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Originally Posted by lili96ilil
Hi .7. I really wanted to be done with this, but I cannot resist replying to your level-headed, logical replies that directly address my points. Thank you.
First of all, let me clarify that I do not do any business in the stores, so every experience I speak of deals with talking to a non-local CSRs on the phone.
As stated before, when asked, the CSR will make you believe that the $18 is going towards a specific action or process *needed* in order to get the phone you are about to purchase “talking” to the network. They make it seem as if they have to fill out 2 pages of forms and flip a switch. The name “upgrade fee” also implies this fee covers specific actions that need to take place in order to upgrade your phone.
The mystery behind this charge has been something I’ve poked CSRs with for years, and this is the first line reply I have always received. I’ve also spoken to managers (or at least what the CSR told me were managers) to probe for answers. This has never lead to a more definitive answer.
They try really hard to make you believe this, and most people would just buy that answer, because they don’t know any better. When pressed harder with logic such as, “I don’t understand. If I get a phone from ebay, why don’t you have to do this processing in order for my phone to work?” Then, they will start pulling for answers, “Umm, it also covers copying contacts for you, etc.”, rebutted with, “But I’m buying the phone from you online. I’m doing all this myself.” And it continues on. At this point, they are frustrated and mad, because they really don’t know what else to say. Every single reason they give, I can poke a hole right through.
This is lying because all the reasons they give are not valid; they are not the real reason the fee is charged. If these answers were the truth, I would not be able to poke holes in them. Like others have said, I believe the reason the fee is charged is to simply speed up the process of making their money back. This is something they will never tell you, especially since the name of the charge implies something very different.
You can very loosely apply the term “upgrade fee” to whatever scenario you wish, but unless they explain this to you when you ask, they are lying. I don’t think a valid explanation for a charge is too much to ask.
If you get your oil changed, and the paper work shows an additional charge with a misleading name, would you ask about it? If every explanation they give you, you are able to reply with something that makes their explanation not valid, would you believe they are lying to you about what the charge is really for?
You are wrong when you question what my intentions are. As stated before, 1) to voice my opinion (with an obvious underlying tone of frustration) surrounding the matter, and 2) search for a better (honest) answer that I cannot poke a hole through. I believe a few have finally coughed it up, and, along with a few assumptions, I’ve been able to piece everything together in my head.
I’ve said before that the charge is not what I have a problem with. When I’m spending $400 for a phone, another $18 is chump change. It is the deception surrounding the charge that I have a problem with. If Ralph De La Vaga explained that the charge was to speed up the process of getting their money back, I’d thank him for the honest answer and move on to my next point. You can doubt this all you like, but with all due respect, I know me a little better than you know me.
The next point would be, “Why not increase the price of the phone rather than have this somewhat hidden charge?” This is interesting, because, what I believe to be the answer to this question further supports my argument that the $18 upgrade charge pays for nothing more than what the amount on the phone’s price tag pays for – it should really be combined.
But due to the competitive market, they must manipulate numbers to give the illusion you got the phone for this amount, and then this amount goes towards “upgrading” you.
One problem with this is it’s not always disclosed when discussing the purchase of the phone. One salesman even admitted in the other thread he makes a point to not bring it up. The internet is littered with complaints of the same thing.
However, this second point is less of an issue. The main issue is the deception surrounding the upgrade fee. I simply refuse to pay this fee if the best answer the sales person can give me can quickly be dismissed.
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