Lets's Play "Replace The Stolen Phone!"

[mathnerd]

This has been a saga, and I just want to vent. As I posted a few weeks ago, my phone was stolen. I have AppleCare on my phones, which doesn't cover lost/stolen. That sucks, but it is what it is. The day the phone was stolen I called the carrier to report it stolen and to get my number active on one of my kids' phones. I also asked them about options for replacing the stolen phone, given that my coverage doesn't cover a stolen phone. She gave me some options and told me that I'd hear back if a particular override would be approved within 24 hours.

So, I didn't hear from her and I called back. The next rep had no clue what the first rep was talking about. We were talking about doing an upgrade to a different program, but waiving the requirement to turn in the old device. As far as I knew, that waiver was in place. What I thought we were waiting on was approval to do the upgrade a few weeks early. That's what the rep had no clue about. That rep said the turn in requirement was fine, and confirmed that the regular date for that was May 27th. Okay, I can wait a couple weeks, no big deal. My kid wants his phone back, but he's 13 and never goes anywhere, so it's not a major problem. At this point, I also ask for the situation to be researched, as I've now been told two different things, and I just want to know what the real story is. I'm told I'd hear back in a few days.

Of course, I didn't hear back, so I called again. Again, I'm given a third, completely different story, but the upgrade date has remained the same. I'm frustrated, but fine. I'll just keep waiting.

Finally, the 27th arrives. I go to the store as instructed do the upgrade. Now they say I'm not eligible for the upgrade! Then the store rep showed me the notes on my account and while they say some of the things that were talking about, certain points were completely different from what was said to me in the calls. And now I really want to scream. I've lost two weeks waiting for something I was promised multiple times would happen. I went out to the parking lot and called the customer service line. The rep was nice and we hashed out a plan. It would cost me some money, and it was for a 5s instead of a 6 Plus, but it was reasonable. I was expecting to get my new phone today.

Mail came and went today. No phone. I log into my account and there's not even a pending shipment, so I called back. Now they're trying to backtrack on the promises made Wednesday. I'm on hold now. We'll see how it works out. Sigh.

[dalesys]

Big Brother (after Janis) covered this subject... Promise Her Anything But Give Her Arpeggio

[mathnerd]

It's worked out. Not in the way that was promised, but close. And it took two hours on the phone to do it. According to the shipping company's tracking number, my new phone is due Tuesday.

Here's the real rub for me: If, way back during my first phone call the day the phone was stolen, the rep had told me something to the effect of, "I know it sucks, but there's nothing we can do", I'd have been bummed out, but fine. I took a risk going AppleCare instead of carrier based insurance. But since she did promise me something, the company should have honored that. It shouldn't have been this way.

[MoonCat]

Next time try this: When given the runaround, go on the company's facebook page and bitch about it. It seems to be a proven way of cutting through red tape and incompetence. Most companies monitor their facebook pages closely, and if they come across stuff like this they will usually try to fix the problem rather than leave the story for all to see. I've seen it work several times. No guarantees, but worth a try.

[Gilhelmi]

*shakes head*
I swear, you almost have to record your phone calls just to get some of these people to do what they promise.

[mathnerd]

I wish I had recorded all those phone calls! At least the last promise got partially completed before somebody stopped the order, so I had some proof. They still didn't completely honor that promise.

I only switched to this carrier because the signal is so much better than with my old company. I never had any problems with my old company, but this experience with the new one has me ready to leave. I do have a substantial part of the contract left, so the early termination fees are too high, but as soon as they're affordable, I'm gone.

I wish companies would understand this. I could have handled bad news back at the beginning. But they made multiple promises they had no intention of keeping, and that is what's making me want to switch carriers.

[mathnerd]

Sorry it took so long to update this. I've been busy recovering from the week from hell ( http://www.customerssuck.com/board/s...d.php?t=111103 )

I got my replacement phone. It's a downgrade from what I had before (5s instead of 6 plus), but it's a working phone and all five people I provide phones for all have phones again. It also cost more than promised, but close enough. I got tired of fighting.