When calling SiriusXM’s customer support, you’re greeted with a recording informing you to press six for Spanish or wait for English. If you’re a current customer, you’ll be directed to say your phone number associated with your account or you can say ‘I don’t have it.’ If you have no account and are calling to get information about new service, you’ll need to say ‘new customer.’
I don’t have a SiriusXM account and have never used satellite radio so I wanted to find out how to join. I said ‘new customer’ when directed and was then given the option to either sign up for service, receive an activation signal or get help with my radio. I was transferred to the company’s listener care department and the call was immediately answered by a customer service rep. This was definitely one of the shortest wait times I’ve experienced on a call, which was a pleasant surprise.
She first had to confirm that I did not have an existing SiriusXM account and asked how I could be helped. I explained that I wanted to gather information about signing up but wasn’t sure that I’d make a decision today. She obliged and went over the company’s three popular plans: a platinum package that includes all of their ad-free entertainment, talk shows and music channels for $23.99 per month; a regular subscription for $18.99 per month that features most channels; and the basic plan that features only the music showcase for $13.99 per month.
To listen in your car without streaming or a mobile device, the rep said you can check online at SiriusXM's website to see if your vehicle's radio is compatible by entering in a radio ID, your license plate number or vehicle identification number. I thought this was a good option to see if this offer would work in my car. If you discover that there's no compatibility, you would need to install a type of adapter kit in order to listen. However, this seems like an added expense and I think the streaming option is a better choice.
The plans are bundled, she explained, allowing customers to listen on their mobile device with a SiriusXM app either in the car or at home or through their car radio or via streaming. There is no contract so listeners can cancel at any time. In addition, she let me know that SiriusXM offers a free trial period for the platinum channels or streaming platinum that allows you to listen at no cost for the first three months. Service automatically renews after at the start of the fourth month. This sounded like a great deal but since I was still on the fence I told the rep I'd consider the offer at another time.
Overall, the SiriusXM rep's expertise and assistance provided an effective head start in helping me make a decision as to whether this radio service would be a good choice.