A retired police officer from Lakeview Terrace says he thought he'd found the bargain of his life when he signed up for a "lifetime subscription" plan for satellite radio.
It was a great deal until he says the terms changed.
Chuck Singer jumped at the offer of the "lifetime subscription" from XM Radio for $400. After all, it was transferrable to three new vehicles, like the GMC Acadia he bought.
Inside the car, however, there aren't any tunes pumping out of the speakers. That's because his radio display says "no subscription."
XM, which merged and became SiriusXM Radio, told him that "lifetime subscription" is no good for another car radio, which he says is the opposite of what they told him before.
XM says it's only good for a portable radio he'd have to buy. How fair is that?
"They're sticking it to me I understand, but it isn't right," Singer said.
We found a class action lawsuit filed in September accusing SiriusXM of going back on that same "lifetime subscription" promise.
"It's so small that it's not worth filing a lawsuit with an attorney, but it's enough to make a real difference to people," said consumer attorney Stu Talley.
Talley says if companies merge, they still have to honor customer agreements.
"If they're changing the deal in a material way, that's a problem," he said.
You'd think SirusXM would want to straighten this out, right? We asked if they'd explain that lifetime plan or the lawsuit. They said "we won't."
But they did say they're "interested in helping our subscribers," so that's nice.
"That's why I complained, because if they're doing it to me, they're doing it to everybody," Singer said.
SiriusXM quietly connected Singer's radio after our message to them, though still charging him a transfer fee of $75 as outlined in his original contract.
Singer's music is back, but not his loyalty.
"I don't trust them at all," he said.
