AT&T Wireless - Replacing Lost Phone - On the evening of August 7th I lost my cell phone in a cab. Replacing it turned into quite a complex ordeal

AT&T Wireless - Replacing Lost Phone - On the evening of August 7th I lost my cell phone in a cab. Replacing it turned into quite a complex ordeal

AT&T Wireless / Replacing Lost Phone

On the evening of August 7th I lost my cell phone in a cab. Replacing it turned into quite a complex ordeal, with each ATT representative I talked to giving me different instructions and advice. I would like for someone at ATT to review this situation and confirm which of your representatives was right. On 8/8, I called the 800-number and spoke to a very helpful customer service representative. She suspended my phone service so that no one could use the lost phone, then informed me of my replacement options should the phone not turn up. I did not have insurance on the phone, so all of the options she offered, with prices ranging from $30-$50 or so, involved me signing a new two-year contract, which was fine with me. She also said I could upgrade to the newer system, which I understood to provide more features and/or coverage. On Saturday 8/14, certain at this point I would not be able to find my lost phone, I went to the ATT Store on King Street in Alexandria, VA, thinking that my options there would be the same as those offered over the phone. The gentleman I spoke with at the store informed me that I could not, in fact, sign a new contract because mine, at less than a year old, was too new. I asked him about upgrading to the new system, and he said it was not as good as the one I had, and that the coverage area was less extensive and didn't cover smaller towns/communities and was mainly beneficial to customers making international calls.

According to the representative at the store, my only option was to buy a new phone at full price, starting at $99. I told him the lady on the phone had said otherwise, and he said that he didn't know why customer care people always said that, because it wasn't true. Concerned that this was a difference of $100 or so dollars, and thinking that perhaps the guy at the store wanted to sell me a new phone at full price so he could get some sort of commission, I decided to hold off and call back the 800 number to confirm this. I called the 800 number back on I believe the 18th and spoke to another very helpful representative, who herself suggested that the guy at the store wanted the commission. (I hesitate to mention this, as I would not want to get this representative in trouble in any way, because she was very helpful and I appreciated her honesty.) She transfered me to another agent (I think I had dialed the wrong 800 number) who was also very pleasant and helpful and told me that I could in fact get a discount on a phone by signing a new contract, but she said only a one-year extension was needed. She said she would indicate on my account that I was eligible for this, and directed me to the website, which she said would have lots of phones for me to choose from. So I went there. At the website, after putting several questions into the seach feature, the only option that seemed to work was "Upgrade." I tried this, and was given one choice - the same type of phone I already had (not an upgrade, really) at $109.00 with a new two-year service agreement. Out of curiosity I selected this option and was was informed that the plan I already have is no longer available and that I would have to choose another plan. The options started at about $60, far more than the plan I have now. This, to say the least, was frustrating. So thinking the lady I spoke with on the phone had indicated on my account that I was eligible for a new plan and discounted phone, I decided to give the store one more try. I went to the King Street store on 8-21 and spoke with a guy named Dominic, who I believe is the same guy I spoke with the first time, though I'm not 100% positive. I'm sure Dominic is a great guy, but I was not completely confident in his knowledge of the whole process or his enthusiasm for helping me. At any rate, he again said that I was not eligible for any sort of discount and that I could not sign a new service agreement. He told me that my only option was to buy a new phone at full price. At this point I had lost all patience with the process and just really wanted a phone (and, quite frankly, was in no mood to sign a new contract with ATT Wireless after all this confusion), so I basically cried uncle and bought a new phone at full price - $140. I wanted someone at ATT Wireless to review this situation and determine who was right, as I didn't understand how there can be so many conflicting reports on what I could and could not do to replace the phone, and was honestly quite bothered by the fact that the store guy said the phone people didn't know what they were talking about and that the phone people said the store guy didn't know what he was talking about. (I cannot emphasize enough, though, that the phone people were absolutely pleasant and professional, and most helpful, and that I do agree with their assessment of the store people.)

And though paying full price for a new phone certainly did not plunge me into any sort of financial crisis or anything like that, there are certainly other things I could spend an extra $100 or so on, and thus if I could have paid less for a new phone I would have preferred that. But when I emailed AT&T Wireless's customer service, I was told on 8/23 they could not tell me how much phones cost in an email, as they have frequently changing specials, but that I could visit online or call the 1-800 for a rundown of how much phones cost - which I had already done, only to cause great confusion which I was trying to resolve in the first place. Very, very frustrating, to say the least. Phillip C

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Comment On This

I am also having trouble replacing a lost phone through AT&T Wireless. The first person I talked to was very friendly and helpful, and said that although I did not have insurance, they had a discount for replacing a lost or stolen phone. She confirmed my statement that the website would not work for replacing the phone, and she could help me or I could visit a store. After a couple weeks, I decided the phone would not show up. I called again, ready to bite the bullet and buy a new phone. However, the person I talked to was very rude, said there was no discount, then that there was a discount, then that there wasn't. She claimed that I could use the website to purchase the phone. It appears to be impossible to replace the phone using their website. Now, I seem to have the options of terminating the contract (6 months left of a 2-year contract, and they want $175), or paying for service and not having a phone! I am thinking of buying an unlocked phone from Amazon and asking AT&T to send me a SIM card, as I don't want to deal with them any more than I have to after this.

Comment On This

I'm having basically the same situation in January 2008 after losing my AT&T iPhone while living in the UK for a few months. I was told to buy a phone online, which could be associated with my old contract. I did so while on the phone with the customer support representative, who really seemed to be trying to help. Then today I got an email confirming my order associated with a NEW phone number. When I called AT&T back I was bounced around, put on hold, cut off, given inconsistent information etc. for about 1 hour before being told I'd have to refuse shipment of the new phone to avoid getting a new plan with a new phone number.