Symantec’s Customer Service Takes A Dive

November 20, 2004 By Ian Bell

PC Mechanic has a very funny editorial that talks about Symantec's customer service - or lack there of.

Quote from the editorial:

“Symantec has officially lost my business. After talking with five different customer support guys over eight days, I’m completely wiped out. I feel like George Foreman after going fifteen brutal rounds with Muhammed Ali, only to hear him whisper, “Is that all you got, George?”

It wouldn’t have come to this if Symantec had just owned up to its responsibility, but apparently that wasn’t in the “Customer Care” handbook. It was a simple enough problem to fix.”

This is a great article and points out what we all go through with various companies – customer service comes in last. Its a shame that Norton threw him away after the sales as if he was not important anymore. I just recently went through something similiar with Dish Network. I called the sales department and it went to someone here in the U.S. but once they found out I was an existing customer, I was transfered to someone in India, who would not help me regardless of my problem. This is a trend that needs to stop.

Read PC Mechanic’s editorial

Showing 6 comments

Don Wells at 3:23pm 20th July 2007 I don't like what I'm reading about here about Symantec's Customer Service -- sounds too much like the tailchase I've just begun.

Bait and switch? Systemworks 2004 -- I renewed my subscription yesterday, ran LiveUpdate this morning and was informed my subscription had expired. This afternoon, LiveUpdate produces an error message with a link that takes me to the announcement that my edition is antiquated -- doesn't say it's no longer supported, just out-of-date -- and the pitch is made for the shiny new SystemWorks at twice the cost of a subscription renewal.

Then, there's the Symantec Knowledge Base -- if you want to research error messages, you're better going to your local library and looking in the card catalogue.

I now have an Symantec email: "We have received your request for assistance and a Symantec Authorized Online Customer Service agent will contact you by e-mail within 24 hours to help answer your questions."

If there's no contact as mentioned, I intend to tell my credit card company to not honor the subscription renewal charge and go shopping.

In the event, Symantec follows through as promised and resolves the issue, I'll be back to update this post.

If you don't find a subsequent post from me, assume the worst and consider yourself warned!
pat makely at 6:22pm 22nd June 2007 I have spent the better part of two hours waiting for symantec to answer my call... After 45 minutes I was connected and then disconnected immediately, which forced me to call back. My problem...a charge for servive that I did not renew. The charge was placed automatically on a credit card. There are two abuses here-the first is the long,wait for customer service and there is none. The second is the automatic charge for service not renewed. The charge was place before the expiration day of end of service.
E Meza at 6:31pm 6th November 2006 I ordered on-line, and then could'nt download with dial-up. Called someone (after an hr of trying to find a phone no) and explained the problem. He cancelled the orig. order and re-ordered for me a 2pk. It never arrived; I checked order status and the order was never completed! About 4 wks after the order was supposed to arrive, it got here. THE NEXT DAY I got an email, apologizing, and my product would soon be here. 2 days after that, another e-mail asking me what the problem was!! This after I'd rec'd the product and installed it.
fungku at 10:39pm 18th October 2005 i've never liked symantic that much. I like mcafee
Ian Bell and Dan Gaul at 12:57pm 17th October 2005 What a bummer. I have heard a lot of bad things about Symantec recently. I have their antivirus 2003 software which I still use and just pay to update the virus information. I have heard that their new software is a nightmare to run.
Bob Eagle at 11:36am 17th October 2005 I too have had it with the customer service dept. of symantec. I purchased and 3-PC antivirus and had a simple problem. But Symantec made sure that it would be almost impossible to contact them by letter. Since they only put their mailing address inside of the box with the software (all sealed up).
They have blown it with me and everyone that I can share my story with. I most definitely will turn to another provider (good riddance!)