Fun with Verizon

[LastWhiteSoxFanStanding]

Since I very cleverly jumped into a pool with my cell phone in my pocket to get away from a bee I had to get a new phone.

I didn't have insurance on it so I had to get a new phone from verizon. I was not eligible for any deals which left me with two choices. Get a really shitty phone from the store for 100 bucks or pay over 300 for a blackberry that given my iq i could not figure out how to use.

I quickly calculated that paying the the early cancellation fee of 140 dollars plus the cost of a new iphone (99 bucks) would be the most cost effective option.

So I call up Verizon today to pay off what I owe them (cancellation fee + last months bill) . Amazingly, they still have my information under my mother's name because we were on the family plan about 10 years ago even though we get separate bills. Even more amazingly they are showing that I owe no money and just my mom's bill and number is listed. After about twenty minutes of trying to get things figured out, the customer representative asked if I would find my esn number and call back to give them more information. I politely declined and she said I might get a surprise bill in the future, but I said lets trust the computers on this one and hung up the phone.

I guess I will find out in a month or so if they really lost my info. If its not in the computers I am home free right? I cant imagine anyone there caring that much to figure out where my info went. I just hope this somehow doesn't screw up my credit. We shall see.

[clemsonfan]

Hmmm....I think you are probably in the clear.

[Calis]

I'm confused. Have you been getting a bill from them month to month?

There is a decent chance the CSR was just an idiot.

Edit: Or do you mean they knew you had an account, were billing you but just didn't have contract date and such?

[Barkeep49]

I would expect the bill to show up after you switch. But in any case I would just go ahead and switch your number. Doing so will automatically cancel your current contract and you'll either get billed, or not.

[Kodos]

Glad to see that I'm not the only one who turns into a wuss when bees are around.

[Calis]

Is the 140 cancellation fee standard or does it base off how many months you have left?

I've been thinking of making the switch to an iphone but have a good chunk left on my contract. Wondered what it cost to get out of it. 140 seems pretty reasonable right nowm

[DanGarion]

So stealing from a company is alright with you? Not saying I would or wouldn't do it, or it's wrong, but want to point out what you are doing if you have been getting service.

[Passacaglia]

Well they're not exactly geniuses at Verizon:

VerizonMath

[Chubby]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

So stealing from a company is alright with you? Not saying I would or wouldn't do it, or it's wrong, but want to point out what you are doing if you have been getting service.

How would he be stealing if it's a shared line with his mother's account? On top of the fact that the cancellation fee BS is verizon stealing from you (and don't bother getting into the "it's in the contract" when there's many things they do to violate the contract as well)

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Chubby

How would he be stealing if it's a shared line with his mother's account? On top of the fact that the cancellation fee BS is verizon stealing from you (and don't bother getting into the "it's in the contract" when there's many things they do to violate the contract as well)

It wasn't clear to me that it's a shared line, since he hasn't responded if he's been getting a bill or not. Of course if it's under his mom's name, I would think it would be nice to cancel that phone so she wasn't paying for his phone that he no longer uses.

Regardless if the contract is BS, someone did sign the contract and decide they were willing to keep service for x amount of days. Just curious what do they do that violates the contract?

[LastWhiteSoxFanStanding]

Just to be clear I have been paying every month.

I no longer have Verizon so I am not stealing phone service.

My mother is still getting billed for her phone service.

What am I could be getting out of and what could be construed as stealing is the 140 cancellation fee plus the previous month's bill. However, I did call to pay it and stayed on the line with them for a good twenty minutes. If they bill me I will certainly pay it, however I don't think its completely out of line to not pay if I don't get the bill. I called. I offered to pay. If they don't have the paperwork, that is on them. Not me.

Calis,

I am not sure how they came up with the 140 figure. However, I did call before cancelling my service to ask what the cancellation fee was and thats the number they gave me. If you are thinking of cancelling just call up Verizon and they will give you the cancellation fee.

[cougarfreak]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

So stealing from a company is alright with you? Not saying I would or wouldn't do it, or it's wrong, but want to point out what you are doing if you have been getting service.

Companies routinely fuck customers over for money, so in this instance......it's not stealing, the company lost the info, so they are SOL.

[CU Tiger]

If you would have went to their loyalty or retention deprtment they would have given you a free phone provided you have a decent payment history

[fantom1979]

Originally Posted by Passacaglia

Well they're not exactly geniuses at Verizon:

VerizonMath

I just listened to that call to Verizon and I was pulling out my hair.

[SteveMax58]

I would wonder if you have EVER given them your SSN?

If not...then I dont see how they would have any way to associate you to a new plan or anything like that.

If you aren't sure...or you have given them your SSN for plan activation purposes in the past...then I would bet the CSR was just stupid and you will likely see a bill. Also quite possible you'll find out when/if you go to get a new phone and activate it. That would likely be the true test I'd imagine.

[gstelmack]

One other thing about Verizon is their physical locations tend to provide MUCH better service than the phone. You could try just walking in, explaining the situation, and see what they can do.

[Wolfpack]

Hm...sorta interested in the doings here since my provider (Alltel) is now offically Verizon as of the next bill, but our two-year contract ends in a couple of months. We're very much utilitarian cell phone users and since we still have our landline, we have the least-cost two-line plan and we are never, ever close to using up the minutes on it.

I do think about whether to get some kind of smart internet phone next time around, though. There've been a few times when I wished I had ready access to the web while on the go. I could have done it with Alltel, but I didn't think the extra cost was worth the rather basic web browsing that was on my phone and I managed to muddle through particularly on sports scores since those weren't walled off by the extra charges.

Given our rather pedestrian needs, should I stick with Verizon or perhaps consider another provider? T-Mobile has recently come into the area, which was our carrier when we lived in Michigan, but we had to switch when we moved back here. We had pretty good service with them and they offered pretty good basic plans which suited the times and needs we had before.

[gstelmack]

We just switched from Virgin Mobile to Verizon's prepaid plan. We're on the very, very basic one: put in $100 and your phone stays good for a year, and minutes are 25 cents apiece. We're minimal cell users (mostly for emergencies with the kids, or meeting up when splitting up while shopping) and this works fine for us, and Verizon has better coverage for us.

[Glengoyne]

This is stealing, plain and simple.

Your punishment as I have determined it, is to attempt to pay them $140 without a bill. Good Luck. Your debt to society will be paid in full. =)

[Glengoyne]

Dola,

I have no sarcasm symbol to use.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by cougarfreak

Companies routinely fuck customers over for money, so in this instance......it's not stealing, the company lost the info, so they are SOL.

If you feel that way, you probably never worked for a company. Most companies aren't really looking for ways to screw over customers, customers just don't understand how their bill or billing works, or what they actually signed up for... IMO. Doesn't mean there aren't mistakes, just stating what I have seen from my side. Trust me, it doesn't stop me from trying to get my way with a company.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

If you feel that way, you probably never worked for a company. Most companies aren't really looking for ways to screw over customers, customers just don't understand how their bill or billing works, or what they actually signed up for... IMO. Doesn't mean there aren't mistakes, just stating what I have seen from my side. Trust me, it doesn't stop me from trying to get my way with a company.

What you really mean is many companies come up with really convoluted rules hoping folks won't really read them. See credit card companies and their ever-changing rules, for example, or simply electronics rebates. Or from the banking industry, Check21.

Sure some folks are trying to get away with what they can, but many companies are doing their level best to squeeze every dime out of folks they can.

Your employer and their "Home of Free HD my ass" included. And probably my employer, too ;-)

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

What you really mean is many companies come up with really convoluted rules hoping folks won't really read them. See credit card companies and their ever-changing rules, for example, or simply electronics rebates. Or from the banking industry, Check21.

Sure some folks are trying to get away with what they can, but many companies are doing their level best to squeeze every dime out of folks they can.

Your employer and their "Home of Free HD my ass" included. And probably my employer, too ;-)

I was about to yell at you till I read the "and probably my employer, too" part...