Exploitive, predatory, and misleading
Written: Feb 15 '09 (Updated Mar 01 '09)
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Pros: You get a phone.
Cons: The company is not forthright, responsive, or responsible.
The Bottom Line: Avoid at all costs, or they'll impose all costs.
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| lk1125's Full Review: General Reviews of Sprint Customer Service |
I have recently begun helping an 85-year-old woman, "Suzie Smith," with her bills. In January she decided she no longer needed her cell phone; in fact, she'd had it for several years, never used it, and didn't even know her number. She had no paperwork other than the latest bill.
I called Sprint to inquire about the process of cancellation. Suzie spoke first to identify herself and the account and to say that I could speak on her behalf. The Sprint agent told us what the final balance would be on the account and said that Suzie would have to pay $70.73 and then "she'd be all set." I had explained to the agent that Suzie was 85 and that I had recently begun helping her with her bills, and I asked him if there was any other information that I would need to know about the account to help advise Suzie about the account closing. He repeated "no, just pay the $70.73 and you're all set." So we recycled the phone, mailed in the $70.73 check, and considered the matter closed.
A month later, Suzie received a bill for $156 for an Early Termination Fee. After nearly 2.5 hours on the phone with multiple Sprint representatives (which included getting cut-off by them three times), there was still no convincing them that this fee was unfair. Suzie and I had acted in good faith based on the information provided to me by the Sprint agent (who was either undertrained or not forthright - either of which is unacceptable) and now Suzie is being penalized with this whopping fee. Had we been told by the Sprint agent that we would avoid such a fee by holding onto the phone for just one more month before closing the account, we most certainly would have done that. When confronted with this detail, one supervisor said that the agent was not required to mention the contract termination date, even though I had asked for any and all information relevant to the closing of the account.
At one point during the 2.5 hours on the phone one of the supervisors and I were discussing his offer of cutting the fee in half, and during that conversation we were cut off. I called back and had to start all over again. The new agent pulled up the record on her computer and remarked “I see here that 'Joe' offered to cut the fee in half and you rejected that offer.” I told her that I did NOT reject that offer but rather that we were discussing the issue and that I had been cut off. She refused to recognize that and said that she could no longer speak with me unless I provided documentation of legal power of attorney for Suzie (passing the phone to Suzie was not enough this time, although it was the first time we called back in January). Not having a fax machine, I must now go to a Sprint store with this documentation, they will fax it to the financial office, and then we can start the negotiation process all over again. She would not even consider reinstating the offer to cut the fee in half because the computer record showed that I had “rejected” the offer. This is clearly a stalling tactic.
This is the poorest customer care I have EVER received from ANY company, and their behavior is predatory. (How many other elderly people are in the same boat as Suzie, making donations to companies for services they do not use, do not understand, and cannot reasonably terminate because customer service is a briar patch?) They have been making money off of Suzie for the past few years, as she paid her monthly bill diligently despite never using her phone, and now they charged her another $150 because THEY did not provide accurate and complete information when I requested it. Suzie needs this money for food. Sprint should be ashamed.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 225
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Epinions.com ID:
lk1125
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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