Cingular
Is bad business, overcharged, won't replace phones, double-billed Ripoff

I had been an AT&T customer for 8 years starting with an individual plan that grew into a four-line family plan. Cingular acquired AT&T earlier this year which was just the beginning of my nightmare.in July I needed to modify my plan. Cingular forced me to buy all new phones in order to accommodate the plan change. Additionally they charged an activation fee for each of my four lines! They offered to split the new equipment charges over a three-month cycle to which I agreed. The first bill I received from them included my regular plan charges and the full cost of all new equipment plus activation fees. I was very surprised by activation fees, after all I hadn't asked them to buy my phone company.

An hour on the phone with their customer service department cleared up the billing issue and I sent them the first of three payments that would eventually total $776.32.in September Cingular disconnected my service for non-payment even though they had received almost $800 from me. A four-hour conversation with their customer service department had revealed that the money I'd been sending was being routed through the AT&T billing service. Not only that, but the month of July had been charged by both AT&T and Cingular and I owed late payments! After a second three-hour conversation, Cingular agreed to refund the double-billed month but was unable to transfer the payment from AT&T billing to Cingular, so I had to pay the outstanding Cingular balance and wait 7 weeks for a refund check from AT&T billing. I was still charged the late payment for the double-billed month!

In October my ten-year old daughter lost her cell phone. Cingular would not let me cancel just the one line unless I wanted to pay a $150.00 cancellation fee, although I would keep the plan and the three active lines. They de-activated the line (I still pay the 14.99 line charge) and said no charges could be applied to that line. The following month I received a statement with download charges against the deactivated line. Another one-hour conversation with customer service credited back the download charges the following cycle. I was charged late fees on the unpaid download charge however, so the refund was a wash.

The latest episode is what is turning out to be the final straw. My daughter accidentally put my cell phone in the washing machine 8 days before Christmas. I do not carry replacement insurance on my phones and am prepared to pay full retail price should one ever get lost. Having spent 8 years as a satisfied AT&T customer I have experienced phone replacement, it was as easy as walking into the store, choosing my phone and having the charges added to my next bill. Not so with Cingular.

Another two-hour conversation with customer service seemed at first to have resolved the problem. The representative I spoke with said I had achieved VIP status' and was eligible for free replacement phones, the LG C1500 model (both my line and my daughter's line were eligible for this phone so I decided I would do it and replace my daughter's long lost phone as a Christmas gift). I could go to any Cingular store and pick them up whenever I was ready. But that's not what happened.

First of all the stores where I live cannot sell me a phone because I do not live in the same area as telephone number I use. This is very important to frequent travelers. If you are out of your area and lose your phone you cannot replace it where you are if you choose Cingular as your wireless carrier! No other carriers seem to have this restriction. I was in the mall today and approached each of the major carrier kiosks and asked if they could sell me a phone and activate the existing out-of-state phone number and all of them could except Cingular.

Cingular also will not let me bill new equipment, it must be paid for out-of-pocket. My phone plan costs around $175.00 a month and I consider myself to be a very good customer with a good track record for payment, especially if you consider 8 years of on-time payments with AT&T but Cingular doesn't care. I never had to pay up front for new phones with AT&T, they just billed me, they also offered a variety of options for receiving the phone including shipping to alternate addresses.

However, Cingular is set up with regional franchises and my accounts cannot be accessed out of my area, which makes my mobile plan not so mobile. Cingular also will not ship my phone to another address than my billing address if I order through customer service. I am getting ready to go home for the holidays in two days which means the phone will not arrive to my house in time and I will be without my cell phone for the duration of my 8-day vacation since they will not ship it to my family's house where I'll be staying.

Back on the phone for another unendurable customer service call revealed that the representative I had previously spoken with was incorrect, I could only get the free phones if I signed up for two additional lines! The representative who broke this news to me was extremely rude and condescending. She informed that I had no such VIP standing' and she had removed the notes on my account authorizing the free phones. She said that I would just have to suck it up and spend the money' and that I was stupid for not buying replacement insurance' the quotes are word-for-word! When I asked her name so that I could register a complaint, she hung up on me!

Cingular is not interested in treating their customers with respect or assisting them with issues. JD Powers ranks them second-to-last in customer service, with a score of 95, well below the other major carriers who average scores over 100. See the link below for their ranking report. Additionally, I have researched the value I get from my calling plan against the other major carriers to discover that Cingular charges the most money for the least coverage. A table below outlines the cost associated with plans that provide comparable coverage and service to my current plan between the five major carriers.

The bottom line is be very careful who you choose to provide your wireless service. I am ready to cancel service with Cingular and will probably choose T-Mobile. I never chose Cingular to begin with, they acquired AT&T and managed the transition very poorly. Of course I will have to pay $600 to cancel my contract, but in the end, I think it may be worth it. I would not recommend Cingular to anyone, even someone I didn't like!

Wireless Covered Add'l Lines Txt Msg Total Cost JD Powers
Company Minutes Scores

Cingular 1500 Minutes 50 - text only
99.99 14.99 2.99 each line 156.92 95

T-Mobile 2000 Minutes 400 any type
(plan includes 2 lines)
99.99 7.99 4.99 each line 135.93 108

Verizon 1400 minutes unlimited in-network
(plan includes 2 lines) 50 additional msgs
89.99 9.99 5.00 each line 129.97 104

Sprint 1500 minutes 100 any type
(plan includes 2 lines)
89.99 10.00 5.00 each line 129.99 93

Alltel 1400 minutes 300 any type
79.99 9.99 5.99 each line 133.92 100

Stacy
Kingston Springs, Tennessee
U.S.A.

Company: Cingular
Country: USA
State: Georgia
City: Atlanta
Address: 5565 Glenridge Connector

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