- Report: #67501
Complaint Review: Centennial Wireless - MIchigan City Indiana
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Author Confirmed
Why?
Centennial Wireless
5182 South Franklin St. MIchigan City, 46360 Indiana, U.S.A.
Phone:
219-219-874-9150
Web:
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Centennial Wireless ripoff hidden contract cancellation fees Bad Business, Worse training and unethical operation. MIchigan City Indiana
This is a formal letter of Complaint against Centennial Wireless Corporation and its local office in Michigan City IN.
We will begin with false advertising. According to Centennial's Website;
When you choose Centennial you'll get advice you can trust. We'll sit down and find out exactly what you need before we recommend the right plan for you.
Not True, unless recommending a plan with a hidden contract extension, $250 cancellation fee and no new (updated) hardware is the "right plan for you".
Centennial Wireless's Trusted Customer Advisors extended a contract for two years without making it clear that (A) the contract was being extended and (B) without offering any technical advice on the inadequacy of ca. 1997 analog-cellular hardware.
There is no way the principal of my office would have made a two year commitment without knowing about it or maintaining copies of the contract. However, the local office of Centennial Wireless insists that SOMEONE signed a contract that changed a calling plan and extended the contract for two years. Even Verizon makes sure that a customer knows they are extending a contract.
I have requested a copy of the contract extension document(s) from your Service Center, which, unaccountably but unsurprisingly, will require 4-6 weeks to retrieve (another billing cycle).
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Our U.S. Wireless strategy is to cluster our operations in small cities and rural areas near major metropolitan centers, thereby benefiting from lower competition and significant amounts of roaming traffic. (At least they admit it and put the Shaft in writing, albeit in the "Investor's" section of their website.)
This policy of "benefiting from...significant amounts of roaming traffic" also forces Centennial customers into either more expensive national/one-rate plans or risk roaming charges from hostile towers within their own calling/metropolitan area. The Michigan City IN/New Buffalo MI area is notorious for this problem. The issue of exorbitant roaming charges and a phone that wouldn't work in Digital-only areas was why this phone wasn't/isn't being used.
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Centennial Wireless has been utterly substandard with customer service, apparently choosing to focus on wooing new customers with free phones rather than assisting their existing customer base. Their "trusted advisors" are unhelpful, just short of rude, and obviously only concerned with gettig "contracted funds (pay $250 when we screw you)" than helping their CUSTOMERS stay in communication. Really, how hard could it be to assist a LONG TERM CUSTOMER with a question, if fo no other reason than to retain rather than alienate the customer.
Bad Business, Worse training and unethical operation.
Bryan
Michigan City, Indiana
U.S.A.
We will begin with false advertising. According to Centennial's Website;
When you choose Centennial you'll get advice you can trust. We'll sit down and find out exactly what you need before we recommend the right plan for you.
Not True, unless recommending a plan with a hidden contract extension, $250 cancellation fee and no new (updated) hardware is the "right plan for you".
Centennial Wireless's Trusted Customer Advisors extended a contract for two years without making it clear that (A) the contract was being extended and (B) without offering any technical advice on the inadequacy of ca. 1997 analog-cellular hardware.
There is no way the principal of my office would have made a two year commitment without knowing about it or maintaining copies of the contract. However, the local office of Centennial Wireless insists that SOMEONE signed a contract that changed a calling plan and extended the contract for two years. Even Verizon makes sure that a customer knows they are extending a contract.
I have requested a copy of the contract extension document(s) from your Service Center, which, unaccountably but unsurprisingly, will require 4-6 weeks to retrieve (another billing cycle).
-------------------
Our U.S. Wireless strategy is to cluster our operations in small cities and rural areas near major metropolitan centers, thereby benefiting from lower competition and significant amounts of roaming traffic. (At least they admit it and put the Shaft in writing, albeit in the "Investor's" section of their website.)
This policy of "benefiting from...significant amounts of roaming traffic" also forces Centennial customers into either more expensive national/one-rate plans or risk roaming charges from hostile towers within their own calling/metropolitan area. The Michigan City IN/New Buffalo MI area is notorious for this problem. The issue of exorbitant roaming charges and a phone that wouldn't work in Digital-only areas was why this phone wasn't/isn't being used.
------------
Centennial Wireless has been utterly substandard with customer service, apparently choosing to focus on wooing new customers with free phones rather than assisting their existing customer base. Their "trusted advisors" are unhelpful, just short of rude, and obviously only concerned with gettig "contracted funds (pay $250 when we screw you)" than helping their CUSTOMERS stay in communication. Really, how hard could it be to assist a LONG TERM CUSTOMER with a question, if fo no other reason than to retain rather than alienate the customer.
Bad Business, Worse training and unethical operation.
Bryan
Michigan City, Indiana
U.S.A.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Michelle
Atlanta,Georgia,
U.S.A.
Your experience
#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, November 24, 2005
Though I am not familiar with that location, I am familiar with Centennial. They implemented a sort of computerized way of signing contracts cutting out the actual paper about 6 months ago. Prior to that, any time you purchased a phone and receieved a discount or changed your plan to one outside of that family of plans, it required a contract extension and a signature. If a copy of the contract was requested, you will receive it. If you did not get a new phone at the time the contract that is being disputed, you should be able to get a new one at little or no cost. They can easily track the age of your phone now by checking the serial number in the computer. Age is what determines the pricing. I am only telling you that because you mentioned something about analog. I am sorry you had a bad experience with the staff at that location. As I stated earlier, I have never been in or worked there. I have, however, worked for the company in other areas and tried my best to make the customers I came into contact with happy. In fact, I had customers follow me from store to store, so I must have been doing something right. Once you get a copy of the contract, you can decide what to do from there. You can dispute it or raise your concerns with a bad experience and not being notified with the store manager or thru customer care. Customer care also has supervisors that are there to assist in escalated circumstances.
