Like many people, I chose Lingo because they offered cheap pricing; however I forgot that old adage "You get what you pay for".
I haven't even started using their service and the problems became insurmountable. I followed their protocol for applying for and approving a change over from my current VOIP provider to Lingo and everything appeared to work well. I received a phone call (as I was told I would) verbally confirming my switchover and agreement to host my VOIP service with Lingo. About a week later the equipment for the new Lingo service arrived at my house; so far, so good.
Then the problems began. I received an email stating that I had to provide an electronic letter of authorization or a faxed copy of the letter of authorization. I tried logging on to the Lingo website to do it electronically, when I realized I had not been provided with a Lingo user ID or password; so I printed a hard copy letter of authorization to fax in. As I was filling out this document I noticed that it required a Lingo account number.
Hmmm? No user ID, no password, and no account number; I'll have to call and get it. So I call in and find out I'm too early as their business hours are 9 AM to 9 PM EST, M-F and I called at 8 AM EST; a portent of things to come.
I wait until 9 AM EST and call in; this turned out to be the first of 5 phone calls in the next 45 minutes. The first CSR after verifying my pin number begins to give me my Lingo account number; she gives me 6 of 8 digits and then disconnects the call. I'm beginning to get concerned about the service quality.
Next I call back and I'm given a User ID and password to log onto the website by another CSR, who also gives me a case number. The CSR stays on the line long enough to confirm that I can access my account. When I asked him where I could find the electronic letter of authorization, he responded with "I don't know"; he said he would transfer me to someone else who might help, but during our conversation I found it under their support section of the website, it's a cryptically labeled link called 'eLOA'.
So I tell this agent that I'll try to fill it out and will call back if I need additional help. End of call number 2.
I begin filling out the form and I find a requirement to provide a copy of my most recent bill (seems reasonable) which includes my name, address, phone number, service provider name and current amount. Well, I do electronic billing from my current VOIP provider, so the monthly statement I get doesn't include all of this information. So I call back again. This time the agent says hello, then hangs up the phone. (Oh no, what have I gotten myself into?) End of call number 3.
Just in case I'm having VOIP issues, I call back using my cell phone. I am once again forced to go through an explanation of why I'm calling and what I'm trying to do. When the CSR asks me for an account number, I tell him I don't have one but do have a case number. I read him the case number and he responds "Oh, I just talked to you!". (I'm getting real nervous now, I haven't even started using their service and it's already this hard?)
I explain to him my problem (my current bill doesn't provide all the information Lingo is asking for), so what do I do? Again, I get the "I don't know" response and he asks me if he can put me on hold. Before I get a chance to respond, I'm on hold; 5 minutes tick by and no answer. Finally after 8 minutes, he comes back on and tells me he's still on hold himself waiting for assistance and asks me if I can remain on hold. I told him that I couldn't as I was on my cell phone and was being charged for the minutes I'm using while on hold. So he asked if it was ok to call me back once he got someone else on the line; to which I agreed. End of phone call number 4.
Less than 2 minutes later, the same CSR calls me back and tells me to hang on a second and puts me on hold. Approximately 2 minutes later he gets back on and tells me he is still on hold and will be right back. He puts me on hold again!! I let the call run another 5 minutes before I hung up. So ends call number 5.
So after 5 phone calls and 45 minutes I still have not gotten the issue resolved. Every person I spoke to was from India and having worked in the IT industry and having dealt with other customer service organizations hosted in India I know that this is only the tip of the iceberg. It has been my experience that companies from India promise the earth and the moon but just don't have the ability to deliver. I am not a racist but experience has taught me that it's only going to get worse from here.
Consequently, I cannot recommend LINGO to anyone regardless of the prices they charge. What good is a low cost service if you can't use it?
As a consumer, it is my opinion that there are far better service providers and it would behoove you to do your research and avoid companies like this. Perhaps in the future, Lingo will be able to provide quality service, but at present they just don't measure up!