Easley Woman: AT&T Won't Bury My Telephone Line

AT&T;To Bury Telephone Line (Added: November 10, 2009)

Easley woman says she's waited months for AT&T;to bury her telephone line. (more)

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Easley Woman: AT&T Won't Bury My Telephone Line

An Upstate family pays for a phone line and high speed Internet but say they can't use it because AT&T won't bury the line.

By: Dianne Derby | News Channel 7
Published: November 10, 2009

Helen McMahon says getting her AT&T DSL and telephone line to work in her Easley home is nearly impossible.

"They had to change my number several times just to get my DSL working, finally got the DSL working and all of the sudden I have no phone service," McMahon said.

And it's been that way for months.

"They tell you just pick up the phone and dial 611 from your home phone and they will send out repair service," said McMahon. "Well you can't dial 611 if you do not have dial tone and they say you can go to att.support.com and get all the help that you need you can't get on the Internet if you have no Internet service."

She said the problem is that AT&T won't bury her telephone line even after more than a dozen visits to her home.

"It's been a nightmare," said McMahon. "The last call I placed to them, which was Friday, I was on the phone for 174 minutes just getting bounced around."

The phone line is actually draped across McMahon's driveway and that of two others. She said every time someone drives over it her phone and her DSL go out.

Neighbor Tom Knutson drives over the line every day. He said he would be just as upset as McMahon.

"I'd be ticked off," Knutson said. "It's not a good situation."

"I need you on my side," said McMahon to News Channel 7's Dianne Derby. "If anyone can do the job I am hoping you can do it and I can get this issue resolved."

AT&T sent us this statement:

"We have contacted Mrs. McMahon to apologize for the delay she experienced. The line should have been buried sooner and we have confirmed that the work will be completed by the end of the day on Friday. We will inspect the line for any damage to insure the job is completed to our high standards. It is always our goal to make sure all work is completed in a timely fashion and we are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused Mrs. McMahon."

A promise McMahon said she won't believe until she sees.

If you have a problem with your phone company contact the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff at (800) 922-1531 or click here to file a complaint online.