T-Mobile Wireless Ripoff Fradulent Early Termination Charges Albuquerque New Mexico
I am being billed for a $200 early termination fee that I do not owe because I never requested to terminate my contract. My T-Mobile account was temporarily interrupted in June 2004. I was told by T-Mobile Customer Relations (1-800-TMOBILE) on 8/27/04 that if they receive a payment of $120.86 by September 9, 2004 my service would be restored. I mailed a payment of $120.86, check #376, on 9/6/04, it was received in T-Mobile's office on 9/7/04 and it cleared my bank on 9/10/04. Since I placed my payment in a certified United States mailbox on 9/6/04, according to the law, technically it was really received by T-Mobile on 9/6/04. Due to the fact that my payment was received before the deadline that I was given I should not be receiving a bill for a $200 early termination fee just because it took T-Mobile several days to put it thorough their bank account.
I called T-Mobile on 9/11/04 and spoke with Jennifer at the South East Call Center 10, she told me that my payment had been credited to my account, she received the account back from Bay Area Credit and my service would be restored on 9/15/04. This did not happen and I called back on 9/18/04 and was told that there was no record of Jennifer telling me that my service would be restored. Furthermore, I was told that someone at T-Mobile reviewed the account on 9/17/04 and restoration was denied. T-Mobile and I made a verbal contract that if T-Mobile received my payment by September 9, 2004 my service would be restored.
I have called T-Mobile's customer care number (1-800-TMOBILE) numerous times since 9/18/04 and I have been treated rudely by each and every representative. T-Mobile's representatives are the rudest, nastiest and most unpleasant people that I have ever dealt with. In many cases I was denied to speak to a supervisor, and in the three cases when I did speak to a supervisor, their attitudes are worse than the representatives. They all were mean and unhelpful and hung up on me, especially a supervisor named Quinn (employee #2823063). He was the rudest person that I have dealt with so far. I spoke to Quinn on 12/28/04 at approximately 11:04am EST. Quinn stated that he was a supervisor but I find this very hard to believe because he was extremely rude.
When Quinn got on the phone he was immediately hostile and already had the attitude that he was going to refuse to help me before he even heard what I had to say. As soon as he got on the phone he said, "Didn't you hear what my rep just told you?" I asked Quinn to fax me a letter stating that my account with T-Mobile was paid in full. Quinn stated that he did not fax those requests, it was T-Mobile's policy that they were to be mailed only. When I asked Quinn to explain why this was the case since my payment was made over the phone, in a nasty and condescending way he stated that "I had a hard time understanding what he was saying." He also stated that I "should have thought about getting my letter before I let my account go into collections" and "there is nothing else he can help me with" then he hung up on me. The bill has now been paid since 12/13/04, a bill that I should not have been billed for in the first place, and I am requesting a paid in full letter to be faxed to me and I am denied this simple request. I am tired of the incompetence of T-Mobile and their employees, I am tired of the unfair billing practices that T-Mobile participates in and I am tired of the rude and nasty employees that T-Mobile hires.
I finally decided to put my dispute in writing and I sent it to T-Mobile Customer Care at P.O Box 37380, Albuquerque, NM 87176-7380. T-Mobile has ignored my dispute and has not even acknowledged my letter. Instead, they sent me another bill and then Bay Area Credit, the collection company that they use, also sent me a bill.
Aishah
Ellenwood, Georgia
U.S.A.
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4 Updates & Rebuttals
Hunter
Denton,Texas,
U.S.A.
T-Mobile truly stinks...however....
#5Consumer Comment
Fri, January 28, 2005
I have filed my own ripoff report on TMobile more than a year ago. Everything you said about their employees, supervisors, and overall customer service, or lack thereof, is 100% accurate as I have dealt with them before. They are complete d****es...
However, you stated something that is not entirely accurate. You stated that you dropped your payment in the mailbox on 9/6/2004, and that's when the payment was due. You also stated that by law, since it was in the mail on the due date, it is considered to be received by TMobile. This is commonly referred to as the "Mailbox Rule". Unfortunately, this is no longer recognized by businesses and even the courts for that matter. I know this because this was a topic of discussion in my law class in college. Simply put, this rule is no longer enforced period.
I'm not ripping you when I say this, but at this point, they actually got you dead to rights. You didn't make payment by the due date, as in, they received and processed your payment long after the due date. The Mailbox Rule as stated before no longer applies. If you tried to file a complaint with the BBB or you decided to take them to court, you wouldn't have a leg to stand on, and as much as I hate to admit it, TMobile does have one to stand on.
My only question to you is, you have a mobile phone, so I have to believe you have a computer too. Why didn't you just pay it online? Also, you waited till the last minute to pay too? Maybe there were some circumstances going on there, but knowing back in August that you had a bill to pay or be completely disconnected, you should have planned ahead and made the payment as soon as possible prior to the due date you discussed with the rep. Certainly, dropping it in the mail on the due date was not the way to go. You could have called and payed over the phone.
To sum it up, TMobile was well within their rights to charge you an early termination fee, because your payment was not received ontime, and thus your contract was broken due to non-payment. This would happen at any mobile phone company mind you and not just TMobile. I hate to be the one to break the news to you regarding this, but this is the truth of the situation you are in.
Now, something that may actually help you. Since you are now with a CA(Collection Agency), based on my own experiences, I can tell you TMobile will not even try to pull it back and work with you. You are stuck with the CA. However, you can settle the amount you owe with the CA, and not necessarily pay the whole amount. The CA get's a commission, or percentage on whatever they collect. Most of the time, they are happy to collect anything, so more than likely if you tell the CA rep that you can't pay that whole amount and could you settle with them, most likely they will. They aren't going to settle for $20.00, but more like half the term fee. It's better to do this than ruin your credit.
Anyway, I hope things work out for you. Good luck.
Clint
Las Vegas,Nevada,
U.S.A.
I actully work in that call center
#5UPDATE Employee
Tue, January 25, 2005
You state that you spoke with an unplesent person named quinn which is a supervisor at my center, well I know quinn and he is a very nice person but If you were sent to Bay area credit that means your account was more then past due that means you had already been advised multiple times that you had a past due balance.
Let me explain First thing that happens is you recive a text messege advising of past due amount next comes suspend ladex which means you can recive calls but if you call you get CC after this you get a past due letter then services are fully suspended and finally cancelled for NON PAY then after all this and you still have yet to pay we send to collections were Customer Care no longer is allowed to access your account since we no longer own accout hince quinn telling you he cant help you.
D
Oklahoma City,Oklahoma,
U.S.A.
companies that deal with te public are regulated
#5Consumer Comment
Wed, December 29, 2004
and i though the other cell company was bad...
if i was you i would contact your State Attorney General's office and file a complaint.these so called companies that deal with te public are regulated and have laws to follow.
Sherri
Piedmont,California,
U.S.A.
WHY MAIL A CHECK?
#5Consumer Comment
Wed, December 29, 2004
I pay my T-Mobile bill online and it posts to my account within two hours or less from the time I submit it and with Check 21 now in place, clears my account usually the same day or the next at the latest. I have been with T-Mobile for over two years now and the one time I have needed to be late, I called them and they gave me a ten day grace period, no problem. I have NEVER had an encounter with any Customer Service Reps that could be called less than pleasant; in fact, when I upgraded my phone to an unlocked higher end model, they were kind enough to email me the settings to set up my T-Zones.
I can't see any reason they denied restoration of the account, unless you have a history of late payments. I would request in writing, a summary of their denial of restoration.
Good luck with getting this straightened out.