The title did seem negative, and I was surprised to find that someone actually had a positive experience with T-Mobile.
I was a T-Mobile customer off and on for about 7 years total. For the last contract I had signed with them, I made sure that I would be able to get out of my contract if I A: moved due to a military PCS, or B: Moved due to getting out of the military. The T-Mobile rep at the store assured me that I would be able to get out of my contract under those circumstances, and so I signed up with them when I arrived at my last duty station.
When I left the military, and moved shortly after, I contacted a very helpful T-Mobile rep that told me everything was in order and that all I had to do was send him a copy of my discharge paperwork (which are still considered to be valid active duty military orders) and the early termination fees would be waived. After he cancelled my account, I received a ~$700 bill and a letter that said my paperwork had been declined.
I called and talked to a support rep, who in turn forwarded me to a manager that had no more authority than the representative. T-Mobile purposely creates powerless management positions in order to delude customers into thinking that there is nothing supervisors can do to handle customer service issues. Ultimately, they decided to continue to charge me the ETFs because they were already having a really bad year for customer retention.
The really ridiculous part of this mess is that I was perfectly happy with T-Mobile, yet I was forced to move to a state that doesn't have a single T-Mobile tower because I didn't have any luck finding employment elsewhere. I would have returned to T-Mobile as soon as possible, but my experience with their customer service has opened my eyes to what a shitty company it is.
> The title did seem negative, and I was surprised to find that someone actually had a positive experience with T-Mobile.
When was this?
I was a long-time T-Mobile customer until a few years ago, and I always had excellent customer service experiences with them.
The only reason I switched was because I moved to NYC, and they had terrible reception here at the time - I couldn't place calls in my own bedroom.
Even then, though, we were able to break our entire family contract (which I believe we had only just re-signed a couple of months before) without paying an ETF[0].
[0] This is despite the fact that (a) I was the only one in the family plan who was in NYC, and (b) my zip code was in their coverage map (which means that they had no legal obligation to let me off the contract).
I've been considering going back to T-mobile; if their customer service really has gone downhill in the last few years, maybe I'll think about AT&T instead....
It was early-mid 2012. It was in the middle of the mass exodus of customers from T-Mobile, and before they rolled out the new anti-contract strategy.
If you read the contract, even if you move to an area with zero phone or data coverage, you still have to pay an ETF. My case should have been excluded, because I clearly fell within the clause about military personnel, and I had on multiple occasions been told by their employees and management that everything was good to go.
To be fair, I worked as a telecommunications technician for a decade, and the entire industry is really shitty. None of the companies seem genuinely interested in providing value to their customers, and new plans often end up being more expensive for most people. When I dumped T-Mobile, I ended up using a pre-paid plan through Straight Talk. I get the same level of service at half the price, and I don't have to worry about getting fucked by a greedy, unethical corporation if I feel like cancelling my service.
I have been with T-Mobile for 2 years and I love their customer support. Always friendly and knowledgeable. I am impressed that they have repeatedly offered to lower my bill without my asking (twice they have informed me of new plan offerings that lowered my bill with no contract extension). I must have good luck.
> if their customer service really has gone downhill in the last few years
I have no complaints for their customer service. It's been top notch every since day one. Recently, I got a 20$ off for my data plan (2.5G) without even asking, just because I was a "loyal customer".
Read the last line of the bizjournal story "Michael handles our Web coverage, social media accounts and videos."
If after getting out of .mil you got a job handling web coverage, social media, and video, then having better PR reach than their own people, the CEO might care. Otherwise, let you rot.
Did you read the contract? Few do, but the contract you sign is the only evidence that you have of the deal. A person in a store or at the end of the phone can't change the contract, so buyer beware.
Right. They had a clause covering active duty military personnel that was left intentionally vague. They cooperated and accepted my cancellation and then months later (after I had already moved) they decided that I owed them $700 after all.
I was a T-Mobile customer off and on for about 7 years total. For the last contract I had signed with them, I made sure that I would be able to get out of my contract if I A: moved due to a military PCS, or B: Moved due to getting out of the military. The T-Mobile rep at the store assured me that I would be able to get out of my contract under those circumstances, and so I signed up with them when I arrived at my last duty station.
When I left the military, and moved shortly after, I contacted a very helpful T-Mobile rep that told me everything was in order and that all I had to do was send him a copy of my discharge paperwork (which are still considered to be valid active duty military orders) and the early termination fees would be waived. After he cancelled my account, I received a ~$700 bill and a letter that said my paperwork had been declined.
I called and talked to a support rep, who in turn forwarded me to a manager that had no more authority than the representative. T-Mobile purposely creates powerless management positions in order to delude customers into thinking that there is nothing supervisors can do to handle customer service issues. Ultimately, they decided to continue to charge me the ETFs because they were already having a really bad year for customer retention.
The really ridiculous part of this mess is that I was perfectly happy with T-Mobile, yet I was forced to move to a state that doesn't have a single T-Mobile tower because I didn't have any luck finding employment elsewhere. I would have returned to T-Mobile as soon as possible, but my experience with their customer service has opened my eyes to what a shitty company it is.