Verizon Wireless and Verizon Communications (FIOS, landline, etc) are two very different entities. Most of the horror stories you (or at least _I_) hear are about Verizon Communications.
Verizon Wireless actually gives their CSRs a _lot_ of authority to take care the customer on the phone. While any company with the number of customer interactions that VZW has will generate some horror stories, on the whole, I think VZW is one of the better big companies out there when it comes to support.
Except that VZW's number one priority when they get a call is to upsell.
My friend took a job their for a bit after losing his previous job as a claims adjuster and absolutely hated it. The managers would listen in on calls and if you didn't try to upsell at least once, you'd get written up.
Verizon Wireless actually gives their CSRs a _lot_ of authority to take care the customer on the phone. While any company with the number of customer interactions that VZW has will generate some horror stories, on the whole, I think VZW is one of the better big companies out there when it comes to support.