Cable provider switch leaves homeowners without TV

ROSENBERG, TX (KTRK) -- A Rosenberg homeowner says they wanted to switch cable providers to save a few bucks. But when the initial installation wound up damaging their equipment, they turned to Action 13 for help.

They thought they were getting a good deal when the installer came by to setup the new cable box, but when he left, they say they were left with nothing but damaged equipment.

"We were going to make the easy switch from one provider to Comcast," homeowner Misty Carter said.

Carter says a Comcast technician came to their home to hook up a new cable box to their equipment.

"Once he plugged in our HDMI cable into his box, it sparked and he kind of screamed and said oh it's not supposed to do that," she said.

Carter says the tech went to his truck to get a different cable box and tried the installation again.

"And that box made everything go out - the projector, the receiver," she said.

Carter says the DVD player and sound bar were affected as well. Total amount in damages?

"I would guess between $2,500 to $3,000," she said.

So they filed a claim with Comcast.

"Someone from Comcast came out a week later. They took pictures. Said we should be hearing back within two weeks. And we never heard back from the damage claim department," she said.

Carter says that was toward the end of September.

"Every week we make multiple phone calls and get nowhere," Carter said.

So we reached out to Comcast to see what was happening with the Carter's claim, and why it's taking over three months to get answers. In a statement, Comcast tells us:

"While this is a highly unusual incident, we feel every customer deserves the best experience every time they interact with us. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."

In response to the lack of communication, they told us:

"This situation is unacceptable. We will learn all that we can from this experience to make the necessary adjustments to prevent things like this from occurring again in the future."

Comcast went on to say that they will be reaching out to the Carters to make arrangements to compensate them for their damaged equipment.