Xfinity (Comcast) support is non-existent and actively lies to me about promotions or what I will be billed. Every time I call them to dispute, they waste an hour of my time and either throw me a $10 credit that I'm not sure is even getting applied. Different departments don't know about what the other is doing.
I'm now getting charged $70 for international calls I did not make.
How can I escalate these issues? Can I just cancel all association with them cleanly by reporting them to my credit card company? They seem ok with atrocious service because of their monopoly. Why do we put up with this blight?
For the larger issue, I don't know. Since Comcast is the only real option where I live, I've been wrestling with this question for years.
It is insane that we tolerate this in 2023. I actively switch to other providers even if speeds are lower, but it is impossible to avoid their monopoly. Short of lobbying for municipal broadband, I am at a loss as well.
It's not nearly as complex or intimidating as it seems. Most of what is needed for normal court is not needed for small claims. The whole point of small claims court is to make courts useful for smaller cases, to regular people who aren't legal experts or loaded with money.
The one gotcha most people aren't aware of is if a court (small claims or otherwise) rules in your favor, it's still on you to collect whatever was awarded. The courts won't do that part -- all they do is give you the legal power to do it.
However, 90% of the time when a company is involved and they don't have a strong case, they'll just settle with you before the court ever hears the case.
My main piece of advice is to collect and retain every document you can that relates to the matter, including emails, personal notes you may have made, etc., and bring it all into court (if you actually end up having to be in court.) Have it organized so that if/when the judge asks for something, you can find it quickly.