Cell Phone Contracts Gone Bad

Cell Phone Contracts Gone Bad

how to get out of a cell phone contractThis post is the response from a friend of mine in the telecom industry.  We’ll just say her name is Sarah to protect her identity.  I reached out to her about some ongoing problems I was having with our AT&T cell phone contracts and wanted to know how to get out of a cell phone contract.

After spending 50+ hours on the phone with our AT&T account “rep”, various tech “support” departments, and dozens of emails, I’m still having problems with our account and no end is in sight.  I reached out to Sarah to ask what my options were for terminating our cell contract a year early.

Begin Sarah

“What you are going though is unfortunate and truly not ok. I completely understand the frustration that goes along with it. I want to address each point so I apologize if I ramble.

Simply, AT&T does not want to lose 10 lines of post paid business. While you may feel worthless I can assure you they would do what it takes to keep you if it comes down to it. The key is knowing what you are going to ask for and the approach. Their customer care associates are trained to deal with threats, (I am calling my lawyer, etc) you will never get anywhere that way. But the more passive direct approach works very nicely. Here is what I would do.

Calling standard customer care ask immediately to be transferred to the cancellations department. Ask for your account number as well as the contract end dates and ETF (Early Termination Fees) of each line. When they ask why, and they will, explain that you have ten lines and have had a terrible experience managing them. Share that you could move all ten to T-Mobile for $180 less a month or Verizon for the same price and better coverage. Explain that you want to know with ten lines how long it will take to recoup the ETFs. Share that you do not want to cancel yet as the port will automatically take care of that. Then ask when the ETF’s get smaller based on their new prorated ETF policy.

All that you are doing is placing the fear of you leaving in their mind in a super calm way.


What will happen is they will transfer you to a loyalty department. This is the one group that can really make a difference for you. They have the power to waive ETF’s, credit months of service, and actually merge the accounts. They will generally do whatever you ask. But realize they are paid on renewing your contract. Losing you costs them money. So expect the solution to be we will pay for two months of Service and merge the accounts if you renew more than we will pay for you to leave.

Now for the how to actually get out. If getting compensation and staying is not the option then you could try some ways out. This will require a lot more pressure and time and lacks certainty but here are the best methods from my experience.

1.  800-498-1912  Office of the President.

This is the number to their executive customer care.   They are more apt to help you and with a calm direct complaint you can usually get things done.  You can also send a letter.   The downside: not quick and you will spend a long time on the phone.

[Grayson’s Note: I did this.  I called the office of the president and spoke with somebody with the power to get something done.  Didn’t get a 100% solution but it did push me in the right direction]


2.  Port out and pay the ETF on American Express via auto-pay.

It is not uncommon for someone to do this.  They set up Amex as their auto-pay and they cancel.  The cell company bills Amex and they dispute the charge.  Amex sides with the consumer and they rarely recoup the money.  Downside: Amex doesn’t agree and you owe a lot of money.


3. I am moving.

If you move outside of AT&T’s coverage area you can nullify your contract.  If you can show citizenship or land ownership in a different country they will let you out.   Downside: They have caught on to it a lot so it may be harder.

 

4. Regulatory change.

You signed a contract with AT&T agreeing to a certain price and service.   Multiple times a year they will amend that promise.  For example in January they raised the regulatory charge $0.20 per line.   That is a material breech of contract.   In doing so you could have left AT&T with zero penalty.   The way they prevent it is in your bill it said “by paying this amount you agree to the new change to your contract.”   So you could essentially wait for another one of these changes, not pay your bill, and port out.  Downside: I don’t know when they will do that again.  But it is fairly regular.  Check the fine print on you bill for these changes.

5. Blog it up!

Twitter is a very powerful tool for this type of stuff.   Every major company employees someone that trolls twitter for complainers.    If you say @attwireless stinks enough they will respond and ask why.   Again it isn’t a quick solution but you can get someone that you probably wouldn’t have gotten before.
I realize nothing I said is magical or solves the problem quickly but hopefully gives you some ammunition.   Combining your knowledge of a few of these may be able to make the difference for you.     Let me know if there is anything I missed or can assist with beyond that.     The only other advice I would give is to go bother a retail manager.   Going to an actual store and asking for the store manager will at least get you a face to share with. They can call care for you and probably get some assistance.
Sorry for all of the stress.  That is extremely disappointing.   I hope you get some resolve.”

End Sarah

Cell phone contracts are a necessary evil in today’s world.  And while I don’t condone skipping out on contracts on a whim, being subjected to terrible service because you’re “locked into a contract” is simply unacceptable.

I hope this provides some support to anyone who may need to get out of a cell phone contract too.

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