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Stay away from Sprint. Read this horror story.

jmkluza

Dec 19, 2003, 8:03 PM
Bought a family plan with two phones at a local Sprint store. All was OK until one phone developed intermittent problems (powered off - stayed off even when plugged in to ac adapter). Sprint store tested and said was fine. Two days later it was dead. Yes it was an intermittent problem, but I didn't buy an intermittent cell plan! Since they could not recreate the problem - they said they could not replace it. Even though the phone was under warranty. So I had a family plan that I could not use unless I bought another phone from them. Not right. Just replace the darn phone and everyone would be happy. But that would be too easy for Sprint.

Cust service is extremely slow (try to call customer service instead of the sales line. If you're not ...
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USFHETT03

Dec 20, 2003, 12:26 AM
I am sure that Sprint will file for bankruptcy because you canceled. So when the phone was completely dead, did you take it to the store? If you brought the phone into the store and it was OK, how would a rep know that something was wrong with the phone? If the phone was completely dead, they would have exchanged it under warranty. Do you know how many customers come into the store everyday and say something is wrong with their phone, just trying to get a new phone? Did a rep actually physically see your phone experiencing problems. You can't blame a rep if they can't see your problems. And how can a person over the phone see what is wrong with your phone. Obviously you haven't seen all the complaints about AT&T recently.
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HowardPM

Dec 20, 2003, 1:13 PM
I wanted a new phone and I hadn't had mine for 18 months yet so they wouldn't give me the 150 mail in rebate, so I told them I was going to switch to verizon if they didn't give me the 150 dollar mail in rebate on the new sanyo 5500. Not like they are losing money on that. So they gave me 150 dollar retention rebate hehehe.
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moobak

Dec 20, 2003, 9:25 PM
You know hearing you defend sprint sounds quite a bit like when I defend AT&T. There is complaints ALL the time about ALL the companies, quit singling out one company because they got into the news for ONE problem (LNP). The guy said his service is having no problems, and sorry to say but not all of our 22 million customers have problems either, maby a few thousand that actually raise a stink, and even less are as knowlagable about wireless service to come HERE to phonescoop and gripe. How many complaints did the FCC get? 100? Not ALL of them were from AT&T, yes the majority, and we explained why the issue happened. Quit bringing up old news.
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moobak

Dec 20, 2003, 9:28 PM
Sorry, my post below this actually is on topic, just had to say my piece about people griping about AT&T's problems with LNP lol
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Big Poppa

Dec 21, 2003, 1:41 PM
moobak said:
How many complaints did the FCC get? 100? Not ALL of them were from AT&T, yes the majority, and we explained why the issue happened. Quit bringing up old news.


Since Nov. 24, the commission said it had tabulated 332 complaints for AT&T Wireless; 129 complaints for Verizon Wireless; 98 for Cingular Wireless; 94 for Sprint PCS; 46 for Nextel Communications Inc. and 44 for T-Mobile USA.

source:
http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=documen ... »
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Big Poppa

Dec 21, 2003, 1:44 PM
If AT&T and Gone with Telecommunication INC. Like eveyone else, instead of Neustar. They probably would not have been so many problems. AT&T Wireless is the MAIN comapny that was TOTALLY against LNP and is trying everything it can within the rules to delay number porting.
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jmkluza

Dec 21, 2003, 10:19 PM
Brought the phone to the store (30 minute drive) for testing. The store was a treat too - three employees spent 15 minutes helping one customer buy a hands free kit while everyone else waited in disbelief. Anyways, left the phone for testing overnight. They said it tested fine. Two days ater dead again. I mean it would just power off completely out of the blue in a split second. It would stay that way for an indeterminate length of time. And then low and behold, one day you hit power and it comes on. The store said sorry, but they would give me a discount if I bought a new phone. I mean this phone was the bottom of the line Kyocera - it couldn't cost that much. And it was supposed to be under warranty. I originally bought two phones fo...
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405girl

Dec 26, 2003, 11:17 AM
in reply to USF :Your last statement is so sad....... blah blah blah... yeah we suck but have you seen att complaints recently... what a way to win an argument.
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USFHETT03

Dec 27, 2003, 12:51 AM
405girl said:
in reply to USF :Your last statement is so sad....... blah blah blah... yeah we suck but have you seen att complaints recently... what a way to win an argument.



One of the previous posts was basically saying Sprint CS is bad and I have a great experience with AT&T, thus AT&T is superior and Sprint will go bankrupt. This is a fallacy, every company has complaints, and everybody has different opinions, whether or not they are true or not.
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p_lane

Dec 20, 2003, 4:14 PM
You either have a warranty or you don't- If it is within the warranty period, you have written legal rights, which will be protected I imagine both by state and federal agencies---don't whine, take advantage of the regs which protect you (in these small cases, the state consumer dept can be of a lot of help, so can small claims court). Sprint doesn't make the phone, or warranty it--the mfg does--however, one would hope that they would want to help you--but there are so many ways to fight this---

Don't be shy, the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

also what brand of phone did you have trouble with? the rest of us can avoid that brand--
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moobak

Dec 20, 2003, 9:27 PM
Actually, if Sprint is like AT&T wireless which I think it is, the warrenty isn't even WITH Sprint, its a MANUFACTURERS WARRENTY. Sprint is just the middle-person in the whole ordeal, blaming them for problems with the phone is like blaming your cable company for problems with your T.V. :/
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spcssales

Dec 20, 2003, 9:40 PM
moobak said:
Actually, if Sprint is like AT&T wireless which I think it is, the warrenty isn't even WITH Sprint, its a MANUFACTURERS WARRENTY. Sprint is just the middle-person in the whole ordeal, blaming them for problems with the phone is like blaming your cable company for problems with your T.V. :/



AMEN!!!!
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WadeB

Dec 20, 2003, 9:52 PM
Except you don't buy your TV from the cable company.
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spcssales

Dec 21, 2003, 11:02 PM
WadeB said:
Except you don't buy your TV from the cable company.


I was just saying, "Don't shoot the messenger."

Majority of employees are there to help. I am one of those. Its a matter of putting yourself in the customers shoes. Would I be upset?? If the answer is yes, hey, Im there for you. If the answer is no, that means your just trying to pull one over on me and it was probably user error. I have gotten very good at determining this.

"What, your battery wont last an entire day?? Well ma'am, you talked on your phone for 3 hrs today per our records. Your only supposed to get 2.5 hrs of talk time. I'd say you have a great battery!!!!"

-sigh- 🙄
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jmkluza

Dec 21, 2003, 3:34 PM
I bought my phone as a package deal at one of there stores, so yes, I would expect them to stand behind it. This was not an expensive phone, so I found it beyond belief that they would not simply replace it.

But what really, really, really got my gall is their total lack of respect for their customers. Not only lack of respect, but arrogant, rude behaviour towards me. I was never rude when I called, but was met over and over with extremely rude and arrogant behaviour. I mean they really seemed to enjoy telling me over and over to go ahead and cancel my service and they will charge me.

If you've never had a problem with Sprint everything is fine. But just try and call customer service with any problem. Their automated menu is hell...
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USFHETT03

Dec 21, 2003, 9:43 PM
Sprint does not care?

Sprint honors the manufacters warranty, while other carriers refer you to the manufacturer. So IF you phone was defective, they would send you a replacement via 2-3 airmail. Other carriers refer you to the original manufacturer and you are without a phone for weeks. Were the reps rude, or was it that you are upset by what they are telling you? Just because they told you something you don't want to hear, it doesn't mean they were rude. Just because you beleive that you were screwed, there are 19 million customers that beleive Sprint is for them.
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jmkluza

Dec 21, 2003, 10:12 PM
I was always polite on the phone and expect the same. I have no problem listening to their point of view, and would expect the same courtesy. Actually I expect more as they are a service provider that I am paying.

For example, after being on hold and finally talking to a rep, he said he couldn't help me and would transfer me to a supervisor. Fine. Of course then he hung up on me. I ws polite when I called right back - waited on hold - and told the rep that I was just disconnected from being transfered to a supervisor. I swear, it sounded like the same rep. After given a brief run-down of ths situation - this guy actually sounded angry and said he would not transfer me to a supervisor and I had no right to request to talk to a supervis...
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spcssales

Dec 21, 2003, 10:31 PM
That almost surprises me. A year or two ago, this would NOT have been new news to me. But nowadays, Ive seen this type issue resolved in one call!! Credit for new handset. I have seen credit after credit after credit given out for phones and cust satisfaction. I have never seen credits dished out like that. It surprises me that this would have happened to you. Was the phone damaged in any way?? Liquid or physical?? Did you keep going to the same retail store, or did you try different loction?? Did they not offer to mail you another phone for replacement?? That is just odd.
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jmkluza

Dec 22, 2003, 6:15 PM
I couldn't beleive it either.
The phone was in pristine condition - it was my wife's and she's a bit of a neat freak. Not a scratch, no sticky spills. The testers said there were no error codes, which doesn't surprise me as the phone would power down completely in an instant.

There was only one store nearby, which was a bit of a drive. As I told the phone rep's - it was too far for me to keep driving there everytime the phone died. Both the store and the phone rep's were quick to grant me a $50 credit towards a new phone - but I didn;t think I should shell out any money for a phone under warranty.

I finally called Sprint and paid my cancelation fee today. This is not worth ruining my credit over. After the customary wait - I...
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USFHETT03

Dec 22, 2003, 11:07 PM
Did a rep every see your phone not working. ALOT, not all, of customers on a daily basis come into the store and demand a new phone, but by some act of God the phone works when they bring it in the store. Did a rep every actually see the phone turning on and off, if they had seen the problem, they would have sent you a replacement ASAP. My question is to why when the phone wasn't working, the phone was not brought to the store then. Because of a lot of Sprints lower customers consistently lie, they are not able to just take a customers word for it.
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Skins56

Dec 23, 2003, 5:18 PM
USFHETT03 are you not doing exactly what this customer has been saying all along. You are in essence calling this customer a liar. You right now are showing poor customer service. I agree with jmkluza and sprint will not be around for very much longer.
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USFHETT03

Dec 23, 2003, 7:01 PM
So what exactly would you have Sprint do Skins? Everytime a customer comes in and says something is wrong with there phone, Sprint should take their word for it and replace the phone everytime. I see both sides to the arguement thats all. I see an angry customer that just wants a replacement phone. Sounds legite to me, but I am not at that store and I am sure that the Sprint associates that handled this are not reading it. If they cannot see the problem, how do they know something is wrong with it?? I'll agree that it is a crappy situation for everybody, Sprint lost two lines and the customer paid the cancellation fee. Unfortunately, for every one customer that actually has a phone problem, nine just say they do to get a new phone.
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spcssales

Dec 23, 2003, 11:24 PM
It should not be that way. We go by: payment history, how many phones(handsets) they have had on a number, how many issues they have called in about, how many lines they have, have they had repeat trip to store for same reason. Have we tried swapping battery (In this gentlemans case, it is one of the things I would have tried to do). All this factors into whether I will "beleive" the customer or not. You are right, many people just want a new phone, but in the store, you can tell one from the other. If this gentleman came to our location repeatedly for same issue on just one of the handsets on his acct while he said the other was fine, why not swap him. If he was lying, he probable would want both replaced. Most people who lie and who ...
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Skins56

Dec 24, 2003, 8:26 AM
I say replace the phone under the Manufacturers warranty. I do not know what the policy at Sprint is but VZW would replace the phone with a re manufactured unit. Above all else keep your customers happy. And the way this customer is saying they were treated by customer service and the supervisors is completely ridiculous.
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USFHETT03

Dec 23, 2003, 7:10 PM
So Skins, how would Verizon handled this situation differently? Would they have given the customer a new phone without seeing the problem? I highly doubt it. Its just a bad situation all around.
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Big Poppa

Dec 26, 2003, 3:29 PM
You know this wholw thread has gotten pointless.

If you cannot re-create the problem for the tech, and it doesnt show up in the diagnostic test, then they will not exchange the phone.. Period.

If your unhappy with this, contact the manufactuere directly, and see if you can ship them the phone to have it fixed or exchanged.

If none of this helps then instead of whining and crying like a baby about it, and starting up and message thread that will OBVIOUSLY give you not closure. Then MY advise to you would be File a complaint with the BBB..After the BBB submitts the complaint to the company in question that compnay has 30 days to solve the issue.

Just please remember you can't blame the Sprint Tech for not replacing your phone.. as ...
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jmkluza

Dec 23, 2003, 6:47 PM
The one time I brought the phone in, it happened to be working. My wife would no longer keep the phone in the car because it never worked when she really needed it. We left it overnight for testing and they said the battery and phone tested perfect. As I mentioned to someone else, my wife takes extremely good care of her stuff - so the exterior was in like new condition. They said that I could bring the phone back for testing next time there was a problem. However, I really didn't want to waste my lunch breaks running back and forth to the only
Sprint store around which was a good 20 minute drive from work. Especially if I have to leave the phone overnight resulting in two long lunches (I only get 1/2 hour lunchbreak and the store was t...
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spcssales

Dec 23, 2003, 11:07 PM
Funny because the tester in the stores are primarily used to test reception issues, (low output power, etc.) If this was a repeat trip to the store, reps or Store Manager should have just swapped out. That sucks.
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cellhound

Dec 26, 2003, 12:47 PM
Actaullly ATTWS has a WARRANTY EXCHANGE DEPT to help expedite any equip issues instead of having to go through Manufacturer and wait 6-8 weeks. AWS will help TS the issue and if need to get you atleast a refurb phone .trust me useed the service .complained however that the phone i was sent has scratched face.was rerurned free of charge and another refurb'd sent w/i 24 hours.i have had that phone now for 11 months and still works perfectly..
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spcssales

Dec 21, 2003, 10:43 PM
Just curious, when did you originally purchase the phones, when did you first take phone for service b/c of issues and when did you cancel?
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jmkluza

Dec 23, 2003, 8:18 PM
Bought the phones and plan in DEC02. Wife started to complain of intermittent problems after a couple of months, but I figured user error and didn;t swith phones for a few more months 'till she was really pissed at me. So I brought it back after about 6 months.

Afterr store didn't help me I spent hour after hour after hour on phone w/custoemr service and reps. Alwasy polite, I just couldn't beleive the attitude i was getting over something so seemingly straightforward. After a week or so, one manager who apparently thought that I was crazy to expect Sprint to cover a warranteed phone or expect a profesional level of service from their customer service rep's strongly suggested that I either buy a new phone from them or cancel and pay t...
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moobak

Dec 24, 2003, 12:11 AM
I just want to clarify something UFH seemed to think was true. Most providers have a warrenty department that handles exchanges. They don't just refer back to the manufacturer. At least, AT&T Wireless has a WEX dept. If the customer experiences an issue and its found by either Customer Care or if needed the technical department, to be warrenty related, they will prossess a warrenty exchange to have the phone replaced by sending out the same model phone (without the battery btw), the customer pops in the battery of his old phone into the new one, checks if it works, and sends the old phone back via post office. If they find at WEX that the phone was in fact NOT defective, they might charge the customer. It is not Customer Cares, or Techs deci...
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moobak

Dec 24, 2003, 12:14 AM
BTW, I'v heard some bad apple storys in our WEX Dept, but it isn't ALL the time, like this person appears to have happen. I'm real sorry to hear you're having issues...

And to counter my own above comment, consumers who have bad expereinces are more likely to tell more people then those who have good experiences, as well tend to exadgerate issues a little more. Thats why UFH thinks you're lying. I don't.
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USFHETT03

Dec 24, 2003, 1:07 PM
I never said anything about that I think they were lying. What I did was simply defend as to why a rep would be skeptical. I wish his bad situation would have went better while in the store, but I understand both sides of business. I
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cellhound

Dec 26, 2003, 1:03 PM
Actaullly ATTWS has a WARRANTY EXCHANGE DEPT to help expedite any equip issues instead of having to go through Manufacturer and wait 6-8 weeks. AWS will help TS the issue and if need to get you atleast a refurb phone .trust me useed the service .complained however that the phone i was sent has scratched face.was rerurned free of charge and another refurb'd sent w/i 24 hours.i have had that phone now for 11 months and still works perfectly..
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p_lane

Dec 26, 2003, 7:55 PM
This may have already been covered in this very lengthy thread, but it would seem that sprint would have an inventory of nearly new returned phones, which are returned on the 14 day thing, etc--but they have no policy apparently to use these for situations like this---I'm not sure any carrier does, but in the old days, I could go into the gte store and get a slightly used handset for a discount, and all would be happy (they might take a look at your account to see if you are a good customer,whiuch should stillmean something??)--I agree that I can see both sides, but the c/s folks are just doing what the "higher ups'" tell then to; but I have tried to buy a used handset from sprint, and the answer is not only NO, but usually "hell no

I'm s...
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