AT&T Wireless, Grant Rd., Mountain View, CA - rude service experience - upset with calling plan

# 28 for September 23, 2003

Complaints.com received the following on September 22, 2003:

From: Anita //

RE: AT&T Wireless, Grant Rd., Mountain View, CA - rude service experience - upset with calling plan

I've had wireless cellular service from AT&T wireless (650) 996-7sss for a long time now. In Feb of 2002, I upgraded to a new phone and thus, start of a new plan. About a month later, I realized that they were offering more minutes on the same plan, so I went ahead and called them and the representative informed me that I can change to that plan but had to start my one year plan again from that day. I said no problem.

Feb of 2003, my one year contract expired and in April, I decided to extend for another year with the promise of an additional 200 minutes on my existing plan. I jumped at that chance. However, a couple of months later I looked on my bill and found that no extra minutes had been added. I then called AT&T and the representative was not able to help me, so I asked to speak with the manager. This woman was not only rude, but implied that I was delusional and that no such plan existed. On top of that, she told me that whatever the agent had promised me, if the plan did not exist, the computer would automatically adjust/correct the plan.

I was livid at this point and told her that I feel that I've been lied to and tied down for another year. She told me she could change my plan to one which included more minutes at no additional cost, but that would mean starting my one year contract all over again and losing some of the perks which came with my existing plan (night minutes starting at 8pm instead of 9pm). I let it go.

In the same month (April), my husband changed his plan from a digital service (650) 224-5sss to the GSM service with AT&T and was told he would get 200 additional anytime minutes on top of the 550 mins offered in the $39.99 national package.

He's been so-called 'delusional' for the last 5 months because he doesn't have it. How we found this out is because I changed my digital plan over to GSM a few days ago and got the same plan as my husband. However, I was told that I only got 550 any time mins all together (350 included in plan plus 200 additional). My husband then insisted that if I was on the same plan, I would be getting 200 additional anytime minutes on top of those -- because he had them.

When I called the AT&T service number I was informed that he was on the same plan as me and that he also had 550 mins all together. Naturally, now, it's his turn to fume!

We feel that we've both been duped by AT&T for reasons unbeknownst to us. Perhaps it's AT&T's way to gain more customers, who knows. I'm sure there are many customers who blissfully go through years and years of service without once checking their bill, or questioning it. Perhaps this is how AT&T keep their customers -- by lying to them and hoping that they won't find out that they've been lied to.

I doubt there is anything we can do at this stage to rectify our situation. All we know is when our contract expires, we are changing carriers. We originally moved from Cingular because of poor wireless service, not because we were lied to. We moved to AT&T with the hopes that we would get better service. Perhaps for a short time we did, but never in our wildest dreams did we think that we would be swindled.

Luckily for us, Cingular's service has improved dramatically (heard from friends). Perhaps we will go back to them next year. All I know is that we will NEVER use AT&T again, regardless of how good their seemingly fantastic deals may be.

Note: Both of our plans were purchased at the AT&T store at Grant Road, Mountain View, CA