| Author |
Message |
ngmwireless
Posts: 7
Service Provider:
Cingular Violates many FTC & FCC Laws |
 
Tue Aug 30, 2005 8:37 pm |
On a call to customer support, customer service and customer care (yes Cingular claims these are seperate deparments, all of which are useless may I add); I was able to record my 1 hour+ conversation with them (actually it was longer, I ran out of tape) about an overbilling issue. I now have TAPE of CINGULAR breaking FCC and FTC laws. Here are just a few of the violations that can be looked up on ftc.gov and fcc.gov.
1. Billing customers for services they did not order (I'm not talking about hidden taxes and fee's, I'm talking about $80 / month service plans. And then refusing to correct these errors. Including supervisors denying anything can be done about it.
2. Hanging up on the customer.
In addition to the tapes I have documents proving the following regular practices of Cingular.
1. An incident when I was shipped approximately $400 worth of equipment that I did not order, which was promptly shipped back. 2 months later I was told "it can take up to 3 billing cycles [months] before a returned item can be credited". As you know Cingular does not give it customers 3 months to pay a bill. To make matters worse after the 3 moth period, it still hadn't been credited back. Took 5 months and complaints to the FCC and FTC to resolve.
2. Pure incompetence: After talking to 12+ reps about a defective battery (under 1 year warranty) issue, 2 reps offered to replace the phone with a refurbished one that did not include a battery, but that the old battery would still have to be used. Yes this actually happened and is documented.
Additionally, this may not be illegal but it certainly violates the GSM forum's policy: All former AT&T wireless phones approximately 22 Million of them are locked (cannot accept other carriers sim cards INCLUDING CINGULARS!). Thus these 22 Million+ phones (some still in boxes) must be thrown out this year (can't be reactivated or donated to charity), forcing former AT&T consumers to buy new Cingular phones and sign new contracts; not to mention the environmental mess it will make. A simple unlock code that a man at Cingular named Peter Ocampo (425-580-8545) keeps tightly gaurded would make these phones usable again.
Incompetence + Greed = Cingular.
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jinx7676
Posts: 25
Phone Model:
V3
Service Provider:
Cingular |
Tue Aug 30, 2005 9:12 pm |
| ngmwireless wrote: |
1. Billing customers for services they did not order (I'm not talking about hidden taxes and fee's, I'm talking about $80 / month service plans. And then refusing to correct these errors. Including supervisors denying anything can be done about it.
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what did you order? you failed to mention this
| ngmwireless wrote: |
2. Hanging up on the customer.
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was the hangup preceded by the following statement? "Sir, if you continue to be abusive i will be forced to terminate this call."
| ngmwireless wrote: |
1. An incident when I was shipped approximately $400 worth of equipment that I did not order, which was promptly shipped back. 2 months later I was told "it can take up to 3 billing cycles [months] before a returned item can be credited". As you know Cingular does not give it customers 3 months to pay a bill. To make matters worse after the 3 moth period, it still hadn't been credited back. Took 5 months and complaints to the FCC and FTC to resolve.
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sorry this took so long, but sounds like something is missing from this part of the story.
| ngmwireless wrote: |
2. Pure incompetence: After talking to 12+ reps about a defective battery (under 1 year warranty) issue, 2 reps offered to replace the phone with a refurbished one that did not include a battery, but that the old battery would still have to be used. Yes this actually happened and is documented.
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ok, this is assinine. but did you go to a store? my guess is no. Customer service does not send out replacement batteries. that is what your local store is for. it is too costly to ship a battery and then send a shipping label to send back a bad one.
| ngmwireless wrote: |
Additionally, this may not be illegal but it certainly violates the GSM forum's policy: All former AT&T wireless phones approximately 22 Million of them are locked (cannot accept other carriers sim cards INCLUDING CINGULARS!).
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uhhh.yeah. this has been going on for YEARS, with all carriers in the US. Go figure. it's a capitalist economy.
| ngmwireless wrote: |
Thus these 22 Million+ phones (some still in boxes) must be thrown out this year (can't be reactivated or donated to charity), forcing former AT&T consumers to buy new Cingular phones and sign new contracts; not to mention the environmental mess it will make.
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they will not go out in a bunch of hefty bags like you suggest. they get sent back the manufacturer for credit and refurbishing, some will be sent to recycling centers, and others will undoubtedly be unlocked and used by employees.
| ngmwireless wrote: |
A simple unlock code ... would make these phones usable again.
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yes they would, but then to resell them they would need to be reflashed and recieve updated packaging, and that would most likely cost more than the above mentioned options.
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jinx7676
Posts: 25
Phone Model:
V3
Service Provider:
Cingular |
Tue Aug 30, 2005 9:14 pm |
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oh, and could you please convert these tapes to MP3's for us all to hear. Please.
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Samsung
Posts: 3141
Phone Model:
Motorola RAZR2 V8 |
Tue Aug 30, 2005 10:37 pm |
I hope you told the Cingular reps that your were recording them or cingular is not the only one that broke the law.
| ngmwireless wrote: | | A simple unlock code that a man at Cingular named Peter Ocampo (425-580-8545) keeps tightly gaurded would make these phones usable again. |
There is no one code to unlock all phones.
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BigRUSS
Posts: 2105
Phone Model:
two cans ( del monte) and some string,
Service Provider:
RussCo |
Tue Aug 30, 2005 11:12 pm |
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and if you have a problem with the battery you need to contact the maufature, when your tv breaks do you call the cable company to bitch at them ?????
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loki
Posts: 5 |
Wed Aug 31, 2005 1:00 am |
| BigRUSS wrote: | | and if you have a problem with the battery you need to contact the maufature, when your tv breaks do you call the cable company to bitch at them ????? |
Nope, but Comcast didn't sell me the TV, locked only to that particular service. The TV I buy at Costco will work the same way on my cable system as the TV I buy at Best Buy.
I'd bet there is more to the story than the OP might be posting, but if indeed one has to visit a Cingular store to get a defective battery replaced, that's just weak. There is no real alternative to purchase a handset that is carrier portable like there are in other parts of the world. Basically, one HAS to purchase a handset from Cingular for anything other than a pay as you go plan in order for Cingular to support using that handset. Cingular IS the dealer of the phone and my opinion is that if they are going to lock in subscribers to specific handsets, they had better be prepared to provide support for those handsets.
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loki
Posts: 5 |
Wed Aug 31, 2005 1:11 am |
| xXxSamsungxXx wrote: | | I hope you told the Cingular reps that your were recording them or cingular is not the only one that broke the law. |
That depends on the state where the call was recorded. Cingular also may record those calls or have call center supervisors listening in real time so the CSR is under no expectation of privacy. If one tells them they are recording, it's not likely they'll be helped and if the caller refuses to be recorded it's likely they won't be helped. If push comes to shove I would bet (IANAL) that a judge, particularly with a saavy lawyer would pretty much blow any expectation of privacy on the part of Cingular CSRs out the window.
It shouldn't need to come to that and paying the termination fee is much cheaper than dragging anything like this through court. Bottomline is if one does not like the service or support, pay the termination fee and go to another provider.
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jinx7676
Posts: 25
Phone Model:
V3
Service Provider:
Cingular |
Wed Aug 31, 2005 9:54 am |
| loki wrote: |
...but if indeed one has to visit a Cingular store to get a defective battery replaced, that's just weak.
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WHAT! why wold someone rather wait 3-5 days to recieve a battery in the mail, then have to mail the old one back, or get charged for it, when they can just walk into a store, spend 5 minutes of their time to speak with a rep, and walk out of the store with a new battery at no cost? personally i HATE doing anything by mail.
| loki wrote: |
There is no real alternative to purchase a handset that is carrier portable like there are in other parts of the world. Basically, one HAS to purchase a handset from Cingular for anything other than a pay as you go plan in order for Cingular to support using that handset. Cingular IS the dealer of the phone and my opinion is that if they are going to lock in subscribers to specific handsets, they had better be prepared to provide support for those handsets. |
we do support the phones we sell. you are free to buy an unlocked phone anywhere and bring it to us, but like you said, we will not support it. just the same as the companies overseas. that doesn't mean you cany USE it, it just means that if you have a problem, we can't be sure it's not related to your phone.
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mr_incredible
Posts: 36
Phone Model:
Nokia 2260
Service Provider:
AT&T/Cingular |
Wed Aug 31, 2005 10:51 am |
| jinx7676 wrote: |
| ngmwireless wrote: |
2. Hanging up on the customer.
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was the hangup preceded by the following statement? "Sir, if you continue to be abusive i will be forced to terminate this call." |
This is hilarious.
To everyone on this board trying to defend or explain Cingular's policy to ngmwireless, please don't bother.
ngmwireless, I hope that you plan on taking legal action immediately. And please report back to us the results. I'm dying to know if David and beat a multi-billion dollar Goliath.
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BigRUSS
Posts: 2105
Phone Model:
two cans ( del monte) and some string,
Service Provider:
RussCo |
Wed Aug 31, 2005 4:43 pm |
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cinular is only ther service provider we did not manufature the phones cingular will only warenty the phone not the battery , thats concidered a accesory, you cant call cingular to have them replace you blue tooth even though you may have bought it at the store, if you have a accessory issue you need to contact the manufature
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