May 2008 - Purchase an air card from AT&T wireless.

May 2008 - Receive air card. Doesn't work. Call customer service, they can't figure it out. Went to local store. Turns out it just wasn't activated. Thanks for wasting my time (3 days) and gas with ignorance.

May 2008 - Told I can suspend my card and only pay $10/mo instead of the full $60/mo. Accept the contract under the guise that this is true, because I travel overseas quite a bit.

June 2008 - Suspend card, travel overseas.

August 2008 - Did not receive $100 rebate for air card. Turns out, you can't receive the rebate while the card is suspended. Why does that rule exist? That's ok, I'll unsuspend later when back in the states, then get the rebate (instead of paying the $60/mo to have it unsuspended). Trying to save money like everyone else.

Late August 2008: Check bill. Realize I did not get the $10/mo suspension deal. Still charged $60/mo. Call to find out the problem. Keep getting disconnected when transferred. So, try to e-mail from my AT&T account. Turns out, you can't just send an email, but you go through an entire ordeal of identifying the subject of the email, etc. When you are done, it does not let you email, it says that your problem will be solved better if you call. 2 hours later, I finally get through on the phone.

Same day, the call: They tell me that I cannot get a reduction in price for a suspension. Apparently, I was either blatently lied to in May in order for me to accept the original contract, or the representative had no idea what he was talking about. Either way, it was what I was told. Yet, they will not refund me the money I was told I would save. So, I ask to cancel. Well, then they charge me $125 for early termination. Then, the lady insinuates that I accepted the contract and that just because I was told one thing, doesn't mean I'm not at fault. So, I cancelled anyway and wish to fight it.

Logical Point: I would not have purchased the product if I couldn't save money suspending it. I am only in the states 3 months out of the year. I was told that suspending it would drop the price to $10/mo, so I accepted the contract. Either through ignorance or malice, I was told something that was not true, and I have to pay for it. Plus, I don't get a rebate. Total money that I should not have paid, but have to anyway because a representative told me wrong info:

- $50 for one pay period

- $50 for another pay period

- $100 rebate

- $125 cancelation fee

Total: $325 that AT&T steals from me all because they told me one thing that wasn't true.

How do you fight this? I have no record of the original conversation. Guess the only way is to post this wherever I can.


  Comments (2)
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1. Written by chase, on 11-10-2008 19:42

interesting - i successfully suspended my at&t wireless phone for 4 months while i was abroad this year and was only charged $10+fees each month. so i know it's possible. why wasn't it possible for you?  

 

although:  

 

i agree with you that they are like a terrible bureaucracy with little regard to customer service or efficiency.  

 

and, putting my account on suspent meant that i somehow no longer got bills and could no longer log onto my account online even after i reactivated, leading to me not getting my bill and being hit with a late payment fee i had to talk them out of. 

 

as soon as this contract is up i am going to tmobile.

2. Written by joyce burton, on 22-09-2008 16:18

i was an att customer and they re service is awfull most of the time i had to use my home # 304 4250713 becuase i didnt have any service at all then i called them to complain and wanted my ss # of 234-11-3574 to cancel my bill is that all the really need?

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