) that you are paying for. Just something to think about. Both Hulu and Netflix can be routed to your tv with the right connections.
Netflix provides a free disc you can put in the Wii, if you have one.
And there's this
http://pctvcables.com/?gclid=CJb9qZCT-KMCFeQD5Qod22m1LA

or the Roku
http://www.roku.com/roku-products?gclid=CN-h87qT-KMCFZZM5...

so maybe an initial small investment for most all the tv you could ever want.

We just left DirectV after 12 years because of this issue and switched to Dish. When you call to tell htem you are cancelling they will offer you 10.00 off your bill for 12 months. My problem was that our bill was up to 70.00 a month for the same service they were offering new customers at 29.99 a month. And even 10.00 off was still almost double what I'm paying now for Dish. Of course after I cancelled I got a letter from them asking us to come back for the new customer price of 29.99 for 12 months! Too little too late. they don't take care of their existing customers.

We had a similar issue with my cell phone and the contract not being met. It's a shame that these companies forget to reward loyal costumers as well as attract new customers. However, it can be done. We spoke with ATT because my phone drowned and wasn't covered with insurance by the salesman fluke. They wanted us to pay over $100 for canceling the contract and more for a new phone. My husband basically showed them the advertising for joining another company with a free i-Phone (a major upgrade to what I have) and said it made more sense to change companies. We spoke to managers and sure enough, they complied. No fees. I also did the same with a credit card company charging me late fees. I said I'd close the account if they won't take out the late fees and they did. Just make sure you stand your ground, don't get too feisty and have promotional material to compare with. Bottom line is you don't HAVE to stay with these companies. Also, see if putting it in your name would make a difference......sort of a new account.
Good luck!
Also, look into car insurance and home insurance. Sometime the rates drop but the loyal customers never find out unless looked into it.

Those are probably only for new customers (we had the same problem) and they will not give them to you, but ask them if they are offering any promotions for reliable, current customers!

The bills are in his name, you said- have him cancel, then you can be a new customer in your own name.
Bright house did the same w/ me- 85% increase in 13 mos- and when I complained they explained how grateful I should be that it wasn't"full rate"
Or cancel it all and read to your kids!
best, k

When you call the companies back, ask to speak to a supervisor. The "first responders" to their help lines may not be able to authorize those deals. But I bet if you're persistent, you can get them. Stress that you've been customers for years, and that you don't want to take your business elsewhere, but you will.

For that amount of $, it's worth spending some time haggling on the phone.

You might also consider, for phones, going with a voice-over-IP instead of ATT, etc. for your land-line phone services. We pay $25/month for unlimited long distance. Or, you could cancel your land-line altogether.

I would 2nd the Roku with Netflix streaming--you'll save lots of $$ in the long run with that.

If you want to get more extreme, you can do stuff like put a timer on the shower (to keep the costs of water and heating the water down); lights on timers and making sure all the lights are off; start living off the food in the pantry and freezer (since you don't want to have move that anyway! LOL); evaluate your cell phone plans and see if you can go with a cheaper plan for fewer minutes or fewer texts, etc.

With DTV the new customer promotions WILL work for you if you simply put the service in your name. You said your husband is moving into another house for a while, so don't tell them why, and have the service shut off in his name and turned on in your name. You can even do this at both homes if you want. I just did this with my service. You have to remember that with DTV you have a 1 yr contract, and usually the new customer rates are only for 6 months, so make sure to see what they are after that to make sure they are still affordable. DTV will not work with a "loyal" long time customer to give you the same rates or promotions as a new customer, we had sevice for 6 yrs in the hubbys name. They stink as far as customer service goes. If it wasn't for the football package that only they offer, I would NOT even use them, because our tv goes out everytime it rains or gets a little cloudy here where we live. I highly reccomend looking into other companies first, and if you know anyone who has DTV, ask them if they have any of the new customer fliers for $100 where they get it and so do you for signing up a friend. You have to use it when you get service hooked up, but you will get it and so will they. All you need is their dtv account number. It is another way to save money with them if you really want to go through them. If you don't know of anyone that has the coupon, but they do have dtv, they can ask for one from dtv. Good luck!

Call them anyway. If you tell them you can afford it and are thinking of switching to someone cheaper, they may offer you a lower amount to keep you. If they won't, then look into their competition who surely will give you a new customer discount.

Another thing you could do is suspend your Directv account for 6 months. It's free to do. Watch broadcast tv instead and your own DVDs or use Netflix. We suspended Directv in order to save money too. My husband found a video on Youtube that showed how to make a homemade antenna. It was easy and we get pretty much all the broadcast channels. PBS has wonderful programming and that's what my kids watch or our own movies/kids cartoons (which are commercial free so they are not bombarded with stuff to beg me to buy). We download a fair amount of tv shows off the internet to watch too. Honestly, our 6 months is almost up and we will probably get rid of DIrectv for good. We had all those channels and barely watched them. The only thing I miss it the DVR because I have to remember to download the shows myself or go on the network websites.

Those promotions really are for new customers and they wont give you that. But they can do other stuff, like give you free dvr for 6 mos. That saved me $30 per month. They have certain places they can trim if they know you are considering leaving. I know that ATT will definitely work to keep a customer. Have him call and verify his identity, then hand you the phone. Ask them to help youcut the cost. If they say they can't say Please cancel my service on the 5th. That's when they start trying to make deals.
Also - biggest of all - call your electricity company. See if you are on a contract, when it ends, how much to get out of it and if there is anythig they can do to cut your cost. Then shop your electricity. I saved $100 a month on peak months. It comes down to cost per killowatt. I've come down from 14 to 12 to 11 and now I'm at 9.2 c. by negotiating every 6 mos. That's a huge savings a lot of people don't even think to ask about.

Hi T.,
We had that problem with Direct TV until yesterday when we became a new customer with DISH network!
My husband and I both called Direct TV (they wouldn't talk to me because it was in his name) and after talking to however many supervisors the best they could do was 6 months. Well, after being a loyal customer for 5 years we said Good-Bye and went with DISH. When they called back to make sure there wasn't anything they could do to keep us (they would talk to me now) I told them about the lower rates, more options, free HD for life, etc. that they could match they said 6 months was their best offer for exisiting custmers. Sorry, I will be a DISH customer and save the $35+ a month!
Good Luck!

We have called before and told them we saw the promotions and are current customers and they will usually honor the promotion if you talk to the right person. Some times if you tell them you are considering switching services they will offer the promotion to keep you, guess that means you may have to be willing to switch, or let them know you have to discuss it with your spouse and will call back if they will not honor the promotion.

Try calling and using your name. Make tell a small fib that ENTER HUSBAND"S NAME HERE is your brother and he has moved out...

If not, try other companies... they all have promotions and want your business.

Best wishes!

Re: cell phones, call another provider and say you want to switch if they can offer you the same promotion. Might work out in your favor.

I htink it never hurts to try to haggle, and it usually works if you can take your business elsewhere or have a competing offer. But it can be sort of a crapshoot based on who you talk to that day. Sometimes it helps to very sweetly ask to speak wiht a supervisor :)

Ask for their customer retention specialists and (in a polite and non-confrontational way) let them know you are going to drop them entirely if they can't work with you on a cheaper rate. If they are OK with that, do just that. There are other companies out there who will take you. In fact, I'd have several lined up so that you can argue your point with your current providers. We dropped cable/satellite altogether to save on bills - it's really not that bad.

My husband haggles ALL of the time on the phone. And with the move you will be a new customer in that area.

Another option, is if the bills are in his name, the the bills for the new place put in your name. Then you will be the 'New' customer. This may be easier to get away with if you go by a different last name than your husband.

You can always ask for a supervisor too. Most companies have a customer retention dept. I think both companies you mentioned have them. I know Direct TV does.

Other ways to save---
coupons- I save on average 33% on grocery bills. Target & Publix will take a manufacturer coupon & store coupon for the same item :). This helps especially if there are stores who don't double coupon in your ares (none in my area do.) You can also get coupons from their websites online. Pair up with sales!! Big savings.

Also, Sam's Club now has good LED lights. They are pricey $20 for an indoor flood light, but they use minimal electricity. I just bought a bunch for my business, & hope to buy them for the house soon little by little. We have 17 flood lights at 60 watt each, I think the new LEDs burn like 4 watts. This will help you save on electric every month. (A/C still uses the most). You don't have to do ALL of the lights. just do the ones that are used the most, the ones that the kids leave on all of the time. These also don't have mercury in them like CFL's. They last longer too. My husband has a friend who is an electrical engineer, he got prices for us- to see if he could get a deal. Sam's club price was MUCH better.

Just some suggestions.

New customer promos are usually only for a few months and then back to at least what you are currently paying. That's how companies draw in new customers, it wouldn't hurt for you to try but it likely won't work for you. You could shop around for a different internet provider, but do you also have local or cell phone with them? If so, you may pay more for those services if you move one service to another company.

if you really want to save money get rid of direct tv. How much tv could a family watch? go to the library and get movies and shows there free. Take walks, play games and do fun stuff together rather than sit in front of the idiot box.
Internet you can always go back and forth with promos with att and comcast 3 months with each.