AT&T Customer service help (please?)

[EyePod]

Recently, my girlfriend of 6 years and I decided that we had milked enough money from our parents over the years. We thought that we should start our own cell phone plan, but wanted to keep our current numbers/provider (AT&T).

Both my girlfriend and I are currently on our respective parent's family plans through AT&T. Both of our contracts have expired. We used AT&T's online customer support, and they answered our questions and concerns as such:

Online CSR:If you would like to keep the numbers you can go ahead and order online as a new customer and have customer service transfer just the numbers to your new account once your current account holder releases them.

My gf: So are there any fees for changing the numbers after they are released?

Online CSR: No, there's no charge for that. Customer care will not charge you for transferring the number.

Now, when I call the transfer of service department (who you have to call after your account holder has released your original number), they told me "too bad, she was wrong. You have to pay an $18 transfer fee per line even though you were told you wouldn't have to and you have proof that we misinformed you." Now, we have saved a copy of this online transcript, and I'm positive that they have it too. It asks for your full name when logging into the customer service chat (and my gf has an unusual name), and either way, I'm sure that they save these online chats.

The new CSR on the phone says that reason that I am getting charged for this fee is because I am transferring my account from a discounted account to a non-discounted account. Now I'm going to repeat this in the words that I used when talking to the CSR on the phone...

So you're telling me that because I'm trying to stay with AT&T as a new customer on a non-discounted account, where I'm going to be PAYING MORE FOR YOUR SERVICE, you are charging me more? So I have to pay more money to pay more money?

She says, I'm sorry, that's just the way it is. Next, I ask for her supervisor. She then proceeds to put me on hold for OVER HALF AN HOUR, then the line gets disconnected. I called originally at 7:24 pm ET, and they close at 8. She put me on hold at 7:55.

I'm beginning to think that the only way for me to get out of these fees is to threaten to cancel the account (which I'm going to do if this isn't resolved). If necessary, I'll have my gf start an account. The worst part is that we tried to put it in her name because she gets a university discount, but she doesn't have a credit score so she couldn't do an online transaction. So it would have been a discounted account transferred to another discounted account.

Any help would be appreciated, or at least some support. I really believe that they have misrepresented themselves as we relied on their customer service rep to make a decision on purchasing the phones and signing the contract, and I'm willing to go to small claims court over this.

I love spending my ****ing night on the phone with AT&T only to get disconnected after over an hour. Hooray. That's salt on the mother****ing wound after yesterday's game. Plus, I'm just waiting to see what fees they're going to throw on the first bill even though the activation fees are supposed to be waived....

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by Bugeater

I don't use any of that shit. I waste enough time on the innerwebs when I'm at home.

I use Net 10 for my prepaid cell phone. Who do you use?

[EyePod]

Originally Posted by CosmicPal

If the phone number's were under the parent's name, then it is a brand new account.

There is no transfer fee for setting up an account to a new name/address- it's a new account. Therefore, you should be charged installation fee, but they usually waive that for new customers.

However, if those phone numbers were under your name at the former address, then it is a transfer of service and they are going to charge you that transfer fee.

The phone numbers were on our parents' accounts, and the new account is in my name.

[petegz28]

Originally Posted by Mr. Flopnuts

Feel free to switch to Sprint. The service is cheaper, and you can now call any mobile number for free without it counting against your minutes. The Palm Pre is now a true competitor to the iphone and don't let anyone fool you about their customer service. It's 10 times better than it used to be.

P.S - I live in Seattle and am entirely unaffiliated with Sprint except that I'm a happy customer of 5 years.

Sprint passed ATT in quality fo customer service in July.....

[Bugeater]

Originally Posted by Skip Towne

I use Net 10 for my prepaid cell phone. Who do you use?

Same thing, a 300 minute card usually lasts me 2 months, so my phone only costs me around $15/mo. I love it.

[Bugeater]

Originally Posted by petegz28

Sprint passed ATT in quality fo customer service in July.....

That's not saying much.

[Mr. Flopnuts]

Originally Posted by Bugeater

Same thing, a 300 minute card usually lasts me 2 months, so my phone only costs me around $15/mo. I love it.

My folks rock the prepaid phones. (Free for me to call them too) It's a great deal for folks who only use their phones as phones, and when they're needed rather than everything else. My wife and I use our cell phones in lieu of having a landline. It works out pretty well for us when it all adds up.

[Mr. Flopnuts]

Originally Posted by petegz28

Sprint passed ATT in quality fo customer service in July.....

I just saw they had the most reliable network too. It all comes down to AT&T's network being utter shit. They were totally unprepared to be the solo carriers of the Iphone. They should send Palm an Xmas card thanking them for dropping the Pre to Sprint. Long term, losing customers is what they need right now. As ass backwards as that sounds............

[TrickyNicky]

Any time a CS rep promises you something, tell them to notate the account specifically what they promised. I used to work at a call center for ATT and I would constantly get calls like that where a rep told the customer something wrong but promised it anyways. As long as its notated, even if it is against current policy, ATT reps have to uphold what is in the notes. I know fat lot of good it will do you now, but if you do stick with them...

Also, I have service with Sprint. They aren't any better.

[EyePod]

Originally Posted by TrickyNicky

Any time a CS rep promises you something, tell them to notate the account specifically what they promised. I used to work at a call center for ATT and I would constantly get calls like that where a rep told the customer something wrong but promised it anyways. As long as its notated, even if it is against current policy, ATT reps have to uphold what is in the notes. I know fat lot of good it will do you now, but if you do stick with them...

Also, I have service with Sprint. They aren't any better.

Yeah, she said that she didn't see a note on the account, and I pointed out the fact that WE HADN'T PURCHASED IT YET. She ignored that quickly.

[petegz28]

Originally Posted by Mr. Flopnuts

I just saw they had the most reliable network too. It all comes down to AT&T's network being utter shit. They were totally unprepared to be the solo carriers of the Iphone. They should send Palm an Xmas card thanking them for dropping the Pre to Sprint. Long term, losing customers is what they need right now. As ass backwards as that sounds............

ATT's network is faster but yes, their reliability is for shit, their customer service sucks and their plans are expensive. They are living off the I-phone right now from a wireless perspective. They are trying to get the exclusive rights to the I-phone extended. I think that is crap. I really want to see some regulation or de-regulation, whichever you want to call it where all phones need to work with all carriers provided they have the same protocol.

[loochy]

Originally Posted by EyePod

Recently, my girlfriend of 6 years and I decided that we had milked enough money from our parents over the years. We thought that we should start our own cell phone plan, but wanted to keep our current numbers/provider (AT&T).

Both my girlfriend and I are currently on our respective parent's family plans through AT&T. Both of our contracts have expired. We used AT&T's online customer support, and they answered our questions and concerns as such:

Online CSR:If you would like to keep the numbers you can go ahead and order online as a new customer and have customer service transfer just the numbers to your new account once your current account holder releases them.

My gf: So are there any fees for changing the numbers after they are released?

Online CSR: No, there's no charge for that. Customer care will not charge you for transferring the number.

Now, when I call the transfer of service department (who you have to call after your account holder has released your original number), they told me "too bad, she was wrong. You have to pay an $18 transfer fee per line even though you were told you wouldn't have to and you have proof that we misinformed you." Now, we have saved a copy of this online transcript, and I'm positive that they have it too. It asks for your full name when logging into the customer service chat (and my gf has an unusual name), and either way, I'm sure that they save these online chats.

The new CSR on the phone says that reason that I am getting charged for this fee is because I am transferring my account from a discounted account to a non-discounted account. Now I'm going to repeat this in the words that I used when talking to the CSR on the phone...

So you're telling me that because I'm trying to stay with AT&T as a new customer on a non-discounted account, where I'm going to be PAYING MORE FOR YOUR SERVICE, you are charging me more? So I have to pay more money to pay more money?

She says, I'm sorry, that's just the way it is. Next, I ask for her supervisor. She then proceeds to put me on hold for OVER HALF AN HOUR, then the line gets disconnected. I called originally at 7:24 pm ET, and they close at 8. She put me on hold at 7:55.

I'm beginning to think that the only way for me to get out of these fees is to threaten to cancel the account (which I'm going to do if this isn't resolved). If necessary, I'll have my gf start an account. The worst part is that we tried to put it in her name because she gets a university discount, but she doesn't have a credit score so she couldn't do an online transaction. So it would have been a discounted account transferred to another discounted account.

Any help would be appreciated, or at least some support. I really believe that they have misrepresented themselves as we relied on their customer service rep to make a decision on purchasing the phones and signing the contract, and I'm willing to go to small claims court over this.

I love spending my ****ing night on the phone with AT&T only to get disconnected after over an hour. Hooray. That's salt on the mother****ing wound after yesterday's game. Plus, I'm just waiting to see what fees they're going to throw on the first bill even though the activation fees are supposed to be waived....

Dude, I did EXACTLY that a few months ago. I was on my dad's family plan. All I had to do was go to the ATT store and they created a new account for me and they transferred my old number over after talking on the phone with my dad so he could answer a few security questions. There were no fees and no questions asked.

[wild1]

For AT&T, you only get a free number change if you relocate. (that's what the lady was told anyway)

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by Bugeater

Same thing, a 300 minute card usually lasts me 2 months, so my phone only costs me around $15/mo. I love it.

You can't beat $15 per month. I even took out my land line saving another $40

[TrickyNicky]

Originally Posted by wild1

For AT&T, you only get a free number change if you relocate. (that's what the lady was told anyway)

Tell them you are receiving harassing calls. Its a free number change as well.

[jidar]

Yeah that sucks.
A $9/hr phone jockey making a mistake isn't that surprising though. I wouldn't get too bent out of shape over it. It's not like it's in the constitution that you're entitled to free phone number transfers or anything.