I am the kind of customer every wireless carrier seeks. Earlier this year, I cut the cord, and I like to talk A LOT. In other words, I am a high-volume wireless-only customer.
So you would think that my wireless carrier, which shall remain nameless, would go out of its way to make sure I am happy especially because in two months I could take my business (and my phone number) elsewhere.
Instead through various phone calls and a long visit to a retail location, I feel dissatisfied and completely boxed in by rules that are at best unclear. Worse yet, I had to convince my parents that the wireless service I helped them get nearly two years ago is worth keeping-not that they could cut it off anyway. Somehow they are signed up for a 24-month contract. (I was there when they signed up, and I KNOW we signed up for a one-year contract, so it was a shock to find out the carrier had other information.) … Dissatisfaction No. 1.
My saga started when my dad lost his phone. I told my parents how to contact customer service, suspend service and then get a new phone. The customer-service people out West were nice and helpful. They made suggestions to get a new phone. The problem was the several phone calls it took to get a clear answer. … Dissatisfaction No. 2.
However, it became obvious that my dad could not get a new phone at a good price due to his contract term. I asked whether I could buy a new phone and then give my old phone to him because we have the same carrier. The answer was an easy “yes.”
I went to a retail outlet to purchase a new phone. I had bought a new phone about the same time last year on a one-year contract so again I was SHOCKED when the carrier said I had upgraded to a new phone in December so I, too, was not eligible for the reduced price. While I had indeed gotten a new phone in December, I had replaced a broken phone , not “upgraded.” … Dissatisfaction No. 3.
I explained this situation to no less than four representatives, all of whom just shook their heads at me. I finally gave up. I paid FULL RETAIL PRICE for a phone after I asked three times whether I could transfer all of my contact info to the new phone and give my dad the old phone. But when I checked the new phone for my stored numbers, they were not there. They could not be transferred because the service department had closed for the night. During the almost two hours I had been in the store, the service department had closed. … Dissatisfaction No. 4.
At this point, I was more than frustrated so I told them to reprogram my old phone, and I gave the new phone to my Dad.
No wonder customers want to switch, regulators want to regulate, and Consumers Union has a Web site called Cell Hell!
