A WARNING TO ALL POTENTIALLY NEW SPRINT CUSTOMERS: "Don't Worry, It's Just Sprint!"

**chokaay** · 01-13-2009, 01:05 AM

NOTE: The following post represents my own personal opinions and do not reflect the opinions, views, or policies of Sprint, Nextel, or any affiliated companies or organizations. My opinions are based on my numerous experiences in signing up, referring, and/or observing others go through the process of signing up for new accounts/lines/service with Sprint.

Well, since I didn't see anything like this posted anywhere, I guess I will...

A WARNING TO ALL POTENTIALLY NEW SPRINT CUSTOMERS!

Wouldn't it suck if a Sprint Sales Rep lured you to a mall kiosk with the promise of an "awesome" plan that seems like it can't be beat, and then take up 2 HOURS of your time helping you find the right plan and phone(s)... only to be told by Sprint's Credit Department that you DON'T qualify for all (or any) of the lines with a 795 FICO? Or when you actually order the phones through a Sales Rep (and you PAY for them on the spot), but instead of arriving in 1-2 business days (like it would have if you ordered ONLINE at Sprint.com), it takes 7-8 BUSINESS DAYS shipping from within the SAME STATE??? And what if you get to the store after the phones arrived, only to find that you CAN'T EVEN ACTIVATE ALL OF THEM because Sprint's Credit Department denied you enough lines the Sprint Representative ordered phones for? Or wouldn't it suck if you actually ordered a family plan from Sprint.com, only to find out the next day that the order had been CANCELLED because you ordered more lines than Sprint's Credit Department qualified you for (and the reason was only because "YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH DEBT")??? (The fact that Sprint would rather give 5 lines to a reckless spender who can't pay his debts than to a financially responsible person who pays off all his/her bills on-time alone seems to say something about Sprint's policies.) Or what if your order wasn't cancelled, but they shipped you OBVIOUSLY USED PHONES with FINGERPRINTS, SCRATCHES, AND OTHER PEOPLE'S PHONE NUMBERS in the address book?!? Wouldn't that really grind your gears??? Or maybe the phones weren't used, but they were the WRONG PHONES! Or maybe the right phones came, but Sprint gives you THE WRONG PLANS!!! (Why the heck can't Sprint streamline the ordering process so online orders don’t have to be manually inputted into the system by mistake-prone reps?) Then what if your first bill comes and you found they billed you for your phones... AGAIN (the same phones you paid for in the store 1 month prior)!?! And what if that made you go over your account's spending limit so Sprint suspends your lines without even notifying you!?! How fair is that??? And what if your bill contained billing errors such as features or content you never ordered? What if the billing errors keep repeating EVERY... SINGLE... MONTH!!! Or maybe you encounter Sprint Reps that have no idea what they're doing and they totally SCREW UP YOUR PLAN, or worse... INTENTIONALLY REMOVE OR ADD FEATURES WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION! Or maybe you need to activate international roaming on your lines, but Sprint's International Roaming Department tells you that you CAN'T ACTIVATE INTERNATIONAL ROAMING because you have a SPENDING LIMIT on your account (regardless if your spending limit is $150 or $15,000), and the spending limit won't be removed for 12 MONTHS! WHAT?!? I NEED INTERNATIONAL ROAMING NOW B____!!!

For those of you who experienced any (or all) of these issues, or any other issues with Sprint, I have 5 words for you:

"DON'T WORRY, IT'S JUST SPRINT!"

If you have the patience, the time, the tolerance, and the determination to put up with Sprint's s__t for the first couple of months* and work hard to resolve your issues, then chances are that IT WILL be "smooth sailing" afterwards and YOU WILL be handsomly rewarded with the benefits of Sprint's excellent product**, competitive prices, (and maybe decent service) for years to come!

However, if you do NOT have the patience, the time, the tolerance, or determination to put up with such potential B.S. from a cellular carrier and/or are easily "put off" by the prospect of confrontation and standing up for yourself, then my advice to you is to find another carrier that will satisfy you (NOT SPRINT), because you will NOT be happy with Sprint!

* From my experiences and experiences of other friends and family I've referred to Sprint, it takes on average 1-2 months (and hours on the phone/in the store/via e-mail) to straighten out every single issue with new Sprint accounts/lines (different people/accounts/lines had different issues). If it takes you less than 1 month to straighten everything out, then consider yourself lucky. If it takes you about 1-2 months to straighten everything out, then I'd consider that about average. If it takes you more than 2 months to straighten everything out (which could happen), then I wish you the best of luck!

** At least in Southern California, I've found Sprint's network to be excellent... and since they allow in-market roaming on Verizon and other carriers if you can't lock onto a Sprint signal, that just makes it better! (I've only had to roam on Verizon a handful of times so far, but having the option to do so is very nice!

)

NOTE: The post above represents my own personal opinions and do not reflect the opinions, views, or policies of Sprint, Nextel, or any affiliated companies or organizations. My opinions are based on my numerous experiences in signing up, referring, and/or observing others go through the process of signing up for new accounts/lines/service with Sprint.

**TonyTurboII** · 01-15-2009, 01:04 PM

Would you like a box of tissues?

**chokaay** · 01-15-2009, 01:12 PM

Originally Posted by TonyTurboII

Would you like a box of tissues?

Thanks, but I would actually like for Sprint to get their act together... for their own sake if no one elses...

**ChicagoSU** · 01-15-2009, 01:14 PM

What a Baby............ If you don't like Sprint then cancel or do whatever you want.

I personally LOVE Sprint and never plan on leaving them.

**chokaay** · 01-15-2009, 03:47 PM

Originally Posted by ChicagoSU

What a Baby............ If you don't like Sprint then cancel or do whatever you want.

I personally LOVE Sprint and never plan on leaving them.

Awesome! I'm happy for you.

Unfortunately many others are not as lucky as you. Read my original post carefully and you'll find out that this isn't specifically about "me" not liking Sprint...

**TonyTurboII** · 01-15-2009, 03:53 PM

Ive personally never had a problem, and have always dealt with 3rd part dealers.

When I started peddling phones for Sprint any problems that arose with a customer were taken care of by me personally on the spot, wether or not they bought from me or another associate. A little CS goes a long way.

Maybe your problems are with dealing with Sprint directly?

**blue04srt** · 01-15-2009, 04:34 PM

I went through Best Buy and have had no problems at all. Got my free phone and free activation with my employer discount.

I do think their customer service is AWFUL, however I'm not planning on using it if I don't need to.

**chokaay** · 01-15-2009, 04:43 PM

Originally Posted by TonyTurboII

Ive personally never had a problem, and have always dealt with 3rd part dealers.

When I started peddling phones for Sprint any problems that arose with a customer were taken care of by me personally on the spot, wether or not they bought from me or another associate. A little CS goes a long way.

Maybe your problems are with dealing with Sprint directly?

Hmmmmmm... possibly. I always assumed that there would be LESS problems dealing directly with the carrier (ie: cutting out the "middle man", simplifying communication and the situation). Maybe next time when/if I refer anyone else to Sprint, I'll suggest they use a well-known 3rd-party dealer...

**chokaay** · 01-15-2009, 04:44 PM

Originally Posted by blue04srt

I went through Best Buy and have had no problems at all. Got my free phone and free activation with my employer discount.

I do think their customer service is AWFUL, however I'm not planning on using it if I don't need to.

Thanks for the suggestion... I may try them next time!

**ChicagoSU** · 01-15-2009, 06:43 PM

Sorry if I don't want to waste my time reading all that crap like you did writing all of it.

Originally Posted by chokaay

Awesome! I'm happy for you.

Unfortunately many others are not as lucky as you. Read my original post carefully and you'll find out that this isn't specifically about "me" not liking Sprint...

**chokaay** · 01-16-2009, 12:37 AM

Originally Posted by ChicagoSU

Sorry if I don't want to waste my time reading all that crap like you did writing all of it.

Well, with all due respect, if you didn't READ the thread, then why did you POST a response in it? No one asked/forced you to click on this thread, much less read this thread, much less post in it. If you don't have anything constructive to add to this thread, then I suggest you move on to a thread you have something useful to contribute to. Leave this thread to the people who actually have something significant to contribute. Hopefully this reply was short enough for you to read. If it wasn't, just let me know and I'll shorten it and use more simple words.

**NEXT_911** · 01-16-2009, 08:12 AM

Credit has nothing to do with Customer Service. If you don't like the credit policy, don't get Sprint. I am glad they have strengthened their requirements, it saves me the chargeback 3 months down the road. What they mean by "not enough debt" is that you probably have not shown enough credit / pay history. Sprint has left the old times of being a credit guinea pig for people...
There has to be a lack of something, or something negative for Sprint limit you to 3 lines with a spending limit. You have the right to contest anything on your credit report. Maybe you could have found out before proceeding with the activations...

Its not the sales reps fault that credit scored you that way. There is nothing a CS rep or sales rep can do to "approve" you. I have had customers with an account for years but could not be approved for an additional line because they get " hot lined " (either turned off b/c of past dues, or threatened to be turned off b/c of late pay) every other month.

I really don't understand with happen with your actual phone order, but did the Mall Kiosk have phones in stock? Or did you want them charged to your bill, so they were shipped? Your phones probably shipped standard shipping which is free, and not overnight which is extra. They could have been back ordered too.
Did you deal with the same person who "lure you in" the whole time, or did you walk in, then call in etc? The problem is people get impatient and want immediate satisfaction or answer, then there are 2-3 three people working on the same problem it ends up creating 2-3 more.

Anyway, it sounds like what happen is not the normal operating procedure... If you had been in my store, it would never have happen, because its not that complicated, and you would have known your options right after I ran your credit. Sounds like the first rep you dealt with didn't do a very good job. Why didn't you get the phones right there on the spot? Why did they have to be shipped? What phones did you order? Did you sign the contract that day?

**chokaay** · 01-16-2009, 09:51 AM

Thanks for your reply NEXT_911!

Originally Posted by NEXT_911

Credit has nothing to do with Customer Service. If you don't like the credit policy, don't get Sprint. I am glad they have strengthened their requirements, it saves me the chargeback 3 months down the road. What they mean by "not enough debt" is that you probably have not shown enough credit / pay history. Sprint has left the old times of being a credit guinea pig for people...
There has to be a lack of something, or something negative for Sprint limit you to 3 lines with a spending limit. You have the right to contest anything on your credit report. Maybe you could have found out before proceeding with the activations...

Its not the sales reps fault that credit scored you that way. There is nothing a CS rep or sales rep can do to "approve" you. I have had customers with an account for years but could not be approved for an additional line because they get " hot lined " (either turned off b/c of past dues, or threatened to be turned off b/c of late pay) every other month.

What puzzles me is why Sprint's credit policy is so much more strict than Verizon's, AT&T's or even T-Mobile's? Verizon and AT&T had no problems giving my friend 5 or 5+ lines each, no deposit, and AT&T would happily activate international roaming immediately (Verizon has a 90-day policy for all new customers). In my experience, T-Mobile also granted 5+ lines, no deposit, and would activate international roaming immediately. In my friend's case, Sprint would give him only 3 lines (no more, not even with deposit), and refused to activate international roaming for 13 MONTHS (needs the $600 spending limit to drop off the account)! I understand that Sprint has it's own independent policies, just like each of the other carriers, but IMHO, right now Sprint isn't in the "best" position to "pick-and-choose" who its customers are... especially if Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all are willing to accept the exact same customer with the exact same payment history/credit with open arms. It's not like Sprint has so much of a "premium product" or anything over the other carriers that it can afford to differentiate itself in this way (unlike LV, Ferrari, and other "premium" brands that have the reputation to afford to do that).

I really don't understand with happen with your actual phone order, but did the Mall Kiosk have phones in stock? Or did you want them charged to your bill, so they were shipped? Your phones probably shipped standard shipping which is free, and not overnight which is extra. They could have been back ordered too.

Did you deal with the same person who "lure you in" the whole time, or did you walk in, then call in etc? The problem is people get impatient and want immediate satisfaction or answer, then there are 2-3 three people working on the same problem it ends up creating 2-3 more.

Well, the mall kiosk situation was an entirely different person's bad experience (the original post contained numerous experiences in signing up, referring, and/or observing others go through the process of signing up for new accounts/lines/service with Sprint... they're all my and my friends'/relatives' experiences).

As far as my friend's most recent experience (the one with the credit department issues), he actually did deal with an actual Sprint Corporate Store. However, apparently Sprint Corporate Stores (or any other stores that sell Sprint) don't actually carry stock of the BlackBerry 8830 World Editions, so they must be ordered from the warehouse. Thus, first Sprint charges your credit card for the phones, then you have to wait 7-8 days for the phones to arrive (even when you let the store reps know you're in a rush because this is a time-sensitive order! Ironically, when ordering online Sprint overnights the phones directly to your door for FREE). Then you can go in to pick them up and Sprint will activate/provision them right there for you.

Anyway, it sounds like what happen is not the normal operating procedure... If you had been in my store, it would never have happen, because its not that complicated, and you would have known your options right after I ran your credit. Sounds like the first rep you dealt with didn't do a very good job. Why didn't you get the phones right there on the spot? Why did they have to be shipped? What phones did you order? Did you sign the contract that day?

I hope it wasn't normal operating procedure, and I would have LOVED to come to your store and have you (or another competent) rep help my friends/relatives (or I) out. (If your store is located in OC, then let me know!) I really hate going to the Sprint Corporate Stores around me because every single time I go into one, it takes me AT LEAST 2 HOURS to leave (even for the simplest question that should have taken 5 minutes), and they all seemed to be filled with incompetent reps that just want to push sales on you.