Haven't Forgotten

Don't worry, Comcast, I haven't forgotten about you. Just busy with work and vacation. I'll get back to you eventually...

Comcast of the District, LLC

Well, regardless of whether the "executive" calls me back, I have the information I need: registered agent information for COMCAST OF THE DISTRICT, LLC.

Here is the civil claim form.

Here is the small claims information sheet.

Work and travel may be keeping me busy, but I always get back to this eventually.

Empty Call

I think I've coined a new term: "Empty Call":

Emp-ty Call [emp-tee kawl]
-noun
a phone call containing nothing, i.e., conveying no usable information

On the rare occasion where I actually get a call back from someone at Comcast, there is never any useful information in it. Lisa called back a few minutes ago. Sharon is apparently "gone for the day", but Lisa forwarded my information to the executives, and said one of them would definitely call back today or tomorrow.

Me: "Definitely?"
Lisa: "Yes, someone will definitely call you back between now and the end of the day tomorrow."

She would not, however, provide any contact information for these mysterious executives.

Anyway, I promised her I would definitely call her back at the end of the day tomorrow, if I had not heard from the "executive".

No Reply At All

As I expected, I never heard from Lisa Stagliano following my request on May 27. Although I'd be surprised if they ever provide any useful information, I'll continue to call them on an ongoing basis until I get some kind of resolution to this problem.

Today I called the main number (215-286-1700) and asked to speak to Lisa Stagliano. I was dumped rather abruptly into her voicemail, so I left a message describing the situation (again), and asked for a call back.

Then I immediately redialed and asked to speak to Sharon Stokes. Again I was abruptly transfered, and Lisa answered! I refreshed her memory, and she told me she had forwarded my prior request to Sharon Stokes, the aforementioned black hole where my prior calls disappeared. Despite Lisa's prior promise to call me back personally, she incorrectly assumed Sharon would call instead.

Lisa again promised to call me back by the end of business today, 5:30pm. I wonder if she'll really call?

Sharon Stokes, Lisa Stagliano

215-286-1700

Sharon Stokes answered my call to the executive office last week, and promised to call me back with registered agent information for DC. Never called back of course.

I called again today, and spoke to Lisa Stagliano, who promised to speak to Sharon, and call me back. LOL - a meta-callback!

2-month Anniversary

Today is the 2-month anniversary of this hit-and-run accident in which a Comcast van sideswiped my parked car. Happy Anniversary, Comcast! Here's a random Comcast menace picture from the web.

To celebrate, I'm going to start writing up the demand-for-payment letter. Also, I downloaded the small claims "Statement of Claim" form and the full "Rules of Civil Procedure". I spoke to witnesses Lance, his wife, and our neighbor, and they're happy to provide notarized affadavits stating that a Comcast van caused the damage. Here we go!

But first, I need to call Sharon Stokes (215-286-1700) at the Comcast Executive office. She promised last week to call me back with Comcast's registered agent information for DC. I of course never expected her to actually call back (or provide that information), since nobody at Comcast returns calls. But I'm going to hound her nonetheless, since she did tell me she'd call back.

Suing Comcast

I did a brief search of registered agents in DC. (When suing in small claims, one must sue the local registered agent.)

Comcast appears to be registered in the District as follows:

C T CORPORATION SYSTEM
1015 15TH STREET, N.W. STE. 1000
Washington, DC 20005

Again, this was just a brief look. I'll spend some time soon confirming this information, but it might not be today. I plan to file suit approximately the same time I send demand for payment, since it may take some time to get a court date anyway.

Some good news: DC Small Claims court is under 2 miles from my house, they have evening hours on Wednesday, and have morning hours on Saturday. Plus, it will cost me just $10 to file suit for $1400 in damage, and another small amount to serve by certified mail. Easy stuff.

Small Claims and Conciliation Branch
510 4th Street N.W., Room 120
Washington, D.C. 20001

Negative Contact

No call back from Pat Carroll. There's a shocker!

Frank Eliason

Lots of activity today.

I exchanged several emails with Frank Eliason (Frank_Eliason@cable.comcast.com), apparently known in the Twitter-verse as "ComcastCares". I reached him by emailing We_Can_Help@cable.comcast.com. He also saw the email I submitted to Rick Germano.

Kudos to Frank, he's very responsive. We exchanged several emails in a matter of minutes. Unfortunately, there's still very little real help. He initially referred me to Liberty Mutual, but when I noted that they already denied the claim, he repeated the dodge I've heard numerous times already: with no plate number, they won't accept responsibility. He even went so far as to say that it might be a 3rd party vehicle, not one owned by Comcast, and suggested I file with my own insurance.

I made the following points:

1) "Your local security team has done nothing but stonewall since day one. Had they started investigating after my very first phone call to Mark Allen, perhaps they might have found the driver responsible. Now we are almost 2 months later. Who knows if the driver even still works there?"

2) "No I do not have an identifying number. I have only the eyewitnesses. If I had a plate number, this wouldn’t be such a problem and wouldn’t require assistance from Comcast staff. And I honestly don’t care whether the vehicle is owned by a third party. They’re out there representing and working for Comcast. If you can’t hold them to your “high” standard, then you shouldn’t contract with them."

3) "I have full collision coverage on my vehicle, and when necessary, I will have them pursue this through subrogation. But I should not need to enter a claim with my insurance, potentially affecting my rates. If Comcast wants to be a respectable member of the community, Comcast should cover the damage. If you damage someone’s property, you should offer to pay for it; that’s what honest people do.

4) "I intend to pursue this to resolution, including court if necessary. Perhaps witnesses will be enough, perhaps not. If need be, a judge will decide."

Frank's final response was that their regional office is awaiting information from the police, and that is the current holdup.

Dr. Gridlock

I sent my story to Dr. Gridlock.

7 On Your Side

I sent my story to "ABC 7 On Your Side".

Executive Office

I called the executive office phone number: 215-286-8960

They are aware of the case, and had my name and information already. The representative I spoke to said that Pat Carroll is the executive responsible for handling my case. She submitted a request for him to contact me, and said that he is required to do so within 24 hours.

Notified Harold

I notified Harold of the updated status on this situation.

Rick Germano

I emailed Rick Germano, SVP of Customer Operations. Although I don't expect much to come from this action, it seems like a useful documentation/procedural step for presenting a case in small claims court. I included the following text:

A Comcast van sideswiped my parked car on 3/27/2009, and kept on driving. Witnesses saw the accident, and saw the van leave the scene, but did not get the plate number. I filed a police report (report #040557, First District DC Police), and I've contacted numerous people at Comcast. No one at Comcast plans to take any responsibility, despite the witness account. I would like Comcast to pay for the damage, approximately $1430.00.

Please help!
Thank you,
Joseph Marin

Additional information:

My blog about the problem is here: http://comcast-hitandrun.blogspot.com

I've been in touch with the following people at Comcast:

Marlene and Harold at customer service (202-635-5100), damage claim #1158320
Mark Allen - 202-832-2001, x-5501
Stephanie Wilkins - 202-635-5529
Jason Grimes - 301-836-9394
Billy Nielsen (Liberty Mutual) - 800-852-6662 x-267
City_Desk@cable.comcast.com
We_Can_Help@cable.comcast.com

I've posted the complaint on these sites:
Complaints.com
GetSatisfaction.com
MeasuredUp.com
ConsumerAffairs.com
as well as numerous Comcast group pages on Facebook.

Spoke to Officer Langenbach

Officer Langenbach was out of the office all week last week. He just got back, and still has not received the report, so he is "on his way" to retrieve the police report personally.

Claim Denied

So, I spoke to Billy Nielsen at Liberty Mutual late on Friday afternoon. They are refusing payment, based on the information Comcast provided:

• They're not aware of any vehicles in their fleet with damage to the passenger side.
• They don't have records of vehicles in our area on the evening of 27-Mar-2009.

Well, gee, I'm glad that's settled!

Oh, no, that's not settled. Not for a long long time. I expect this battle to go on for months.

Billy is mailing written explanation to me. In the meantime, I added his full contact information to the sidebar:

Billy Nielsen
Liberty Mutual
(T) 800-852-6662 x267
(F) 603-334-8106
Claim #AB505-258023

Police Report... Again

I left another message for Office Langenbach. He has until Wednesday, May 20 (that's one week from my first call) to return my call. At that point I start going over his head. From what I have read, DC Police Chief Lanier is pretty responsive, so why not start with her office?

Still Waiting

Left another message for Billy from Liberty Mutual this morning. Haven't heard any status change from him this week.

I'm starting to get pissed off again.

Comcast CEO

I added Comcast CEO Brian Roberts' contact information to the sidebar. I haven't contacted him yet, but I definitely will soon, and I'll definitely copy him on my Demand for Payment letter (stay tuned for that). Rick Germano (Senior Vice President Customer Operations) and Douglas Gaston (General Counsel) will also receive a copy. Hard to believe they're going to make me go all the way to the top to get a $1400 bill settled, but it's sure looking that way.

I'm also collecting shame data on Comcast. I've scoured around the web collecting reports of other incidents involving Comcast vehicles. I'll start posting those soon, but thought I'd hold off just a bit longer until I hear back from Liberty Mutual.

Requested Copy of Police Report

I called Officer Langenbach today to follow up on the police report and find out the status of the police investigation. I got his voicemail, but I left my name, cell phone number, and the police report number. I asked him to call me back to update me on the status.

Voice Mail from Liberty Mutual

Billy Nielsen, the Liberty Mutual rep, returned my call. I was unable to answer, but he left voicemail indicating that his contacts are reviewing the matter and should get back to him soon, and he'd be in touch after that.

Thanks for the call and status update; I appreciate it.

Case Information and Contacts

I added important case information and a list of contacts to the sidebar. The contact list had grown to the point where it was unmanageable scattered throughout the various blog posts, so the sidebar keeps it all organized. As a bonus, it may help improve the search engine rank, particularly for the contact names.

Liberty Mutual

I called the Liberty Mutual representative who contacted me Friday afternoon. I hadn't heard any update yet, and I want to make sure this case stays front-and-center. I reached his voice mail and left my name and claim number, and requested a call back.

Blog visibility

I'm doing well.

Google search for "Comcast damage" lists this blog at position #9 in the search results.

A search for "Comcast hit and run" shows this site first, and "Comcast van hit my car" list this blog and my various complaint board posts as 4 out of the top 5 hits.

But still not showing up in the early pages of results for more general searches like "Comcast" and "Comcast complaints". I'll work on raising my ranking.

Comcast Insurance?

This seems like good news: Late Friday afternoon, I received a call on my cell phone from a Liberty Mutual representative handling an insurance claim from Comcast. He had just received the file, and was looking into it. He gave me a claim number, phone number, and fax number, and said he'd be in touch as soon as he had more information.

This is starting to sound like cooperation and good will, so I'll refrain from posting any more deragatory information... for now.

Complaints.com

I posted on complaints.com, as Harold suggested.

Harold Heard from Comcast

Harold says he received a response from a Comcast exec. They plan to investigate and will contact both him and me when they have more info.

Thanks for the help!

HaroldSays

In digging around the net for possible avenues to pursue in getting this situation resolved, I came across HaroldSays. Very interesting. Although I hadn't heard of Harold, he seems to be an active consumer advocate, so I contacted him.

He replied quickly, suggested I also post at http://www.complaints.com, and is reaching out to his contact at Comcast. I provided my full contact information for a response.

Thanks Harold, here's some free advertising:
harold@bepositiveday.com
(570) 341-6796

Inroads!

Good news: Another Comcast response, this one resulting from my GetSatisfaction post:

Hello Joseph,

We are looking into this for you. We will keep you posted. Thanks!

Mark Casem
Comcast Corp.
National Customer Operations
We_Can_Help@cable.comcast.com

Mark Allen is Out of the Office Until 5/13/2009

I left a voicemail for Mark Allen requesting an update, and provide my cell phone. I'm sure he has no update, but I'd like to speak to him about Mr. Grimes.

Lawyered Up

I called Jason Grimes, the regional director of Security who first called me back in April. He has read this blog, and doesn't want to talk to me anymore, because he feels anything he says may end up getting posted here. He's right, but that shouldn't concern him if he'd actually provide some help.

His only two comments at this point:

1. He'll cooperate with any criminal investigation (gee, how nice).
2. I should call 1-800-Comcast and speak to the legal department (gee, I can speak to their legal department just by calling that number?)

I pressed him on why they aren't concerned about the possibility they have a criminal working for them, why they haven't conducted their own investigation, and the civil matter of simply paying for the damage. This had no impact -- he considers it a criminal matter only, and is waiting for contact from the police.

"Comcast Cares" email

Earlier this week, I sent email to a "Comcast Cares" email address I found on a web site (can't remember which one). I got a quick, polite response indicating that they would investigate and get back in touch.

Comcast Cares (City_Desk@cable.comcast.com)

Nice to see that there is a responsive communication channel. Thank you, Comcast. Now I hope something comes of it.

MeasuredUp

Complaint posted on MeasuredUp.

Investigation Underway

Good news -- Officer Langenbach located the police report. It was still at First District substation, and is now being transferred to him.

When it arrives, he will review, and request a more detailed statement from me, including damage estimates and contacts at Comcast.

ConsumerAffairs.com

I entered my complaint at ConsumerAffairs.com

Still Waiting on the Police Investigation

I tried to reach Officer Allison Jones, but didn't connect. I have a new number for her, but still couldn't reach her: 202-299-2043

I tried calling First District Police directly, and they said someone else is handling hit-and-runs now. They connected me with a different person, Officer Jim Langenbach. He did not have the case file yet, but said he'd contact the substation and call me back.

Jim Langenbach: 202-729-3425

Get Satisfaction

I also posted my complaint here: GetSatisfaction

Stephanie Wilkins - Administrator

Almost two weeks pass with no action and no phone calls, so I tried Stephanie Wilkins again this afternoon.

I reviewed the situation, and although there seemed to be a glimmer of recollection that I had left a voice mail, she clearly had no concern. She said I would have to call their Safety Person, Moata Kadeshe, at 202-635-5545

I then recited all of my notes and contacts with her with her. She wondered why Harold would give me her name, but she clearly recognized both Mark Allen's and Jason Grime's names, and said Mr. Grimes works with Mr. Kadeshe, and that they're the right people to handle the investigation. I assured her that I would not drop the issue or go away; she assure me that they don't want me to, but the investigation would take a lot of time because there was no plate number. (They all seem to think that no plate number means no responsibility. Ultimately, we'll probably let a judge decide that in small claims.)

When I pressed her as to why she never returned the phone call, she said probably because she couldn't help me, and that she's basically an administration person who would put me in touch with the right person. Great, more runaround!

Jason Grimes

I returned the call to Jason Grimes. Mr. Grimes was a bit gruff, but seemed somewhat interested and concerned. He requested all the relevant information:

• Date of incident
• Police report number
  
• Contact person with the police
• Damage claim number with Comcast
  
• Dollar estimate of the damage
• What I want from them

Mr. Grimes explained that they can't take any action without an investigation of their own. I acknowledged, but also assured him that I expected them to rectify the situation and that I would not drop the matter.

Mr Grimes provided his contact information as follows:
301-836-9394 (office)
240-855-3077 (mobile)

Mark Allen Gets the Message

Jason Grimes left me a voice mail on behalf of Mark Allen, and provided a callback number: 301-836-9394.

Nearly 4 weeks in, and my first call back from someone at Comcast!

Raising the Stakes with Mark Allen

I'm pissed now.

I try Mark Allen's number again, and get his voice mail. Again. This time I leave a message with the following points:

1) Although the damage estimate is relatively small (under $1500.00), I expect them to pay for it since their vehicle was responsible.
2) Police are backlogged, of course, but they indicated to me that they'd begin their investigation shortly. I promised Mr. Allen that I would be providing his name and phone number to the police, as well as the damage claim number I submitted to Marlene on March 30.
3) Michele (my wife -- a public relations professional) and I would be pushing a local news organization to do a story on service vehicles causing damage in the district, and he could expect a call requesting his statement.
4) I will be suing in small claims court, and plan to name him as defendant in small claims court.

None of that is a bluff, although it certainly remains to be seen whether we can orchestrate any effective PR pressure.

Stephanie Wilkins

I've yet to hear back from anyone about the "damage claim" I submitted to Marlene three weeks ago. In fact, I've yet to receive a single call from anyone at Comcast, despite their assurances.

I followed up on the damage claim, calling the number that Harold gave me for Stephanie Wilkins: 301-625-3500. The attendant there was able to provide me with her direct number.

Stephanie Wilkins: 202-635-5529

I reached her voice mail, and I left a very detailed message about the situation, including my concern that I have never received a call back.

Back to the Damage Claim

OK, Mr. Allen had seemed helpful at first, but that is starting to look like a dead end. Back to the customer service number and the damage claim submitted by Marlene.

Today I spoke to Harold, at (202)-635-5100 x-7941. When I complained that nobody had ever called me back regarding my damage claim, he informed me that the ticket had been modified to indicate that I had never reported the incident to the police, so Comcast would not pursue it. I corrected that immediately, and provided the police report number.

He asked what I wanted in terms of resolution. Easy:

I want to fax the repair estimate and receive a check for the full cost of the repair. He agreed to forward the issue to Stephanie Wilkins, who he said handles claims in DC, and said I could expect to hear from her soon. He provided this number for Ms. Wilkins: 301-625-3500

Dodging My Calls?

Repeated attempts to reach Mark Allen over the past two weeks all went to voice mail. Hmm... maybe I should try calling him from a different number...

Officer Allison Jones, First District Police

I called the First District Police substation, and spoke to Detective Freeman. He transferred me to officer Allison Jones, who handles hit-and-run cases.

Allison Jones' direct line: 202-698-0515

She said the backlog of cases means they generally won't even see the case for about 30 days. When they begin investigation late April or early May, they will contact me for any additional information.

Wow. Bummer. 4+ weeks before they even start.

Mark Allen Shuts Down

I had not heard from Mr. Allen, so I called him again.

He informed me that he would no longer be involved, and his security manager would be handling the problem, and had alerted the police. However, he would not provide me with a name or phone number of this security manager, and could not provide me with a police case number.

He suggested that I follow up with the police where I filed the initial report. I assured him that I would, and that I'd be calling again if there was no indication of contact with his security manager.

Mark Allen

I called 202-832-2001, and reached an automated employee directory. There was no option to reach an attendant; the only options were to enter an extension, or spell an employee name using the keypad. I began entering random extension numbers until I got a person: Mark Allen, VP & General Manager. Score!

Note to self: Mark Allen's direct line is 202-832-2001 x-5501

I explained my view of the situation:
- I don't have a plate number.
- A Comcast service vehicle was returned with damage by an employee.
- That person is a criminal (hit and run), working for Comcast, which should concern him as VP & General Manager.
- SOMEONE at Comcast knows who was driving that vehicle on Friday night.
- They should show an appropriate level of concern, investigate, find and interview the employee, and generally be an upstanding member of the community by resolving the situation, with or without the police.

I also shared the details of my prior conversation with Marlene, including the Comcast damage claim number.

He seemed genuinely concerned, and promised to look into it.

Marlene

202-635-5100

I called and worked my way through their customer service menu to an operator, "Marlene".

Marlene was not helpful, and had a tremendous attitude:

• Since I'm not a customer, she can't help me
• Would not provide a supervisor name or number
• Would not transfer me to a supervisor

I insisted that she enter some record of the call, so finally she opened a "damage claim", and said someone would get in touch with me within 48 hours. I provided my cell phone number for the call back.

Comcast Damage Ticket #1158320

Calling Comcast

Not optimistic about the police investigation, and not wanting a claim on my insurance, I began pursuing a solution directly with Comcast. I figured my best shot at reaching a person who cares is through a local number, not a general Comcast toll-free number. Through Google, the phone book, Comcast's website, etc., I found these various local numbers:

4528 Benning Rd SE
Washington, DC 20019
(202) 584-4430 -- seems to be a fax number

2001 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 466-8222

N PR Georges Cnty
Hyattsville, MD 20781
(301) 731-4260

900 Michigan Avenue NE
Washington, DC 20017
(202)-635-5100 -- automated menu for customers

No address:
(202) 832-2001 -- automated phone directory

Police Report

I called 911 to report the hit-and-run. DC Police (First District) arrived quickly and took my report and witness contact information.

Report #: 040557

DC Police
First District Substation
500 E Street, SE
Washington, DC
Phone: (202) 698-0068
Fax: (202) 727-4028

Hit and Run

Neighbors and a passerby knocked on my door and alerted me to the incident. Two people in the car behind the Comcast van saw the incident and stopped to provide their names and phone number. (Thank you so much for stopping!)

Unfortunately, they could not get the license number in the darkness as the van sped away.