I don't know what to do.
My phone has been messing up for the last weeks, so I decided to call Sprint. I thought I qualify for an upgrade since the last time I got an upgrade was over 2 years ago, but I was wrong. When I called they told me that I only qualify for a $75.00 rebate for a two year agreement.
How can this be?
I know I lost my phone, but I got a replacement phone. I paid the non-commitment price for this phone so there is no reason for them to restart my 2 year agreement. I also called about a year ago asking to change my plan. When I called I asked the rep. that if I change plans it wont affect my upgrade. She said "NO". Now I read that if you change plans it restarts your agreement. I can't believe the rep. lied to me. 👿
Has this happene...
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How can this be?
I know I lost my phone, but I got a replacement phone. I paid the non-commitment price for this phone so there is no reason for them to restart my 2 year agreement. I also called about a year ago asking to change my plan. When I called I asked the rep. that if I change plans it wont affect my upgrade. She said "NO". Now I read that if you change plans it restarts your agreement. I can't believe the rep. lied to me. 👿
Has this happene...
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If you paid full price for your replacement phone, then it sounds like you are exactly right--Sprint should not have restarted the two-year timer.
Given that you've also been having problems with your signal, it might be silly to stay with Sprint. If I were you, I'd find an alternative that you would be happy with. If you want to take the alternative, then go ahead and take it. If, on the other hand, you still want to stay with Sprint, call Retention, explain your problem, and politely tell them what they need to do do keep you. Be prepared to walk away if they say no.
Given that you've also been having problems with your signal, it might be silly to stay with Sprint. If I were you, I'd find an alternative that you would be happy with. If you want to take the alternative, then go ahead and take it. If, on the other hand, you still want to stay with Sprint, call Retention, explain your problem, and politely tell them what they need to do do keep you. Be prepared to walk away if they say no.
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It doesn't matter what price you pay for a phone, or whether or not you get it from insurance. The day you swap an ESN on your account is when the upgrade eligibility is restarted. It's not your contract that's being extended- you can only get the maximum discount off of the phone if you have had the same ESN on your account for two years. I know- it sucks.
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That's a pretty lame policy and it's going to cause me to leave Sprint in 22 months. I have heard that that's not the case anymore. I called and asked about it and they said that the $150 thing only applies when you last got a rebate, just like every other wireless carrier.
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Wish that was the case dude, but I work for sprint....... and it's not.
Sorry 😢
Sorry 😢
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Well, I also work for Sprint, and YOU are wrong. If a customer doesn't get a rebate on the phone, then it doesn't affect your rebate eligibility. The system says it does, but if you take 2 minutes and look at the account, then you can see if they have gotten any rebates. We have to do this all the time.
It is a quirk in the rebate system. Usually it works fine, but once in a while it says that an outright purchase, a warranty exchange, an insurance replacement or using a friends old phone as a replacement sometimes confuses the rebate system.
All you have to do is see if they got any rebates, or look and see if when they purchased the phone if they got some discount. Very simple, we do it all the time.
It is a quirk in the rebate system. Usually it works fine, but once in a while it says that an outright purchase, a warranty exchange, an insurance replacement or using a friends old phone as a replacement sometimes confuses the rebate system.
All you have to do is see if they got any rebates, or look and see if when they purchased the phone if they got some discount. Very simple, we do it all the time.
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Yeah well I work for a third party dealer and we can't do all the fancy crap you can 🙂 9/10 people aren't going to corporate locations anyways, they're too few and far between.
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Then why are some people saying they've gone 5 years and have never been eligible for a rebate/discounted phone? Hmm, I'm not liking this. I was told when I first signed up that the rebate status was only reset when I actually received a rebate. Oh well, guess I'll have to wait and see.
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I've heard that from customers too. Most of the time it's because they didn't remember the rebate that they got on a phone, or the rep doesn't want to look for, or doesn't know how to look for the info. Then there are those customers who say that they were with Sprint for 5 years, and they actually have been with Sprint for about a year.
Those that have actually been a customer for 5 years are probably just getting the wrong reps. IF they go to a corporate store and explain the situation, then they should be ok.
What you were first told is the truth, the rebate status is affected by getting a discount on the phone price. Thats it.
I can't stress enough that all a rep has to do is a little research. Our store manager does t...
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Those that have actually been a customer for 5 years are probably just getting the wrong reps. IF they go to a corporate store and explain the situation, then they should be ok.
What you were first told is the truth, the rebate status is affected by getting a discount on the phone price. Thats it.
I can't stress enough that all a rep has to do is a little research. Our store manager does t...
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See, that makes sense. I emailed Sprint and asked them about this. I asked
"I was planning on purchasing one maybe in 6 months, possibly a smart phone like a Treo 650. From what I understand, no matter where I buy that phone, what condition it's in, or how much I pay for it, my timer for a $150 rebate gets reset as soon as I put that on my line?"
Their response was "Yes, if you purchase a new handset the rebate period will be reset from
the date you activate the new handset."
They did say they forwarded my response (I had some other things in there about how backwards that is and how if it's not changed in two years, I'm leaving) to the appropriate departments. They did say they listen to their customers and what they want an...
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"I was planning on purchasing one maybe in 6 months, possibly a smart phone like a Treo 650. From what I understand, no matter where I buy that phone, what condition it's in, or how much I pay for it, my timer for a $150 rebate gets reset as soon as I put that on my line?"
Their response was "Yes, if you purchase a new handset the rebate period will be reset from
the date you activate the new handset."
They did say they forwarded my response (I had some other things in there about how backwards that is and how if it's not changed in two years, I'm leaving) to the appropriate departments. They did say they listen to their customers and what they want an...
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WOW, that response surprises me. When we do this in our store, we have to fix the price manually, but we get it done because we use common sense. Oh well, sorry about the response that you got.
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jessekuhmarie said:
It doesn't matter what price you pay for a phone, or whether or not you get it from insurance. The day you swap an ESN on your account is when the upgrade eligibility is restarted. It's not your contract that's being extended- you can only get the maximum discount off of the phone if you have had the same ESN on your account for two years. I know- it sucks.
What about a warranty replacement?
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jessekuhmarie said:
warranty would be the same- it's the ESN swap
That's ridiculous and not fair to the customer at all. The customer is not what caused that phone to fail under warranty therefore the customer should not be penalized for having it replaced with the SAME MODEL phone.
Thank you for reminding me again of the type of service that caused me to leave Sprint and never look back. This is the most absurd policy I have ever heard of. Penalizing a customer because their phone had a warranty defect. Paaaaalease!!!!! 🙄
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That is no the right policy. It's people like jessekuhmarie that give sprint customer service a bad name. He doesn't even work for sprint, he works for a third party dealer.
He doesn't have the same account access that we have at the store level.
He doesn't have the same account access that we have at the store level.
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I used to work for a dealer too, I used to out sell the store outside the mall. Just got tired of the mall, now I'm a phone tech. No more customers complaining because they didn't read their contract.
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LOL.......... I GIVE SPRINT A BAD NAME??
first of all, i'm a frigging SHE. yes thats right im a FEMALE. note the "jessekuh marie" typically a feminine name.
i don't give sprint a bad name, its sprint itself that puts the customers thru the trauma. either way, if you swap the ESN, whether its on the phone with customer service or thru fast, WHATEVER, it WILL reset your upgrade eligibility! if they want to come to you to have YOU fix their problems be my guest.
i have yet to see a customer NOT have to sit on the phone with customer service for hours having their rebate status reset. thanks, but you can just head back up to your undeserving pedastol now 🙂
first of all, i'm a frigging SHE. yes thats right im a FEMALE. note the "jessekuh marie" typically a feminine name.
i don't give sprint a bad name, its sprint itself that puts the customers thru the trauma. either way, if you swap the ESN, whether its on the phone with customer service or thru fast, WHATEVER, it WILL reset your upgrade eligibility! if they want to come to you to have YOU fix their problems be my guest.
i have yet to see a customer NOT have to sit on the phone with customer service for hours having their rebate status reset. thanks, but you can just head back up to your undeserving pedastol now 🙂
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Internally referred to as HLOF (handset life on file).
Some Sprint retail stores are really good at using e-ticket to see your esn history if your upgrade rebate doesnt sound quite right.
Reps are there to take care of the customer, but they have to go by policy.
Some Sprint retail stores are really good at using e-ticket to see your esn history if your upgrade rebate doesnt sound quite right.
Reps are there to take care of the customer, but they have to go by policy.
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CMMO said:
I know I lost my phone, but I got a replacement phone.
This is the important part. You purchased a new phone. The upgrade program is not dependant on your plan, your current agreement, or anything like that. What you qualify for is based on how long it has been since you activated a new [i]handset[/i]. So when your phone was lost, you purchased a new handset. That reset your rebate period. Renewing your agreement or changing your plan did nothing to your rebate, but activating the new phone did.
Hope that helps.
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Yes even then! All that matters is when the last handset got on your account 😕
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That is not true. I purchased many sprint phones at full retail and never reset my upgrade date (when I was with them, and I haven't been with them since last August). I was always told that it is based on when you last received a rebate.
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This same sxact thing happened to me, I had a purchased 2 phones with a warranty on each from Best Buy. Then I got a job with US cellular, so one of the phones was no longer needed as I had a free phone. I cancelled one of the lines and then one of the phones broke. I got a new phone with the warranty, then activated the old phone that still had a warranty period remaining. Well that phone then died and I activated the phone that I was given brand new, which apparently reset the equipment timer. Bottom line is that I was not in contract, was willing to sign another 2 year contract to get a discount on the phone, which was approved, but only after I talked to someone in their cancellation department. The regular customer service for sprint is...
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The way sprint runs their upgrades is either a really cool or really dumb thing. The upgrade eligibility is based on how long you have had the phone you have now and when it was activated. This is dumb because if your phone breaks and you activate an old one to get you by, this resets your upgrade dates. on the upside, they do offer upgrades after only a year, and many retailers are now starting to offer those prices instantly unlike how they were doing it before. it doesn't matter where you got the phone, it matters how long that phone has been activated.
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OK. Now I need to change my plan ASAP. I also want to buy a phone. The problem is that I am not going to be able to buy my phone untill after holidays. When I called they told me that if I change my plan I will not be able to qualify not even for my rebate. WHY??? WHY??? WHY???? 👿 I though changing plans will not affect my upgrade only my agreement. I know this has been asked before, but I dont loose anything by asking again. 😛
Any information will be appreciated.
Any information will be appreciated.
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Email CS and ask them. That's what I do. Then, at least you have a written response you can show them/send them if anything happens in the future.
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It will resign your contract for two years if you change your plan - if you're still planning on leaving sprint in 22 months that might cause a problem.
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even if he changes his plan it should not affect him upgradign his phone after the 22 months. given there are always issues that need to be dealt with, but thats a case by case basis.
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He should be able to leave though. Sprint loses nothing by him changing his plan. Offer to pay the lost profit (with a profit margin of 12%, because anything more could be considered price gouging ;) ) and remind them that they are required to mitigate their loses. If they don't want it, and you have either a lot of lines on your account or don't mind filing complaints with the FTC and what not, cancel and don't pay. In that case, it'd be a penalty fee and penalties aren't enforceable. I'm starting to really dislike cell phone companies 😳
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if you don't like your credit not paying would be a good idea, if you do....not so much. where as they may not be enforceable we sure as **** are going to send it to a collection agency.
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If you have a large account, and you make it known that you know what you're talking about, they'll leave you alone about it. They'll bug you for a few hundred dollars, but for a small business with 20 handsets, they're not going to fight it because when the news gets out that there are many circumstances where you don't have to pay that $150, many people are going to be leaving/cancelling their contracts.
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Be glad you found a rep who told you this before you changed your plan! I deal with people frequently who have killed their upgrade this way and they are VERY angry. Sprint would save alot of customers by tweeking their upgrade policy in a few areas
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Last night after spending 3hours in the phone and talking with about 8 representatives and being hung up on 3 times I think I got what I needed to know.
>>>If a "New" phone is ever connected in the line it will reset your upgrade eligibility.
>>>If a refurbish phone is ever connected it should not reset your upgrade at all if it comes from insurance or warranty dpt.
>>>If you buy a phone at a full retail price or borrow a phone is consider "New" it will reset it.
>>>Change of plan will not reset any upgrades.
>>>After a year some people qualify for a $150 mail-n-rebate or $75 instant rebate.
>>>After two years you qualify for a $150 instant rebate.
Let me know if any of this information is not accurate.
Ok I qualify for a $150...
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>>>If a "New" phone is ever connected in the line it will reset your upgrade eligibility.
>>>If a refurbish phone is ever connected it should not reset your upgrade at all if it comes from insurance or warranty dpt.
>>>If you buy a phone at a full retail price or borrow a phone is consider "New" it will reset it.
>>>Change of plan will not reset any upgrades.
>>>After a year some people qualify for a $150 mail-n-rebate or $75 instant rebate.
>>>After two years you qualify for a $150 instant rebate.
Let me know if any of this information is not accurate.
Ok I qualify for a $150...
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beg and plead! and thats how alamosa does it. i thought corp. did it a touch differently.
Even if you buy a phone for retail price you are still eligible, the rep just has to work a little more to realize it.
Even if you buy a phone for retail price you are still eligible, the rep just has to work a little more to realize it.
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Any rep in Texas that is willing to help me out with this issue??? Let me know. I rather have someone that is willing to help me than going all over town trying to resolve this. 🙂 . I dont mind begging, but if there is an easy way out I'm willing to take it.
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unfortunately, anytime you change the esn on your phone number it resets your upgrade date. They definitely need to fix this for people who buy a used phone at non commitment price or ESPECIALLY on ins. claims!
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