Repeated Equipment Failures and Systemic Support Breakdown

A couple of months ago, my Xfinity DVR cable box failed, and it took an unreasonable amount of time to get a technician scheduled to replace it. Yesterday morning, December 27, it failed again.

At 10 am, when the Xfinity store opened, I exchanged my cable box for a replacement. When I returned home and unwrapped it, the box immediately rattled, making it obvious that it was defective.

I made a second 45-minute round trip to the store and was given another so-called new box. When installed, that unit would not work for cable channels at all and only displayed internet channels.

I then spent more than five hours attempting to get this replacement box to function. During that time, I had eleven phone calls with Xfinity technical support, nine of which I initiated. Each of those calls required navigating your voice response system, which repeatedly forced system reboots and promised callbacks that rarely occurred. Reaching a live representative was extremely difficult and often resulted in being disconnected.

In total, I spent well over two hours actively on the phone, not including more than an hour simply trying to reach a live person. When I did reach support staff, they were polite and professional, but constrained by again forcing repetitive system reboots, no matter how many times they failed. If you can find my account, check how many times the system was rebooted on 12/27.

Finally, after 5 pm and another 45-minute round trip, I returned to the Xfinity store for a third time. Only after installing the third replacement box did my television finally work.

Reissuing returned cable boxes that are clearly defective and redistributing them as replacements reflects a serious failure in quality control and horrendous customer service. Designing a support system that actively prevents customers from reaching live assistance only magnifies that failure.

Every member of Comcast and Xfinity senior management and your board of directors should be required to call your own support number and attempt to resolve a real issue using the same process customers are forced to endure. If they did, and reviewed your pricing structure, they would quickly understand why so many customers are abandoning cable service.

To further compound this experience, Xfinity has raised the price of my service for 2026, though one of your support reps did find a loyalty discount for me as recompense for all the stress Xfinity again caused me and wasting my entire day.

I have been a Comcast/Xfinity customer for more than 20 years. Multiple times, I have wasted days dealing with your customer support. This experience again demonstrates a systemic breakdown in equipment quality control, customer support access, and respect for long-term customers. It may well be the straw that broke the camel’s back.