A Cingular Experience- Part One

Wow! Talk about fun.

Got a new phone last month from Cingular-- a Nokia with a nice screen,
internet access, cool keys. In order to get it, I had to pay off a
past due balance of $45 and I had a current balance of over $250. I
wanted to negotiate that amount before I got the new phone so I called
the 611 number and talked to some guy who said that he couldn't do
anything for me and that his supervisor was out. I was in a hurry (I
was trying to get back to my new house), realized that I had made a
bunch of roaming calls (I was up in Maine for my Mom's 70th birthday)
and even call Sweden to find out about getting a special present and
so I just paid the balance and thought that it was a learning
experience.

At any rate, knew that I had wracked up the bill and when my
girlfriend told me that she had been using too many minutes on her
phone (from her office) so when I heard a radio ad about the new $9.99
Family Plan add-on phone with free service on all calls to Cingular
customers, I thought that it sounded great. I thought that now we can
blab to our heart's content.

When I went into the Cingular store, I used the occasion to complain
about some of the cell holes in our area. (There's one on Route 95
about a mile from my house. My calls drop every time I am driving
through that area.) My salesman told me that everybody's servce was
similarly bad (with holes) and that he was still using a Sprint phone
(personally) because of a contract he couldn't get out of and that he
had the same problem.

So while I was having the new phone set up, I knew that I had been
using the new phone for internet services, etc. and I wanted to see
how many minutes I had used, so that I could decide if I needed to up
my minutes. Howqever, they couldn't tell me my balance at the Cingular
Store or pay my bill at the office(talk about Customer Service!- the
couple behind me, who had been waiting for ten minutes, just turned
around and left (because they wanted to pay their bill). At any rate,
I had just paid my $299.99 bill so I thought that I was still okay
(with my minutes), but they asked me to call their business office
(611).

After getting the phone, I started driving to meet my girlfriend for
dinner and called the Business Office. After waiting for a while. I
found out that my balance was $561.26! Stunning, isn't it?

One of the bad things about having a new girlfriend living across a
state border is that you are subject to roaming charges any time you
visit. Also, anytime you take her to new places like Baltimore or
Maine. Also any time your mother just happens to have her 70th
birthday.

Ouch!

So I talked with the customer service rep (Monique) and she was very
nice, but only offered me $100 off my bill. I asked to speak to a
supervisor. One of the supervisors called me back after about a half
an hour and started asking me if I thought that I could use a service
and not pay for it. I told him that I thought that they should have
told me about these minutes when I was getting the new phone of August
7th and that having been a good customer for 6 years and having never
done this before, I would like him to knock at least half off the
bill. (Actually, I was hoping to knock it down to less than $100
because I had just paid them $299.99 only two weeks earlier.)

He told me that everyone knows that they don't have the technology to
tell us what our bills are until the end of the month and that the
Cingular rep had no obligation to tell me that I had already gone over
my minutes for the month (by a lot) on August 7th. I told him that it
was like the banking business and that we couldn't just go and up
someone's rate from 5% to 25% when they were upping their usage,
regardless of what it says in their contract. A number of banks had
tried that in the past and the consumer protection laws and Attorney
Generals had stepped in to protect consumers on multiple occasions.

Have to go back to work-- will continue later. I'm still hoping for a
happy ending. I talked with a much more reasonable person today. Ready
to take on the world if necessary but would much rather settle this
thing for half, etc. I don't think that it is fair but I don't want to
return my Family plan add-on phone if I don't have to. (I can walk
from Cingular at any time. My original started in 1999 and has
continued month to month ever since and I bought the phone on August
7th rather than take it as part of a contract extension.)


> >=====
> >I would rather have my ignorance than another man's
> knowledge, because I
> >have got so much more of it. --- Mark Twain
> >
> >My blog, Adventures in Matchland, is at:
> >
>
>http://notmtwain.typepad.com/adventures_in_matchland/
>
>

---

› See More: A Cingular Experience- Part One

John,

Why not get a national plan and no roaming.

Thats what we did, and now we have mobile to mobile.

A big money saver.

Chip

John Bescherer wrote:
> Wow! Talk about fun.
>
> Got a new phone last month from Cingular-- a Nokia with a nice screen,
> internet access, cool keys. In order to get it, I had to pay off a
> past due balance of $45 and I had a current balance of over $250. I
> wanted to negotiate that amount before I got the new phone so I called
> the 611 number and talked to some guy who said that he couldn't do
> anything for me and that his supervisor was out. I was in a hurry (I
> was trying to get back to my new house), realized that I had made a
> bunch of roaming calls (I was up in Maine for my Mom's 70th birthday)
> and even call Sweden to find out about getting a special present and
> so I just paid the balance and thought that it was a learning
> experience.
>
> At any rate, knew that I had wracked up the bill and when my
> girlfriend told me that she had been using too many minutes on her
> phone (from her office) so when I heard a radio ad about the new $9.99
> Family Plan add-on phone with free service on all calls to Cingular
> customers, I thought that it sounded great. I thought that now we can
> blab to our heart's content.
>
> When I went into the Cingular store, I used the occasion to complain
> about some of the cell holes in our area. (There's one on Route 95
> about a mile from my house. My calls drop every time I am driving
> through that area.) My salesman told me that everybody's servce was
> similarly bad (with holes) and that he was still using a Sprint phone
> (personally) because of a contract he couldn't get out of and that he
> had the same problem.
>
> So while I was having the new phone set up, I knew that I had been
> using the new phone for internet services, etc. and I wanted to see
> how many minutes I had used, so that I could decide if I needed to up
> my minutes. Howqever, they couldn't tell me my balance at the Cingular
> Store or pay my bill at the office(talk about Customer Service!- the
> couple behind me, who had been waiting for ten minutes, just turned
> around and left (because they wanted to pay their bill). At any rate,
> I had just paid my $299.99 bill so I thought that I was still okay
> (with my minutes), but they asked me to call their business office
> (611).
>
> After getting the phone, I started driving to meet my girlfriend for
> dinner and called the Business Office. After waiting for a while. I
> found out that my balance was $561.26! Stunning, isn't it?
>
> One of the bad things about having a new girlfriend living across a
> state border is that you are subject to roaming charges any time you
> visit. Also, anytime you take her to new places like Baltimore or
> Maine. Also any time your mother just happens to have her 70th
> birthday.
>
> Ouch!
>
> So I talked with the customer service rep (Monique) and she was very
> nice, but only offered me $100 off my bill. I asked to speak to a
> supervisor. One of the supervisors called me back after about a half
> an hour and started asking me if I thought that I could use a service
> and not pay for it. I told him that I thought that they should have
> told me about these minutes when I was getting the new phone of August
> 7th and that having been a good customer for 6 years and having never
> done this before, I would like him to knock at least half off the
> bill. (Actually, I was hoping to knock it down to less than $100
> because I had just paid them $299.99 only two weeks earlier.)
>
> He told me that everyone knows that they don't have the technology to
> tell us what our bills are until the end of the month and that the
> Cingular rep had no obligation to tell me that I had already gone over
> my minutes for the month (by a lot) on August 7th. I told him that it
> was like the banking business and that we couldn't just go and up
> someone's rate from 5% to 25% when they were upping their usage,
> regardless of what it says in their contract. A number of banks had
> tried that in the past and the consumer protection laws and Attorney
> Generals had stepped in to protect consumers on multiple occasions.
>
> Have to go back to work-- will continue later. I'm still hoping for a
> happy ending. I talked with a much more reasonable person today. Ready
> to take on the world if necessary but would much rather settle this
> thing for half, etc. I don't think that it is fair but I don't want to
> return my Family plan add-on phone if I don't have to. (I can walk
> from Cingular at any time. My original started in 1999 and has
> continued month to month ever since and I bought the phone on August
> 7th rather than take it as part of a contract extension.)
>
>
>
>>>=====
>>>I would rather have my ignorance than another man's
>>
>>knowledge, because I
>>
>>>have got so much more of it. --- Mark Twain
>>>
>>>My blog, Adventures in Matchland, is at:
>>>
>>
>>http://notmtwain.typepad.com/adventures_in_matchland/
>>
>>

======================================================================
* Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
* Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
* Reply to: All; "John Bescherer" <[email protected]>
* Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2004 16:07:43 -0500 GMT
* Subj: A Cingular Experience- Part One
======================================================================

JB>Wow! Talk about fun.


[Sorry, skipped]

I must have missed something here. If you used the minutes, you should
pay for them. JMHO but barring some reason that you didn't post, it
doesn't seem unreasonable to me for Cingular to expect you to pay for
minutes that you used. Or, am I missing something? /

--
Jack

"John Bescherer" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

You need a national plan and probably mobile-to-mobile. Depending on when
you make calls, consider unlimited N&W too. Also, consider using a calling
card for international calls. A calling card is often 10 times cheaper than
cellular IDD calls.

And I hope you have some ways to check your usage minutes on the phone.

If you still think you can rack up another $800 "accidentally", go prepaid.

"Jack D. Russell, Sr." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> ======================================================================
> * Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
> * Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
> * Reply to: All; "John Bescherer" <[email protected]>
> * Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2004 16:07:43 -0500 GMT
> * Subj: A Cingular Experience- Part One
> ======================================================================
>
> JB>Wow! Talk about fun.
>
>
> [Sorry, skipped]
>
> I must have missed something here. If you used the minutes, you should
> pay for them. JMHO but barring some reason that you didn't post, it
> doesn't seem unreasonable to me for Cingular to expect you to pay for
> minutes that you used. Or, am I missing something? /

I am not sure whether his experience was the same as ours. We had a family
plan for a couple of years. Two years ago when we wanted to add a new
phone the associate told us there was a new plan that would be so much
better and actually cost less. It included nationwide long distance. We
thought we were informed and asked many questions. BUT what we did not
even think to ask (because we assumed the family plan meant mobile to mobile
that is what we had before) was if the mobile to mobile was included. It
wasn't! We ran up huge bills without having a clue just talking to each
other.

It took us so long and many many conversations with different customer
service employees who each gave us a different story added things to our
accounts - added some things and took away others. It was a mess. No one
knew what was going on.

We were told that no new family plans now included mobile to mobile.
Cingular told us phone companies were phasing that out. I was incensed.
(It seemed every other phone company had it.) We were satisfied with the
original plan we had. There were no contracts to determine what exactly it
was that we signed up for only their word. (This was to protect us so we
could change plans anytime we wanted they said) Finally, Finally a plan was
found for us but we could only keep it for a year at a reduced price with a
very complicated pricing scheme that gave us 20% off of some services and
free something or other. Then it was going to be $30 a month more!

I am in a wheelchair - this is how my family keeps in touch with me during
the day. If they have a minute they call to chat.

And now that Cingular is phasing out TDMA we can no longer talk on the
phones. Of course we called and got some run around about powering down and
increasing the tower signal in our area and someone was supposed to call us
in 24 hours. No one called and we still have headaches from two years ago.
I feel cheated. I will have to give them our money for the next few months
and then I am gone for good.

Turbo
>
> --
> Jack
>
>

======================================================================
* Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
* Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
* Reply to: All; "Turbocane" <[email protected]>
* Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 04:46:22 -0500 GMT
* Subj: Re: A Cingular Experience- Part One
======================================================================

T>I am not sure whether his experience was the same as ours. We had
T>a family plan for a couple of years. Two years ago when we wanted
T>to add a new phone the associate told us there was a new plan that
T>would be so much better and actually cost less. It included
T>nationwide long distance. We thought we were informed and asked
T>many questions. BUT what we did not even think to ask (because we
T>assumed the family plan meant mobile to mobile that is what we had
T>before) was if the mobile to mobile was included. It wasn't! We
T>ran up huge bills without having a clue just talking to each other.

There you have it. NEVER assume anything, especially when it comes to a
pay per unit service like cellular. Company's plans are in constant
flux, changing with what's popular with consumers and matching rival
companies services to stay competitive. Always read the fine print.
Again, a situation where you were expected to pay what you agreed to
regardless of whether you were aware of just what that was. Should they
have explained that there was no stipulation for free mobile to mobile
minutes on your plan? Not if you didn't raise the issue at the time that
you signed the contract. How would they even know that it was an issue
for you? I'm not trying to defend the company. I'm just trying to look
at the issues objectively and offer an opinion based on fairness to all
parties involved. Caveat emptor indeed.
I've had 2 different Family plans over the course of almost 4 yrs and
neither included free mobile to mobile and I didn't expect them to. It
is available on my current plan at extra cost (I signed up just before
they started including it free) but I don't think it's worth said extra
cost to me. It's absolutely imperative for consumers to educate
themselves in this day and age, and it's never been easier to do so,
thanks to the Internet and USENET.
--
Jack

"Jack D. Russell, Sr." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> ======================================================================
> * Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
> * Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
> * Reply to: All; "Turbocane" <[email protected]>
> * Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 04:46:22 -0500 GMT
> * Subj: Re: A Cingular Experience- Part One
> ======================================================================
>
> T>I am not sure whether his experience was the same as ours. We had
> T>a family plan for a couple of years. Two years ago when we wanted
> T>to add a new phone the associate told us there was a new plan that
> T>would be so much better and actually cost less. It included
> T>nationwide long distance. We thought we were informed and asked
> T>many questions. BUT what we did not even think to ask (because we
> T>assumed the family plan meant mobile to mobile that is what we had
> T>before) was if the mobile to mobile was included. It wasn't! We
> T>ran up huge bills without having a clue just talking to each other.
>
> There you have it. NEVER assume anything, especially when it comes to a
> pay per unit service like cellular. Company's plans are in constant
> flux, changing with what's popular with consumers and matching rival
> companies services to stay competitive. Always read the fine print.

I agree with you on most points. But we purchased the family plan because
we could call each other. We understood that was why family plans existed.
The sales associate told us it was the same plan but better. If we would
have had a contract entailing what we were getting and what was included or
not included we would have been able to ascertain that we did not want to
switch plans. We did not go in to the store to switch plans but to add a
phone. Since the representative said it was the same but better - she
misrepresented the plan. And after going to three stores and talking to
several representatives on the phone we found out that none of them knew
what was going on. They all gave us different stories. How was I as a
consumer supposed to wade through the mess if they didn't know what was
going on. When I finally came to an agreement with a person who was
higher up I had to ask several times to send me the specifics of the plan in
writing so I could agree to it. I didn't dispute paying the bill - ever.
But I did dispute that the company was so foggy that no one could tell me
what plan I had and what it entailed so I was stuck with a plan that was
completely unsuitable for me when I did not want to change in the first
place.

And now. I contracted for a service that at the time reached my home. If
it did not reach my home 6 years ago I would not have purchased it. No one
gave me a trial period with the new network so I am stuck giving cingular
money for very poor service.

Turbo


> Again, a situation where you were expected to pay what you agreed to
> regardless of whether you were aware of just what that was. Should they
> have explained that there was no stipulation for free mobile to mobile
> minutes on your plan? Not if you didn't raise the issue at the time that
> you signed the contract. How would they even know that it was an issue
> for you? I'm not trying to defend the company. I'm just trying to look
> at the issues objectively and offer an opinion based on fairness to all
> parties involved. Caveat emptor indeed.
> I've had 2 different Family plans over the course of almost 4 yrs and
> neither included free mobile to mobile and I didn't expect them to. It
> is available on my current plan at extra cost (I signed up just before
> they started including it free) but I don't think it's worth said extra
> cost to me. It's absolutely imperative for consumers to educate
> themselves in this day and age, and it's never been easier to do so,
> thanks to the Internet and USENET.
> --
> Jack
>
>

[POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE]

In <ilvWc.299764$a24.250707@attbi_s03> on Mon, 23 Aug 2004 23:46:22 GMT,
"Turbocane" <[email protected]> wrote:

>There were no contracts to determine what exactly it
>was that we signed up for only their word. ...

All of the price plans are documented in writing and on the website, and
Cingular will give you written confirmation if you ask for it.

>And now that Cingular is phasing out TDMA we can no longer talk on the
>phones. ...

Then why not ask for a free upgrade to a GSM phone?

--
Best regards, HELP FOR CINGULAR GSM & SONY ERICSSON PHONES:
John Navas <http://navasgrp.home.att.net/#Cingular>

[POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE]

In <%jIWc.302195$a24.112032@attbi_s03> on Tue, 24 Aug 2004 14:32:27 GMT,
"Turbocane" <[email protected]> wrote:

>And now. I contracted for a service that at the time reached my home. If
>it did not reach my home 6 years ago I would not have purchased it. No one
>gave me a trial period with the new network so I am stuck giving cingular
>money for very poor service.

Not necessarily. If service really has significantly deteriorated, and the
carrier doesn't solve the problem (e.g., by a free upgrade to a multi-band GSM
phone), then you have good grounds for terminating without penalty. Be
persistent, and file a complaint with the BBB if necessary. Or cancel and pay
the termination by credit card, and then dispute the charge.

--
Best regards, HELP FOR CINGULAR GSM & SONY ERICSSON PHONES:
John Navas <http://navasgrp.home.att.net/#Cingular>

======================================================================
* Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
* Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
* Reply to: All; "Turbocane" <[email protected]>
* Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 11:07:08 -0500 GMT
* Subj: Re: A Cingular Experience- Part One
======================================================================

T>I agree with you on most points. But we purchased the family plan
T>because we could call each other. We understood that was why
T>family plans existed.
T>The sales associate told us it was the same plan but better. If we
T>would have had a contract entailing what we were getting and what
T>was included or not included we would have been able to ascertain
T>that we did not want to switch plans. We did not go in to the
T>store to switch plans but to add a phone. Since the
T>representative said it was the same but better - she misrepresented
T>the plan. And after going to three stores and talking to several
T>representatives on the phone we found out that none of them knew
T>what was going on. They all gave us different stories. How was I
T>as a consumer supposed to wade through the mess if they didn't know
T>what was going on. When I finally came to an agreement with a
T>person who was higher up I had to ask several times to send me the
T>specifics of the plan in writing so I could agree to it. I didn't
T>dispute paying the bill - ever.
T>But I did dispute that the company was so foggy that no one could
T>tell me what plan I had and what it entailed so I was stuck with a
T>plan that was completely unsuitable for me when I did not want to
T>change in the first place.

T>And now. I contracted for a service that at the time reached my
T>home. If it did not reach my home 6 years ago I would not have
T>purchased it. No one gave me a trial period with the new network
T>so I am stuck giving cingular money for very poor service.

Again, all I can say is "caveat emptor". Maybe all is not lost. Have you
considered a GSM Family plan that does include free mobile to mobile. No
roaming charges *ever* on most plans. My plan is the Family Superhome
600R that gives me 600 (shared) anytime minutes with rollover, 5000
night & weekend minutes and $9.95 for each additional phone added (up to
4, I think). No roaming charges *ever*, no long distance charges, and
they gave me 1000 rollover minutes to start with. $39.99 per month. Of
course after you add in the phone insurance ($3.99 per month per phone),
state and local taxes, etc. it's always more than that but still cheaper
than my home phone with all of the extras.
I learned long ago that when life serves you a lemon, you make
lemonade. Most things happen for a reason, You just have to look for
that silver lining around the clouds. Good luck.
--
Jack

"John Navas" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE]
>
> In <%jIWc.302195$a24.112032@attbi_s03> on Tue, 24 Aug 2004 14:32:27 GMT,
> "Turbocane" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >And now. I contracted for a service that at the time reached my home.
If
> >it did not reach my home 6 years ago I would not have purchased it. No
one
> >gave me a trial period with the new network so I am stuck giving cingular
> >money for very poor service.
>
> Not necessarily. If service really has significantly deteriorated, and
the
> carrier doesn't solve the problem (e.g., by a free upgrade to a multi-band
GSM
> phone), then you have good grounds for terminating without penalty. Be
> persistent, and file a complaint with the BBB if necessary. Or cancel and
pay
> the termination by credit card, and then dispute the charge.

Thanks John.

Turbo
>
> --
> Best regards, HELP FOR CINGULAR GSM & SONY ERICSSON PHONES:
> John Navas <http://navasgrp.home.att.net/#Cingular>

"Jack D. Russell, Sr." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> ======================================================================
> * Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
> * Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
> * Reply to: All; "Turbocane" <[email protected]>
> * Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 11:07:08 -0500 GMT
> * Subj: Re: A Cingular Experience- Part One
> ======================================================================
>
> T>I agree with you on most points. But we purchased the family plan
> T>because we could call each other. We understood that was why
> T>family plans existed.
> T>The sales associate told us it was the same plan but better. If we
> T>would have had a contract entailing what we were getting and what
> T>was included or not included we would have been able to ascertain
> T>that we did not want to switch plans. We did not go in to the
> T>store to switch plans but to add a phone. Since the
> T>representative said it was the same but better - she misrepresented
> T>the plan. And after going to three stores and talking to several
> T>representatives on the phone we found out that none of them knew
> T>what was going on. They all gave us different stories. How was I
> T>as a consumer supposed to wade through the mess if they didn't know
> T>what was going on. When I finally came to an agreement with a
> T>person who was higher up I had to ask several times to send me the
> T>specifics of the plan in writing so I could agree to it. I didn't
> T>dispute paying the bill - ever.
> T>But I did dispute that the company was so foggy that no one could
> T>tell me what plan I had and what it entailed so I was stuck with a
> T>plan that was completely unsuitable for me when I did not want to
> T>change in the first place.
>
> T>And now. I contracted for a service that at the time reached my
> T>home. If it did not reach my home 6 years ago I would not have
> T>purchased it. No one gave me a trial period with the new network
> T>so I am stuck giving cingular money for very poor service.
>
> Again, all I can say is "caveat emptor".

What about contract law? Consumer protection laws? How were we supposed
to anticipate 6 years later our phones would not longer work? What if all
of a sudden your electricity stopped working but the electric company
stilled charged you every month?

Maybe all is not lost. Have you
> considered a GSM Family plan that does include free mobile to mobile. No
> roaming charges *ever* on most plans. My plan is the Family Superhome
> 600R that gives me 600 (shared) anytime minutes with rollover, 5000
> night & weekend minutes and $9.95 for each additional phone added (up to
> 4, I think). No roaming charges *ever*, no long distance charges, and
> they gave me 1000 rollover minutes to start with. $39.99 per month. Of
> course after you add in the phone insurance ($3.99 per month per phone),
> state and local taxes, etc. it's always more than that but still cheaper
> than my home phone with all of the extras.

We got the original dispute resolved. After going higher up the chain a
plan was "found" that could include mobile to mobile at a reduced cost for a
year. I insisted on having the plan in writing this time with everything
outlined. One of our phones is GSM since February. It doesn't work at our
house and the TDMA ones do not work so upgrading would contract us for
another two years with phones that do not work.


> I learned long ago that when life serves you a lemon, you make
> lemonade. Most things happen for a reason, You just have to look for
> that silver lining around the clouds. Good luck.

I agree with that in some senses. But that doesn't really apply here.
Businesses should not be able to take money and not provide services. The
only silver lining is to make the company profits higher and the consumer
poorer. Things happen for no reason and we need to stand up for our rights
not only to protect ourselves but to protect others who follow.

Turbo

> --
> Jack
>
>

"John Navas" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE]
>
> In <ilvWc.299764$a24.250707@attbi_s03> on Mon, 23 Aug 2004 23:46:22 GMT,
> "Turbocane" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >There were no contracts to determine what exactly it
> >was that we signed up for only their word. ...
>
> All of the price plans are documented in writing and on the website, and
> Cingular will give you written confirmation if you ask for it.

They are now. And I wonder if our dispute two years ago had something to do
with that. At they time they said they did not require customers to sign a
contract so that the customer could change plans at anytime. We were
surprised because when we first contracted 6 years ago we did have a
contract but it changed in the interim.

>
> >And now that Cingular is phasing out TDMA we can no longer talk on the
> >phones. ...
>
> Then why not ask for a free upgrade to a GSM phone?

We got one in February. It doesn't work in our house. The TDMAs have
deteriotated and the GSM doesn't work. Our neighbor was given an upgrade
but she had to sign another two year contract on the phone and she was only
able to upgrade on a plan that was due to be upgraded. She has several
phones - she doesn't use the family plan.

Turbo
>
> --
> Best regards, HELP FOR CINGULAR GSM & SONY ERICSSON PHONES:
> John Navas <http://navasgrp.home.att.net/#Cingular>

======================================================================
* Reply by Jack D. Russell, Sr. <[email protected]>
* Newsgroup: alt.cellular.cingular
* Reply to: All; "Turbocane" <[email protected]>
* Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 12:31:44 -0500 GMT
* Subj: Re: A Cingular Experience- Part One
======================================================================

T>What about contract law? Consumer protection laws? How were we
T>supposed to anticipate 6 years later our phones would not longer
T>work? What if all of a sudden your electricity stopped working
T>but the electric company stilled charged you every month?

If you feel that there's reason to rescind your contract, based on
contract or consumer protection laws, then you should pursue it by all
means. Something had to change if your phones worked then but don't now.
The rest is apples and oranges.

[Sorry, skipped]

T>Businesses should not be able to take money and not provide
T>services. The only silver lining is to make the company profits
T>higher and the consumer poorer. Things happen for no reason and we
T>need to stand up for our rights not only to protect ourselves but
T>to protect others who follow.

I'll agree with that. Although I don't see what that has to do with
paying for contracted services, rendered as contracted.
--
Jack

[POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE]

In <ZrKWc.302517$a24.6131@attbi_s03> on Tue, 24 Aug 2004 16:57:29 GMT,
"Turbocane" <[email protected]> wrote:

>"John Navas" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...

>> All of the price plans are documented in writing and on the website, and
>> Cingular will give you written confirmation if you ask for it.
>
>They are now. And I wonder if our dispute two years ago had something to do
>with that. At they time they said they did not require customers to sign a
>contract so that the customer could change plans at anytime....

There's a big difference between (1) signing up for a contract term [which
wasn't previously necessary] and (2) getting your plan terms in writing.

>> >And now that Cingular is phasing out TDMA we can no longer talk on the
>> >phones. ...
>>
>> Then why not ask for a free upgrade to a GSM phone?
>
>We got one in February. It doesn't work in our house. The TDMAs have
>deteriotated and the GSM doesn't work.

Is it a multi-band phone? For best GSM coverage, you need a phone with both
1900 and 850 bands. The latter band, which is missing from many GSM phones,
is becoming increasingly important on Cingular as a result of the ongoing GSM
overlay/migration from TDMA.

>Our neighbor was given an upgrade
>but she had to sign another two year contract on the phone and she was only
>able to upgrade on a plan that was due to be upgraded. She has several
>phones - she doesn't use the family plan.

You're asking for service restoration due to a Cingular problem, not a typical
upgrade per se, so you should be entitled to either (a) a free phone swap to
restore service without contract extension or (b) termination without penalty.
Be persistent.

--
Best regards, HELP FOR CINGULAR GSM & SONY ERICSSON PHONES:
John Navas <http://navasgrp.home.att.net/#Cingular>