Suddenlink pays off customers’ bills

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - Many Louisiana residents have been frustrated with their internet services, especially after the hurricanes. One service provider is trying to make up for some of that frustration.

Some Suddenlink customers in Louisiana have received an email from the company saying their bill has been paid.

“I was like…is this real or is this fake?” said Suddenlink customer Elisha Robison from Ruston.

“I thought it was a scam at first when I was reading the email,” said Sudddenlink customer Kierra McKinney from Alexandria.

The email reads: The aftermath of Hurricanes Laura and Delta has been extremely tough, and let’s face it - we could all use a break. That’s why we’ve paid off your bill, so you can stay connected with peace of mind and no change to your existing Suddenlink service. Yes, you read that right. Don’t believe us? Check your recent bill.

“I checked my account and sure enough it had a zero balance,” said McKinney.

McKinney’s Facebook post caught a lot of attention since many Suddenlink customers in Louisiana felt the company wasn’t very responsive after the storms.

“I’m happy they paid it off but I do not think it should not have taken this long to help customer from hurricanes that happen three plus months ago...We were still being fully billed and did not have internet for two whole months then when it did come back on it was glitches,” said Suddenlink customer Kendaysha Richards.

“That bill was high and they wanted you to keep paying for services that barley work. And I just didn’t feel like...so I feel like this is a way for them to make up, for them to tell us that they’re sorry for like still billing people for services...who’s hasn’t worked in months,” said McKinney.

Both McKinney and Robinson said they didn’t pay their bill for months and each of their accounts accumulated to over a thousand dollars . Although neither of the women live in Lake Charles, they live in areas that were affected by the hurricanes and experienced internet and cable outages in the months following.

“I’m glad that I got a fresh start as well because I had a high bill so I’m glad that it’s taken care of,” said Robinson.

“That bill alone helped tremendously,” said McKinney.

You may recall the outrage over Suddenlink’s service after Hurricanes Laura and Delta even caught the eye of law makers. At the time, Lake Charles mayor Nic Hunter invited other providers to come to town. Recently, he said that AT&T had pulled a lot of permits to expand reach in Lake Charles.

“Right now, I think that Suddenlink has a lot to be concerned about because there are other options that are out there and not only out there but vastly increasing their footprint,” said Hunter.

Statement from Suddenlink: Since Hurricanes Laura and Delta, Suddenlink has been committed to helping to rebuild the Lake Charles community while keeping our local customers connected. This includes providing bill credits for times when our service was down due to the storms, working with our customers to find the right plans and packages to meet their needs and, in certain cases, providing bill forgiveness to give those who need it the flexibility to keep them connected. We also distributed more than $50,000 in free meals to the Lake Charles community, provided financial assistance to various local organizations, including the SWLA Economic Alliance, United Way, and Community Foundation, and provided financial grants to support local small businesses and community partners. For more information on our support for Lake Charles and Louisiana, visit https://www.suddenlink.com/lakecharles.

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