Verizon Wireless
Written: Aug 03 '04
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Pros: Customer service, coverage area, calling plans
Cons: Horrible, horrible phone selection
The Bottom Line: I'd recommend Verizon, especially if you're not picky about what kind of phone you have.
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| bardgirl1603's Full Review: General Reviews of Verizon Customer Service |
I have been with Verizon since I got a mobile back in late August of 2000. Since then I have switched phones and plans several times, and lived in three different states, so I have a pretty wide perspective on their service.
Overall, I am happy with Verizon's coverage area and customer service.
When I started my contract, I was living in Manhattan. As you might expect, coverage there was fantastic, and I even experienced better signal than many of my friends on other carriers. However, this is anecdotal, and may have more to do with other factors like weather conditions and specific phones. Customer service was also good, both on the phone and in person at one of the many Verizon locations in New York City.
The summer of 2001 I spent roaming the wilds of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Again, the coverage was excellent; there were times I was shocked that I was able to make calls many miles from the nearest sign of civilization. And the bast part was that because of the national plan I was on, not a single minute that I talked was billed as roaming or long distance.
I took my phone with me when I moved to Wisconsin, and changing the phone number was simple. I called customer service, and the CSR gave me a new number, entered my new billing address, and had me reactivate my phone. The whole thing took less than fifteen minutes. About the same time, I decided to switch to a plan with more minutes. This required that I sign another one year contract. This didn't make me too happy, but I resigned myself to the trade off. I also had to sign another contract (about 10 months later) for a year to get a new phone. Again, I wasn't thrilled about this, but as a trade-off it was worth it.
My best friend and her husband signed up for service shortly after I got my new phone, and they decided to go with Verizon as well. The salesperson processing her order told her that if she submitted the name of a current customer who had referred her, that customer (me!) would receive a $25 credit per person referred. The salesperson even helped her fill out the forms for this. Basically, the $50 credit paid for a month of mobile phone service for me.
I moved to Texas about a year ago, and again changing my number and billing info was a breeze. I decided not to get a land-line, and I should have upped my plan to one that included more minutes when I changed numbers, but I wasn't thinking about it. You can see where this is going: my next phone bill was nearly $400. I freaked out and called Verizon's billing department to work out a payment plan. The CSR I spoke to was great and managed to stay calm even though I was a wreck. She told me that she could set up a payment plan, but asked me if I was going to be changing plans in the near future. I told her I planned to change immediately to one with more than 5 times as many minutes as the plan I was on. She said that she would change my plan 'retroactively' if I signed another one year contract. By doing this, she made my $400 bill into a $75 bill. That, in my opinion, is great customer service. I was happy to sign the contract, and happy to continue as a Verizon customer.
In my time with Verizon, I have only encountered one major disappointment: phone selection is abysmal. They don't have many phones, and the ones they do have are pretty bad. I'm a gadget freak on a budget, so I need something between Blackberry/PDA phones on one end and the $19.99 teeny-bopper special on the other. This doesn't exist in Verizon's product line. I need to upgrade my phone again, and I am seriously considering leaving Verizon for Cingular or T-Mobile so that I can get a phone I actually want.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 35-70
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Epinions.com ID:
bardgirl1603
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Reviews written: 1
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