Moving? Make one call before you buy or rent
October 30, 2009 by Valerie HelmbreckPosted in: Communication, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, cell phone, mobile technology, smartphones, subscribers, telecommuting
Just in case you plan on moving anytime soon, there’s a new “test” you’ll want to perform before you make your decision:
Can your cell phone send and receive calls from your new digs?
Most carriers won’t release you from your service contract just because your home or apartment happens to be outside their coverage area or in a “dead zone.”
A number of consumer Web sites have postings by disgruntled customers who have tried to switch services because their current provider doesn’t serve their new address.
No dice, say most carriers.
In some cases, customers report that the carrier has tried to persuade them to buy a newer, more expensive phone in hopes that it will improve service.
But for the most part, they’ll say “sorry, you owe us the cancellation fee” if you want out of the contract. And that means a fee — usually about $200 — for each line on the service agreement.
The lesson: Mover beware. Make phone calls from every room of your prospective house or apartment before you sign commitment papers. Find out where the dead zones are and decide if the new place will be more of a hassle when making mobile phone calls.
Those with smartphones will want to make sure they can use their browser on the carrier’s network as well.
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Tags: agreements, carriers, cell phone, contract, dead zones
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:32 pm
Another example of the ‘customer service’ provided by phone and TV companies. We were caught in this when my son went to Iraq and wanted to give his phone to his sister. We asked Sprint if she was in a dead zone and they said no, but that if she could not use his phone, they would wave the cancellation fee since he was serving in a war zone. They lied. It was impossible to get Sprint where she lived and when we cancelled the service they placed my son with a collection company for non-payment of his cancellation fee even after three different Sprint employees told me that it would be credited. We finally settled just to be done with it.
No one in our family has used Sprint since.
November 4th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Aha, another Sprint horror story. I’m surprised these folks manage to stay in business. Oh, that’s right they’re Nextel now, another even worse provider. You can call four different “customer service” reps all on the same day and get a different response from each one even if the question you ask is exactly the same each time.
Sprint and other cellular companies could not care less about satisfied customers, they want your money and that’s it. The reps are trained to frustrate you until you give up and pay the money just to be done with it. Horrible at best.