Termination fee for account I didn't know I had

 

OK, here is my story. My sister Susan Roebuck initiated a contract with HughesNet Feb 13 2013 . She moved away and suspended the contract for 7 months. I then moved to the house where said service was located and we reactivated said contract with me as the bill payer. I finished out the contract and went on month to month. I was always told by tech support that if I wanted any changes to the account/service Susan would have to call and give the OK since the account was still in her name, even though I was the one paying the bill.

 

Last April a tech rep visited our community (Kingston NM, 88042) and asked some residents if they wanted an upgrade. He didn’t talk to me, but another resident mentioned it to me and if I wanted it I should call him to come out. I now realize this was an upgrade to Gen 5, but didn’t know it at the time. I asked him if it would improve speeds, he said it would, so I told him I wanted the upgrade. I asked him if there would be a charge for this upgrade and he said no. He came and installed a new dish and gave me a new wireless modem. I was quite pleased with the result. To the best of my memory I didn’t sign anything, but if I did it should be on your records.

 

In November 2017 I moved to a house in the same community and after a week with no internet there initiated a new two year contract  in my name. The internet at my previous residence was still active. A couple days after the new installation/contract I called HughesNet to cancel the old month to month. I was told once again that my sister (Susan) would have to be the one to call in the request

 

Susan then called Hughes support... ended having a lengthy four-way call with Susan, her husband, myself and the HughesNet support person. This resulted in our being informed that when the service was upgraded last April, a new contract had been initiated. I had no idea of this. If this is true, the main person (Susan) on the account never approved the new contract. I believed I was still on month-to-month. The tech person who made the equipment upgrade in April did not to my recollection say that the action would result in a new two-year contract. After some time of talking with the support person, we understood that not only was Susan’s name still on the account, but that the equipment upgrade had resulted in a two-year contract. We were told that in order to cancel this unwanted 2-year contract (at my old address), a hefty cancellation fee would have to be paid. (Case number for this call is 107 481 422.)

 

My problem is that I had no idea that at the time the service at my old address was upgraded, it initiated a new 2 year contract at the same service address. I presume it was initiated in my name? If so, what happened to the first account started by my sister on which I was paying month to month? If it was not initiated in my name, wouldn’t my sister have to have OK’d it? How many accounts are there now anyway? One in Susan's name, one in my name which was cancelled, and a current one in my name? As of now I have a hefty bill pending for cancellation of .

 

If I had known that the upgrade to my previous service meant starting a new contract, I may well have not agreed. If I had agreed to it, then instead of beginning a new two year contract in my name at my new address, I would have simply requested that the service be moved.

 

Therefore I now request that the termination of the first contract, with fee, be cancelled and that said contract be changed to a change of service address. I think I have (with HN one can never be certain of anything)  until Dec 13 to pay the cancellation fee.