T-Mobile cancellation fee scandal Menomonee Falls Wisconsin
On the second of Hune, 2006, I went to my local T-Mobile store to look into a phone. I ended up getting a phone, the RAZR, and i was told that i had fourteen days to cancel.
I found a deal in a local ad for Ritz Camera for a free RAZR and a camera. I went there thirteen days after obtaining my RAZR and was told that I had to come back tomorrow, the fourteenth day, to talk with the manager. The RAZR's service was still T-Mobile and the manager, after doing a bit of T-Mobile research said that he could get us the free phone deal if we canceled the existing line.
After a two hour hassel at the T-Mobile store involving the fact that I took the barcode off to get the Mail-In-Rebate back, i finally returned the phone and, I assumed, cancelled the service. When I returned to Ritz Camera to get the new phone, their computer was down and I had to wait untill it was back up again.
I called them on the following Monday and they said that the computer was up again. We tried to activate the new phone but the system told us there was an existing account. We went home and called T-Mobile customer service line and they said that if there was another problem that the computer system at Ritz Camera was the one not working.
The next day, being Tuesday, we went to Ritz and it still didn't work. Apparently, the people at the T-Mobile store were the ones trying to hold onto their pension. Now we were well out of our fourteen day period and we went home to call T-Mobile again.
Now we have found out that we still had the service, even though the means to use it were nonexistant. My father talked to a service man who told him that if he ordered a new RAZR, we would be cleared from the two hundred dollar fee that is associated with cancellation outside of the fourteen day period.
So, my father ordered the phone and asked the sales representative to put a hold on it so he could talk to me, the one actually using and paying all expenses for the phone. The representative said that he already had it going out and we could always just cancel it or deny it at the door when it was delivered by UPS.
I was quite impeaved at this point by the way i was treated by T-Mobile and everyone associated with it and i did not want to give T-Mobile another cent from my pocket because i had been jostled around for long enough, which i don't think is anything near inhuman. I went to the door when the UPS delivery man arrived and told him that I could not accept that package.
The following Sunday, the twenty-fifth, we called T-Mobile again to make sure the phone was cancelled and that I was not going to be charged so I can go to Verizon to get a RAZR. This time we were told that the original service, the one that i could not use for over a week now, was still active and I would have to pay the 200 dollar non-remorse period cancellation fee. The supervisor of whoever it was we talked to first told us that we were going to have to pay it if we cancelled today.
Now I have been a week and a day without a phone, i have made five trips to Ritz Campera, I have been thrown around every department of the costomer service in T-Mobile, and I am being forced to pay a cancellation fee on a phone i can't use.
Bobby
Butler, Wisconsin
U.S.A.
14 Updates & Rebuttals
Adam
Mobile,Alabama,
U.S.A.
I have to laugh
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, April 13, 2009
I have been a loyal tmobile customer for years and recently got an unlimited plan with no contract extension for being a loyal customer. Tmobile has the #2 customer service out of all the carriers i believe verizon is number one. For the guy who waited till the last minute to cancel you deserve what you got. never wait till the last minute to do anything. especially phone stuff. Steve is right always deal with customer service directly because the retail people do work on commission and they will yank you around. Next time call tmobile directly they will send you a box to return your phone in or you may have to pay shipping which is like 12 dollars. better then 200 i think. Make sure you also read the terms and conditions that no one reads because it does say if you remove the bar code you cannot return the phone. For those who think tmobile is crappy because of service i have no sympathy for you either. sorry there is a thing called research try it sometime. on Tmobile there is a coverage icon that you type in your address and it will tell you if you get good service there. if you live in BFE wisconsin your probably not going to get great service from anyone. as far as renewing your contract, if you change your plan or anything of that nature you will be required to extend your contract. This is standard with any phone company. Verizon Sprint Alltel etc. It is in black and white on there website and if you go into the store or anything you sign it will state that to. READ PEOPLE !!!!!!!!
you are obligated to pay because it is past the 14 days. i have had to return a few phones and never had a problem. I also had to cance l my contract within the 14 day period and never had an issue. Next time dont wait forever to cancel and always read the terms and conditions
Fwc577
Menomonee Falls,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Just be determined
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, April 13, 2009
I had T-mobile a few months back, the service in our area is terrible. It would take upwards of 5 minutes to send a text because I kept getting try again later messages.
Finally I got fed up after 3 months and wanted to cancel but refused to pay a 200 dollar ETF. I repeatedly called their customer service line everytime asking to speak with a manager. It took about 5 calls over the course of 2 weeks but I eventually got it cancelled without the ETF.
You can also file a complaint with the FTC (Federal Trade Commision) I initially did because I thought things were going to go nowhere with calling customer support constantly. FTC and T-mobile sent me official letters a few months later stating that the issue had been resolved.
I would suggest filling out a FTC Complaint form and putting the events in clear detail.
Fwc577
Menomonee Falls,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Just be determined
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, April 13, 2009
I had T-mobile a few months back, the service in our area is terrible. It would take upwards of 5 minutes to send a text because I kept getting try again later messages.
Finally I got fed up after 3 months and wanted to cancel but refused to pay a 200 dollar ETF. I repeatedly called their customer service line everytime asking to speak with a manager. It took about 5 calls over the course of 2 weeks but I eventually got it cancelled without the ETF.
You can also file a complaint with the FTC (Federal Trade Commision) I initially did because I thought things were going to go nowhere with calling customer support constantly. FTC and T-mobile sent me official letters a few months later stating that the issue had been resolved.
I would suggest filling out a FTC Complaint form and putting the events in clear detail.
Fwc577
Menomonee Falls,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Just be determined
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, April 13, 2009
I had T-mobile a few months back, the service in our area is terrible. It would take upwards of 5 minutes to send a text because I kept getting try again later messages.
Finally I got fed up after 3 months and wanted to cancel but refused to pay a 200 dollar ETF. I repeatedly called their customer service line everytime asking to speak with a manager. It took about 5 calls over the course of 2 weeks but I eventually got it cancelled without the ETF.
You can also file a complaint with the FTC (Federal Trade Commision) I initially did because I thought things were going to go nowhere with calling customer support constantly. FTC and T-mobile sent me official letters a few months later stating that the issue had been resolved.
I would suggest filling out a FTC Complaint form and putting the events in clear detail.
Frank
Torrance,California,
U.S.A.
Don't throw your old phones away
#15REBUTTAL Individual responds
Sun, July 09, 2006
T-Mobile is great at hooking you in, once they have you - they will do what ever it takes to keep you and NOT in the good way.
If you make a change, they want to renew the contract. If you just need a phone replacement, they want a new contract and charge more for the phone than they would a new (the hook) customer.
They don't seem to understand that theirs a lot of other companies willing to give you free phones and other services, so why would you extend your contract and pay a higher price for the same service and phone.
Service has not gotten any better, in fact it's gotten worse. Billing is one thing you do have to keep an eye on, they do correct the problem but it takes time.
Be very very careful when talking to them over the phone, you could be extending your contract and not even knowing it and they have stated they do not need to prove it until they have to go to court.
You would think they would want to make their customers happy to keep them.
Two plans and 6 cell phones, they don't care.
P.S. Don't throw your old phones away; you may be force to reuse them until your contract is over.
Dawn
Jefferson City,Missouri,
U.S.A.
mrs carico
#15Consumer Comment
Fri, June 30, 2006
I have been a t-mobile customer for almost a year and I know their cancellation fee is $200. I know this because I wanted to cancel because they have terrible service in the area I'm living in now, and when I try to cancel they want me to sign another contract for another year or two. What are these people thinking?
Dawn
Jefferson City,Missouri,
U.S.A.
mrs carico
#15Consumer Comment
Fri, June 30, 2006
I have been a t-mobile customer for almost a year and I know their cancellation fee is $200. I know this because I wanted to cancel because they have terrible service in the area I'm living in now, and when I try to cancel they want me to sign another contract for another year or two. What are these people thinking?
Dawn
Jefferson City,Missouri,
U.S.A.
mrs carico
#15Consumer Comment
Fri, June 30, 2006
I have been a t-mobile customer for almost a year and I know their cancellation fee is $200. I know this because I wanted to cancel because they have terrible service in the area I'm living in now, and when I try to cancel they want me to sign another contract for another year or two. What are these people thinking?
Dawn
Jefferson City,Missouri,
U.S.A.
mrs carico
#15Consumer Comment
Fri, June 30, 2006
I have been a t-mobile customer for almost a year and I know their cancellation fee is $200. I know this because I wanted to cancel because they have terrible service in the area I'm living in now, and when I try to cancel they want me to sign another contract for another year or two. What are these people thinking?
Steve
Bradenton,Florida,
U.S.A.
Early term fee ...
#15Consumer Comment
Fri, June 30, 2006
My contracts both clearly stated $175.
But I established T-Mobile service in 2001. That may be the reason.
They probably upped it since then which would not have affected my contracts.
Caitlin
Salem,Oregon,
U.S.A.
Buyers Remorse
#15UPDATE Employee
Fri, June 30, 2006
I have to agree that you should always cancel service with the carrier directly. You wouldn't believe the crap the dealers put customers through, especially indirect dealers. The only thing to do now is chalk it up to a learning experience and shop more wisely next time.
p.s. the etf for tmobile is $200 has been for eons:)
Steve
Bradenton,Florida,
U.S.A.
Bobby...I think this is a reading problem more than anything..
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, June 26, 2006
Bobby,
I have used T-Mobile on several occasions and just recently cancelled the T-Mobile Wireless Internet account while still under contract. No problem. No Early Termination fee. Want to know why?
It's all in the way I handled it. You NEVER go into a retail store to cancel your service! They want to push you past the 14 days so they get the commission! After all, they are RETAIL SALESPEOPLE! They ARE NOT customer service! They work on commission! Get it?
You should ALWAYS call the carrier directly to cancel service. All of the major carriers have 24/7 customer support and toll free#'s too!
And, you really need to read every word in the contracts you sign. They clearly tell you that the equipment is NOT returnable if the barcode is removed. This is common sense! How could they re-stock it, or get it back into inventory without the barcode? AND you always have more time than the 14 day period to do your rebate. You should have waited until you knew you were keeping the phone before doing the rebate.
Your father should have handled this as he was doing the transaction as per your statement. As far as the Ritz store computer being down, that is BS! ALL retailers can just call a toll free# and activate any phone.
ps..The early termination fee at T-Mobile is standard. It is $175 per line of service. Not $200.
Chalk this up to an investment in knowledge.
Move on.
Steve
Bradenton,Florida,
U.S.A.
Bobby...I think this is a reading problem more than anything..
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, June 26, 2006
Bobby,
I have used T-Mobile on several occasions and just recently cancelled the T-Mobile Wireless Internet account while still under contract. No problem. No Early Termination fee. Want to know why?
It's all in the way I handled it. You NEVER go into a retail store to cancel your service! They want to push you past the 14 days so they get the commission! After all, they are RETAIL SALESPEOPLE! They ARE NOT customer service! They work on commission! Get it?
You should ALWAYS call the carrier directly to cancel service. All of the major carriers have 24/7 customer support and toll free#'s too!
And, you really need to read every word in the contracts you sign. They clearly tell you that the equipment is NOT returnable if the barcode is removed. This is common sense! How could they re-stock it, or get it back into inventory without the barcode? AND you always have more time than the 14 day period to do your rebate. You should have waited until you knew you were keeping the phone before doing the rebate.
Your father should have handled this as he was doing the transaction as per your statement. As far as the Ritz store computer being down, that is BS! ALL retailers can just call a toll free# and activate any phone.
ps..The early termination fee at T-Mobile is standard. It is $175 per line of service. Not $200.
Chalk this up to an investment in knowledge.
Move on.
Steve
Bradenton,Florida,
U.S.A.
Bobby...I think this is a reading problem more than anything..
#15Consumer Suggestion
Mon, June 26, 2006
Bobby,
I have used T-Mobile on several occasions and just recently cancelled the T-Mobile Wireless Internet account while still under contract. No problem. No Early Termination fee. Want to know why?
It's all in the way I handled it. You NEVER go into a retail store to cancel your service! They want to push you past the 14 days so they get the commission! After all, they are RETAIL SALESPEOPLE! They ARE NOT customer service! They work on commission! Get it?
You should ALWAYS call the carrier directly to cancel service. All of the major carriers have 24/7 customer support and toll free#'s too!
And, you really need to read every word in the contracts you sign. They clearly tell you that the equipment is NOT returnable if the barcode is removed. This is common sense! How could they re-stock it, or get it back into inventory without the barcode? AND you always have more time than the 14 day period to do your rebate. You should have waited until you knew you were keeping the phone before doing the rebate.
Your father should have handled this as he was doing the transaction as per your statement. As far as the Ritz store computer being down, that is BS! ALL retailers can just call a toll free# and activate any phone.
ps..The early termination fee at T-Mobile is standard. It is $175 per line of service. Not $200.
Chalk this up to an investment in knowledge.
Move on.