Sprint PCS Consumer Reviews - Page 3

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS -- I have been with Sprint for the last 5 or 6 years and it was only because at first I thought they had the best phones. I didn't have many problems with them in the beginning. It seemed if I had a problem I would call and they would fix it. I even worked for Sprint for all of a about... hmmmm 4 months and that's when my problem started.

Any who fast forward to 2006 I believe. I decided to take advantage of the Sprint and Nextel merger and got a Nextel phone (when they were still technically separate but together) because I wanted the chirp feature. I didn't have to pay an ETF and I had my phone in a few days. Everything was fine until my phone started just randomly shutting off like it was a computer.

It got to the point where I would sit and watch it just shut off for no reason. I would say the problem was with the phone of course but I decided that I was done dealing with Nextel because the service I received when trying to call them just sucked. I wanted to go to a different carrier but I still didn't like the phones some of them had. There was a phone that I saw but Sprint was the carrier. So after much consideration I opted to go back to them. The biggest mistake ever!!

In November of 2007 I switched back to Sprint but was at first told I would have to pay an ETF. I asked why when I didn't have to before and was told because Sprint and Nextel is now combined but wasn't before but that keeping the phone on would be cheaper than cutting it off now because my contract was due to be expiring in June of 08. I told her I would think about it but decided to activate a new line anyway.

The first weekend in December, I called Sprint to have them disconnect the first Nextel line I had and to keep on the one I just activated last month. I was aware of the ETF and didn't have a problem with it. I was assured the line would be disconnected. I then lost the phone but since it was SIM operated I reported it lost so that no one else could use the phone. I was assured the phone would be set so that no one could use it. I continued to call my Nextel number to make sure the phone was off and it was not.

After about 3 or 4 weeks, I called them back asking why it wasn't cut off. The customer service lady was nice and explained that they only suspended the service. She apologized and issued me a credit for the service charge and another credit for the inconvenience which totaled about 100 some odd dollars. Whatever she did in January of 08 cut the Nextel phone off and it no longer showed on my account on the January bill so I thought it was all taken care of.

Well I get a bill in Feb of 08 where all of a sudden not only is the Nextel phone back on my account but they tried to charge me back charges from Jan until March of 08. Since I don't look at my bill regularly it took me a few weeks to realize what happened. I called and was needless to say upset about this because I assumed that after talking to the last girl everything was corrected. After countless times calling and speaking to 3 different people, I was assured the issue would be resolved and that the phone would be disconnected but I would have to pay the ETF.

I disputed that now seeing as though this was the 3rd time I had to call to get this line cut off and that I was not paying that fee 3 months after the fact. I was informed it would be taken care of. I was transferred to someone in the cancellations departments who tried to argue with me about paying that fee and me reporting my phone lost. She tried to say I only called to report it lost (in December) and that I did not call to request it be cancelled. She tried to be smart at the mouth but my mouth is smarter and I let her have it before she could even finish that stupid statement.

She put me on hold and then came back with the "Oh I'm sorry. I did check further and you are correct". So I told her again that I was not paying an ETF and she tried to dispute that saying that now my contract was not until November of 08. I told her that she is insane if she thinks that is true and that I will not be stuck with this phone until then. She then agreed to give me a credit for the charges for the cancelled line and was going to disconnect the service and issue me a credit of the ETF. I waited on hold for almost an hour until finally the line started ringing and just kept ringing. Needless to say she transferred me somewhere else and didn't do what she said.

I called back again around Easter and explained this same story over to two people. The first person seemed to be too consumed in his background conversation so he just put me on hold and transferred me somewhere else without letting me know. The second person was polite and said he would issue me a credit for the charge for the Nextel phone (that still wasn't off) again. Here it is April and after 4 months of calling Sprint my Nextel phone is still not off. I complained that this was ridiculous and that all I asked was for them to cut that phone off and no one there seems to know what they are doing.

I was transferred to this account manager whose job is to keep customers from going elsewhere. Needless to say she is in the wrong business. She tried to argue with me again that I only asked to get the phone suspended and not cancelled in December. I had to basically yell at her to let her know that I didn't fall out the womb yesterday and that I know the difference between suspended and cancel but suggested that she should ask the employees there if they knew because obviously they didn't.

She offered to credit me three months worth of service but that she would not waive the ETF for that Nextel phone. I told her that for the last time I would not be paying that fee. In turn she only credited me for 2 months (because they issue me a credit in March) and the phone is now off this time. I am upset because this could have been resolved in December but instead it has taken this long to get something done.

I still don't believe this is the end all be all of this mess but one thing is for sure - I am now canceling both lines of service and I will not pay the ETF on either one. I've already contacted Cingular and I will gladly pay for a new phone that is the same as my phone that I just got 5 months ago to get away from Sprint once and for all! I never thought I would find so much stuff just by typing in the word "Sprint Sucks" into Yahoo. This company does suck and if they keep it up will be out of business!

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND -- I am writing as a very, very disgruntled customer of Sprint. I had been a customer of Sprint for years until about 3 years ago when I switched to Nextel (which had just merged with Sprint so it was basically the same company) only because they had a phone that I wanted. I've always had some ups and downs with the company but I've normally been able to get things resolved in a timely manner until recently. I was having a lot of issues with the phone I had which was the Nextel i870 and had called sometime in November 2007 to ask when my contract would expire because I was thinking about looking at some other companies.

I was told by the customer service representative that it would end in February 2008 so I figured I could wait until then so I wouldn't have to pay the early termination fee. After experiencing several more problems with the phone and not being able to use it most of the time, I went into the Sprint store in Annapolis, MD to get the exact date of the expiration of the contract because at that point I really didn't have a reliable phone to use. The customer service representative looked it up and said it wasn't until July 2008.

I told her that was incorrect and just left the store. I got into my car and called the Sprint Customer Care number and pressed the option for contract expiration/terminate service. A customer service representative answered and questioned why I wanted to leave the company and if there was anything she could do to keep my business with them. I explained to her that I had the Nextel phone which no longer worked right so I had to get a new phone whether it was with them or if I had to go to another company and that I was not paying the early termination fee or paying the outrageous prices of a new phone with them for not being a new customer.

She told me if I stayed she would let me get a new phone at the new customer price. So, I decided to switch back to a Sprint phone that I saw in the store and liked. The original cost of the phone was $399 but the new customer special they were running was for $99. I was put on hold while she connected a financial representative on the phone with us so I could pay off the remaining balance for the Nextel account which was $104.28 and then we started the process for the new phone which the cost was just added onto my Sprint account. This all took place on Friday, January 11, 2008.

I received and activated the new phone which was a Palm Centro on Tuesday January 15, 2008. On the morning of January 16th, when I went to make a call I was played a message that said I needed to contact customer care; the service had been interrupted. I called to see what the problem was and was told that I had exceeded my spending limit and had to pay $75.28 to bring it under. I just figured it had something to do with them adding the new phone on the account so I didn't really question it and just paid the money while I was on the phone with them; the service was restored.

On January 18, 2008 I went into the Sprint store in Annapolis, MD to add another line onto my existing account. I bought the phone (Palm Centro) and activated it while I was in the store... This is where all the issues begin! I told the representative I wanted to transfer the phone number I already had to this new phone. I had a Virgin Mobile pre-pay phone which is also an affiliate of Sprint. I had already called Virgin Mobile's customer service to ask if this could be done and they said yes. The representative at the Sprint store wasn't too clear on how to do it so he called customer care and was walked through the process.

I bought a couple accessories and prepared to leave the store but before I left out I tried to make a call and the phone wouldn't work. I then asked another representative in the store what the problem was and she said that it can take a couple hours sometimes for the phone to get fully activated and up to 4 hrs for all the services on the phone to work properly. I didn't see a problem with that because when I activated the other one I was told the same thing. I spent about 1-1/2 hrs at the store that night.

After two hours had passed the phone was still not working; this would be my first of MANY, MANY LONG calls to Sprint customer service for this particular line. I spent about 3 hrs on the phone with customer service that night trying to get the phone working. Apparently there was a problem with transferring the number so they gave me a temporary number to use in the meantime. I was told that because of all of my trouble for the night the first month of service would be waived for that line.

I called the next day to find out the status of the number transfer and was given the run-around. This went on for several days until I finally said just cancel the transfer request and I would just keep the temporary number they had given me. After going through all this I called to make sure they had noted the account about the waived first month bill and to no surprise there was nothing. I went back forth about this until I finally reached someone who just gave me a $60 credit on the bill. Not only had there never been a notation about that but the whole entire service plan was wrong as well.

So, she fixed all of that and I asked for some type of confirmation for my records and she sent me an email stating everything. A couple days later I go to check my balance this time on my phone and I see $399. I called to ask what was going on and the service rep said that it was a credit. Now I have no idea of where this credit came from. I figured that was for them to deal with so I left it alone. About 2 weeks later my phone is turned off again - this is the 2nd time. I call to find out why and I'm told because the phone has gone past the spending limit but they don't know why because there's a credit on the account.

I'm then told I have pending charges on the phone that totaled almost $800... stating something about charges for a lost phone and equipment as well as other charges. To kind of sum this all up, as of today, which is February 17th, I'm still battling over this. During this time I have spent numerous hours on the phone and even in the store trying to get this resolved. My phone line as being turned off 5 times and the other line once. That's 6 times we've had service interruption in ONE MONTH!

Just to really give you another example of all the headache and drama I've had; just today which again is Feb. 17th in between talking to the service rep on the phone trying to once again figure out what the problem is I've been online monitoring my account and it has gone from me owing $377.47 to $227.47 to $77.47 and the last time I checked it it said that Sprint now owes me $22.53. I also received another confirmation email from Sprint saying they have credited my account $400 which would have been the cost of the lost phone/equipment that should have never been there.

Yet, I have also once again received a text message on my phone saying I'm approaching my spending limit and need to make a payment, so I'm guessing tomorrow my service will be interrupted again! Now does this make any sense??? All I want to be able to do is use my phone like any other normal person and pay my monthly bill without any hassle. After all this it would have been worth just paying the early termination fee and being rid of Sprint!

AURORA, ILLINOIS -- Get $100 off of your SPRINT PCS phone bill if you sign up for a 2 year contract extension (and keep your old phone). Since I use my cell phone as my (single point of contact) business phone, it seemed to make sense to sign up. Not only did I never receive my credit, none seems to recall the special or my privies phone calls of inquiry when no credit was ever forthcoming.

To make matters much worse I added 3 new lines each carrying their own NEW 2 year contract with the assumption that along with mail in rebates (that I have since received) I and a friend who is a current/new line adding sprint customer as well were supposed to receive 25.00 each way on the sprint referral program for family friends and coworkers. That would be a total of 75.00 in Visa gift cards to me and 75.00 in cards to my friend who referred me.

On 6-17-07 I was advised by the sales rep at the sprint store to "call in" my referrals to customer care because one of my new lines was a wireless card and as such could not be used to do the #ref thingy they advise you to use from the new phone within 14 days of activation. At this time I was assured by a customer care representative that they has processed my referrals as well as my girlfriends who talked to the same rep after me and that we would receive our cards in 6-8 weeks. 8/07 I had yet to receive any referral cards so I called in again.

This time I was referred to the rebate center who in turn referred me back to customer care who then referred me back to telesales who then referred me back to customer care! By this time I'm sick so I decide to let it rest for a while but It is a new year and as such it has been 6 months and I still have not received my 75.00 in referral cards or my 100 credit on my bill for the new service agreement. Understandably I am totally frustrated at this point and decide to call customer care again.

This new lady Amanda referred me now to card services who informs me that although they have a rebate card on file and issued to me it is not the rebate for these 3 particular new lines. They are from another friends referral after this one.

November sometime. She informs me that it is obvious Sprint is giving me the runaround and directs me back to customer care to demand they process my referrals immediately so that card services can issue me my cards. Finally I talked to Cathy at sprint customer care who had the nerve to try to tell me that she looked it up and the 25.00 gift card referral program is for new customers only and that I was an existing customer when I purchased the new lines even though they all have their "own new" 2 year contracts starting from the date of sale!!!

I want the 100 dollar service credit that should have been applied to my bill with the 3 new phone lines and I also would like the 75.00 in Visa debit cards that I was promised through the referral program and factored enormously in my decision to add the new phone lines in the first place. My monthly bill alone with sprint for all 6 lines averages 500.00 a month. I have filed a complaint with the BBB. I'll keep you posted. This so sucks!

I ordered a new phone and got something else I called sprint and placed a order for a different phone and everything was OK until I found out that none of what I ordered ever took place then called again make sure they gave me a order number. A week passed by I called to check, the order got cancelled again no one seem to know why in the two months that passed by I called no less than 30 Times even talked to managers and seem that they were doing something but never ever anything was done even do I had credit to cover two phones.

They took the order wrong more than once and made a complete mess on all my account because once they sent me a phone but it was the wrong one so I had to return, no one knew how that order got placed. I called today again and got a response of a careless rep so asked to speak to a manager so I got transfer and it was worst he didn't care at all he was rude and all he wanted to do is may I have you credit card number.

That was not the only time I called sprint and not the only rude horrible customer support that more than a month passed by so I can't cancel without a penalty. It is sad that kind of support of people that have no idea what a business is or how to treat a customer I'm not asking for anything free and is their bad order taking and customer support. Now they only would send me the phone I ordered if I pay with my credit card and they said they cannot use the credit I have with them even it covers two phones.

I ordered a phone, they sent the wrong one not once but twice, In every order they always do the opposite or some kind of mistake. I ordered another phone like 30 times and nothing was done, no one knew why the order got cancelled, I tried calling because they said you will get it tomorrow, a manager would even overnight it for me the phone they originally sent me will only work if connected to the power. I was told they would do a 30 day replacement that's how they call it so I would pay the difference I kept calling trying to replace the phone I only received the return kit but never received the phone ordered.

Now I talked to a Rude Careless Manager from Sprint and said he care less what the situation is that if I wanted the phone I had to pay full price and had to give him my credit card again even if I had given it like 10 times and have credit from the returned phone charges which were credited to my account not my credit card he said he could not use that credit. I talked to so many reps from sprint in every department and at least most of them agreed that the price of the phone would and should be same as when I got a new line, because it was their mistakes.

Now I cannot return the defective phone and if I get the one I originally ordered have to pay full price because is two months even do I been calling every day to check and fix that. Sprint Customer Support is A JOKE, a nightmare, including Managers at some point they were blaming India because most of the calls go to India and they said that it was a communication issue but I spoke to representatives from India, Philippines, USA and the people from India and Philippines were nicer and polite even if the issue was not resolved never compared with reps or manager from the USA.

SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA -- I have had the worst customer service from Sprint employees. Why is Sprint so incompetent? Why can't they solve issues of bad service and bad reliability? How can they continue to be in business? Do all of the stakeholders know about the issues that customers deal with? This is very poor management and poor ethics. I signed up with Sprint because I thought they had a good reputation. I bought a Treo 700 ($400) and signed up with Sprint. I had good service until Nextel joined the equation. As soon as they merged with Nextel, I had so many dropped calls. Every time I called, I was on hold for 20 minutes and it would drop me.

In the course of a 15 minute call, I would be dropped 4 times average. I use my phone for clients of my job and it is very frustrating to be in the middle of a call and have calls dropped. If anyone looks at the record of me calling Sprint, they were all legitimate calls. I had issues with service in any area that I went. I called so many times and was always promised that if I pushed *3 my phone would update. It got so bad. Every person I spoke with was so unprofessional and inconsiderate.

I went in to have my phone diagnosed, spent an hour to have them tell me that there was nothing wrong with my phone and the answers of my problem were, "There may be too many towers in your area." "There may not be enough towers in your area." "Your phone is OK, I guess you just have to accept the fact that Sprint servers are not guaranteed to be up and you just have to deal with it." "I don't know what the problem is." I don't understand what the policy of Sprint is, but there seems to be a policy of "Tell the customer what they want to hear, but don't follow through." "Pick up the phone on the 20th minute and hang it up"

"Transfer the client to another department so they can be put on hold for another 20 minutes to be hung up on." Anyway, in July, I called the customer service and asked them if I would have to pay to cancel. They said no, you are on a monthly plan now. You only had a year plan. So I changed to AT&T (another $400) for the Treo.

I could not have access to the Sprint website on the internet to see how much I owed. That was very frustrating, seeing I signed up for the online statement. I called Customer service and they told me my final bill was 211.00. I asked why and they said it was the early cancellation fee. I told him that I was not supposed to get a fee because I am on month to month. He also told me he wasn't going to reverse the fee. He was very rude.

I called customer service in Virginia to complain, was on hold for 20 minutes and got disconnected. I wonder if the stakeholders of Sprint know what is going on. I feel anyone's pain that has to or had to go through this. This really has to be resolved. If I did not have these dropped call issues, I would have stayed with Sprint. I would like a response from the Sprint Customer service. What are you doing to correct this issue?

WHEATON, ILLINOIS -- I will never be a Sprint customer. Last week, I received a bill from Sprint for nearly $300. I have never had a Sprint phone or ordered Sprint service. When I called the customer service number on the bill, it was after 9 o'clock at night. Not exactly peak call time, right? Well, after working my way through their automated menu, this woman's voice comes on and tells me the estimated wait is 20 minutes or more. I'm so flustered by receiving a bill for service I have no knowledge of, that I want to talk to someone and will hold for as long as it takes. I wait 20 minutes with nothing but hold music. So, I put the handset down, go get changed, have dinner, and watch TV.

I come back to the phone periodically and hear nothing but hold music. Finally, AFTER AN HOUR a woman answers the phone and I explain my problem. She tells me that someone opened an account on an old phone using my name and address. Thankfully, they do not have my SS# or the correct birth date. The woman I spoke to seemed genuinely concerned and directed me to the identity theft portion of Sprint's website, where she suggested I fill out the identity theft form. She told me that since the SS# didn't match what I gave her, I would need to go into a store and give them my ID before they could cancel the account.

So I'm thinking this will be a relatively painless and easy fix. Ha! I go the next day after work to the Sprint store at Danada West in Wheaton, IL. There are two people working in the store and it takes them a half hour to get to me. The woman who approached me could not have cared less about my problem. She takes the bill from my hand, walks to the phone, dials the number, and hands me the receiver. She goes, "They say the wait is 20 minutes. You'll have to hold. I'll be over there." So she walks away and doesn't even give me a chair to sit in.

So I stand there and wait on hold for 25 minutes before someone picks up, I go through my spiel about never having ordered service and the woman on the phone transfers me to the Fraud department. After going through their menu, I get a message telling me the fraud department is closed and to call back another time! Nowhere in the message does it give the direct number, so I hang up and say to the woman behind the counter, "Well, after all that, they're closed. Do you have a direct number to the fraud department?" She shakes her head and says, "No direct number. Sorry." And that was as much as she wanted to do with it.

At no point did she offer any kind of real assistance. I told her I sat on hold an hour the night before and she tells me "Oh, it wasn't that long." Then, when I ask if they are supposed to match the name and address on the credit check to an ID, she says they are, but people do move and they do change their names, so...

Today I call the Fraud department using a number I found on a consumer website not belonging to Sprint, since of course, Sprint doesn't give you the number on their site. I've called twice and the only message I get tells me they are experiencing a higher than normal call volume and to please call back another time. I can't imagine who would ever purchase service from Sprint. I have never experienced worst customer service. They don't have my SS#, so I will never be liable for the bill, but I can't imagine what paying customers must feel like when they have a problem.

I am giving up on phone calls and sending in the ID Theft package by registered mail. If that doesn't help, Sprint can continue sending me the bill for stolen service and I will just shred it. I bet the crook who used my name and address knows about Sprint's customer service hell and knew I would have a hard time canceling the account.

OMG, where do I start? I have been with Sprint from 2000-2002 and then 2003-current. In April I transferred over my boyfriend's line to my account. This was free, he is a Sprint customer as well. The systems were down in the store so I had to call Sprint as well as order the new phones we were purchasing over the phone. When I did so, I got the 550 min. family pack with $5 per line for 300 text messaging. In total before taxes $69.99. Nothing more. I then ordered new phones for each of us, he got his $150 rebate and I was told I get my phone free for taking a new family plan.

As I was ordering it, the sales rep. asked me if this phone was for the line ending in 5477, yes to that question like 3 times. Everything was set and it showed up online as 2 lines, family plan for 59.99 with $5 per line on texts. 3 days later, we get our phones. I call to activate them and they couldn't do mine, saying something about the systems refreshing or upgrading or whatever terminology they used. I was told to call back in 1 hour, in which I did, and come to find out that the phone is programmed to another number.

They added a 3rd line to my account WITHOUT my permission and didn't inform me about it. Then they charged me full price for the phone AFTER it was offered to me for free. I was on the phone for 2 hours and all they could give me was a $75 rebate and a $25 credit for the inconvenience. $100 in total, and I paid $32.09 for the phone itself. Listen to this, this was supposed to be applied to May's bill, it was applied the $100 balance I had previously that I thought I paid. I was $22 and change in credit BEFORE my bill posted through in May. My May's bill was $566.31!

I understood I went over my mins. but not that much and same with the texts. Then they prorated my texts, so I never got the full 300 and I was NEVER told they were going to do that. So after I spoke to about 2-3 reps. I was told that I would have the late fee waived and be given a $100 credit towards June's bill as long as I kept my bill under $180. I had a balance of $166 and change and when June's bill came in, I was charged $364.55. Now they won't waive the $100 like I was told, and even after waiting 2-3 hours, it doesn't matter.

I have made my reports to the FCC, FTC, and Better Business Bureau. But Sprint is making out to be a liar. Like I would really waste 2-3 hours of my time to lie about some credit that never existed. I just think how funny it is that the note was never made on the account. I even took the name down of the rep. and his id #. Go figure. But yeah, Sprint is the worst and they LOVE to RIP YOU OFF!

TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA -- I have been with Sprint for 2 years now, and yesterday I called to let them know that at the end of my 2-year contract, July 14th, that I will NOT be continuing with their service. The representative was a very kind, very courteous AMERICAN agent, who was trying to help me the best he could.

He came back saying "The contract for the primary line isn't until February of 2008." I was quite pissed right there, not at him but at the company. I asked him "what's going on? I never asked for a contract extension, and I never agreed to any such extension," and he said that back in Feb '07 I asked to change the shared minutes on the plan. I said "fine, even if I did, I was never informed about a contract extension and never agreed upon any such extension." He said "Since the new billing system is not yet fully switched over to the new system, I can't access your records in detail, and to call on Monday."

I asked if there would be an early termination fee and he said "you have only 60 days to contest something like this" and I said "HOW THE ** can I contest it when I didn't know it was happening! I was NEVER informed of this extension! Not by email, postal mail, telephone call, or text message. How can I even AGREE on something like this if I am NOT informed about it happening?! There is no AGREEMENT if there is NOTHING to agree on!" He was very kind to me, apologizing for the misunderstanding, and letting me know that I could possibly make things right again when I call on Monday.

He was very nice and understanding, and for once, didn't turn the problem around on me and make it seem as if I am the one at fault. That is a FIRST with Sprint, as I have had quite a few agents blame me for their mistakes, like when they added Vision TV onto my service when I didn't ask them to, and when they added unlimited text messaging that I didn't request.

This company seems to be chock-full of deception and sneaky "service". Adding services that I don't want, extending my contract without letting me agree on it (therefore nullifying any so-called agreement), and at times blaming me for their mistakes.

Sprint, I am about to switch over to T-Mobile. I am going to switch, even if I have to pay your stupid 200 dollar early termination fee, which means I have to sell my camera lens in order to pay for that. I hope you're satisfied, because I certainly am not. In fact, you know what it's called when one party forces another party to do something when they don't want to while the party that is forcing the other party is receiving some sort of benefit? That's called RAPE! I hope you're spent, because one of these days, these actions are going to come right back at you with a nice class action lawsuit. We WILL be compensated. Just you watch.

REISTERSTOWN, MARYLAND -- To make a long story short, I purchased a Moto Q in Jan. I have an account spending limit in the amount of 350.00 which means I do not have the ability to charge a phone to my account. The phone I received was defective so I called Sprint thinking that they would be able to take care of my issue. They issued a temp. credit on my account so they could charge it to my account and order me a new Moto Q. I called two days later to get the tracking number of the phone. I had my order number and I was given a tracking number. I thanked them and hung up.

Later that night I went onto the UPS website to see when my non-defective phone would be coming. Much to my surprise the phone was already delivered to an address in Michigan. My address is in Maryland. I had to call Sprint to find out why my phone went to that address.

The woman apologized to me and placed yet another credit on my account and re-ordered my phone for me. I then asked her what was going to happen to my account once the one temp. credit came off of my account that I would be charged for that phone that went to the wrong address. She told me to hold on to the information that I had, such as the order number and the tracking number and it would get taken care off.

Meanwhile I receive my Moto Q and everything is fine with my service and account. I get the return kit to send back the defective phone, which I do immediately. I don't like the Moto Q after all and get another return kit, but I go to the Sprint store and buy the Sanyo M1. I thought I had charged it to my account, but I was going through my receipts and saw I paid for it in the store. I send back the other Moto Q that I actually received and waited for the warehouse to apply the proper credits. Then the fun begins.

Our services were turned off and we had an account balance of 900.00. I called with the proper documentation showing that the one phone went to Michigan and that the other phone had indeed been sent back to the warehouse. I get another sorry for the inconvenience again and I am put in touch with a supervisor, who I did not know at the time only placed another 30 day credit on our account. So 30 days go by and everything is fine.

Until the horror of Sprint screw ups. The 30 day credit reversed again, and I had to get a hold of the BBB. Then it takes Sprint 3 weeks to respond to the BBB. The guy that I am dealing with right now is useless and is so unhelpful. I got in contact with this guy 4 days ago, and our account is so ** right now, and our phones have been turned off for a week now. I am so fed up with this company.

Luckily I have all my tracking numbers and all information to provide to them. I can't even get Retention to fix the account because the guy put a block on the account and a note stating that he was handling it and that no credits were to applied by any other dept. This guy only works Mon- Fri. 9 to 5 so we are in limbo at this point in time. Plus, we have been with Sprint two years now and if we hadn't just renewed, we would so go to another carrier.

In January 2007, while still within my 2 year contract with Sprint, I decided to upgrade my phone, replacing my existing phone due to some minor issues and a need for more features. As I had previously signed up with Sprint via the internet, with several fees waived, I tried to perform my upgrade. Unfortunately, Sprint's website does not allow upgrades online. I instead called their customer service line to process my request. I spoke with a customer sales representative who processed my request, repeating for me that the phone would be a replacement with the same phone number.

As I was on the road, promised to email my transaction record. In checking my email later that evening, nothing showed up from Sprint. I then went online to check my account. I immediately saw that the sales representative had processed a whole new phone request, with a new number and new line of service. This was 180 degrees from what I had just confirmed not 6 hours before. I then called Sprint immediately to rectify this mistake. I spoke with an individual that seemed to understand what needed to be done. He canceled the initial phone addition and processed a new upgrade.

The following day, I received my new phone. Unfortunately, it was the mistaken phone addition and not my upgrade. I waited one more day and received a second phone. This time, it was the upgrade (based on numbers assigned and invoices included). I had to call and activate the upgraded phone. In the process, I explained that I received a second phone the day before that was supposed to have been canceled. The representative informed me that a phone return kit would be sent out to return the wrong phone. I waited over two weeks and never received the return kit as promised.

I then went online to see if I could see anything on my account regarding the return. I did see that Sprint had billed me $649 for the second phone. The one that they processed incorrectly and never sent a return kit for me to send the phone back. I called Sprint the next morning while at work. After explaining (again!) the entire situation, the customer representative disconnected my call. Up to this point, I had spent several hours on hold and speaking with customer representatives. I did not have the time to call back at work. I called Sprint in the evening to again follow up.

The customer service representative that I finally got in touch with (after another 20 minutes on hold) explained that no phone return kit had gone out yet, and that I was very lucky. I asked why, and was told that if I hadn't called that day, I wouldn't have been able to return the phone, and I would have been liable for the cost. Never mind that the line was immediately canceled. Never mind that I had called numerous times to resolve this issue. Never mind that it was their mistake.

I patiently explained the entire situation again. She then told me that a return kit would be sent out. Within 3 days of receiving the returned phone, my account would be credited fully for the charges. I phoned several days later, as I had not received the return kit. I was told to wait a few more days. Great. I did. A little over one week from the previous call, a return kit finally showed up. I returned the phone, shipping it out the very next day. They received the phone on a Thursday morning, based on UPS tracking information. The following Friday, my account still had not been credited the erroneous charges.

Quite honestly, I was very frustrated in spending any more time on hold waiting for someone who may or may not help me. I emailed my request instead to have the charges removed. The next morning I received a response that all charges had been removed. The only reason that I am still with Sprint is that I live in a rural area, and Sprint is the ONLY carrier that I can get a signal with at my home. I have tried them all. It would have actually been cheaper for me to pay an early termination fee and get a new phone from another carrier, but that wasn't really an option.

This is one of several issues that I have had recently dealing with call centers. Because of how this entire issue started, I will no longer do business with ANY company over the phone. I am tired of being at a disadvantage to what a person types into a keyboard 5000 miles away.

In summary, yes, it appears the situation has been resolved, but not without a LOT of pain. It took over two months and hours on the phone, all to fix a problem generated by a mistake by a customer service representative. I have no use for this type of customer service. Companies have shifted from making things right in the first place to maybe eventually making them right at the customer's expense.