I bought a Straighttalk cell phone 3/18. I wanted to port my Vonage phone number to the new cell phone. I got the run around stating it would take a while. I called everyday startinf 3/19 to expedite the number transfer. I was told phone would be active 3/22 @ 2pm. 3/23/12/@ 2pm 3/24 by 12pm then finally 3/28 when my Vonage phone stopped working. When I called I was told by 2pm. When 3 p, came I called and worker stated phone would be active by 2pm. It was already 3pm.
I worked through the Vonage portability technicians and they sent me an e-mail stating that Straight Talk needs to do a new request with this info included. For 3 days nobody at Straight Talk wanted that info, telling me they know better. I asked to speak with an American Corporate representative. They gave me Jose who is clearly not in the USA. He gave me a bogus e-mail address to forward the Vonage e-mail. The e-mail address he gave did not work and my computer tried resending it 5 days in a row. When I asked for a correct address nobody would give me one. When dealing with a Management rep they gave m a phone number 3 different times that did not work so I had to go throught the gate keeper every time and they had no clue as to what was going on. It was clear that they were working from a scripted text and could not think or answer questions outside that scripted text.
I spent al least 15 hours on hold with these guys. My home phone battery dies at leats 5 times and they would not call me back on the alternate number I provided after informing them my phone battery was going to die. Then I was promised that when Vonage turned off my phone and it no longer worked, they could port that number to my phone and all I had to do was call *22890 and get my phone activated immediately. Vonage shut off my phone as requested and when I started trying to activate my new Straight Talk phone it would not activate even though I was told my phone would work. That was 3/28. I started this process 3/19. 3/27 I spoke with a straight talk manager who did a 3 way call with Vonage. He asked why Straight Talk did not include the info theyu sent me with the new port request. I explained that nobody from Straight Talk for full days would take that info from me. Corporate reps stated they would personally handle my number being ported to my new cell. That guy wanted the e-mail from Vonage but gave me a non-working email address. He spelled it out in some Indian dialect but it was wrong and nobody for 4 days would give me the right contact phone number that worked for corporate and an e-mail adress that worked.
Now I have no home phone, no cell phone and now Straight Talk is blaming it on Vonage even though Vonage kept assuring me they have released the number to straight talk. Straight talk said they were wrong but straight talk would not connect me with an American Corporate rep so I could try and get this whole mess straightened out. My last communication with them left me with a promise, like the other 4 promises that my phone will be active 3/29 @ 2pm.
I asked why I could not talk with an American Company rep and they gave me the run around. I explained that I am a state case worker who is guardian for 20 people and needed a phone at home that worked. They did not care. The vonage rep told the manager on the 3 way call that he sent me the info to give to them for a reason. It would have expedited the number transfer 3 days earlier. I told the guy Straight Talk did not want that from and the worker on the line from Straight Talk said she is not used to doing things that way.
Nobody at Corporate would or could help me. 2 different guys promised me from Corporate that they would personally handle this number transfer and activation and keep me informed. I never heard back from them nor did they do anything that could be read in the record where they did anything helpful at all.
I told them I wanted to just at this point give my phone i bought from Wal Mart back to them for my money and my unactivated $50 service card and go with a Verizon cell contract. There was no way they knew of to get my money back and cancel this whole process. Then they tried telling me that Verizon was the company in my area that let straight talk use their towers and the number portability issue was with Verizon. I just got sick and tired of being manipulated, promised and lied to and gave up. I am a state case worker and I navigate many companies and organizations as a guardian and rep payee. I have never been more disgusted, angry and left feeling helpless than with dealing with Tracfone / Straight Talk. They absolutely refused to connect me with an American Corporate Rep so I can file a formal complaint and get a working phone. I have given up.
After 10 days of dealing with this for hours at a time, lost productivity and almost having a stroke as a result of the scripted useless help, I just want to notify the FTC and FCC regarding totally incompetent company reps and the lack of honoring any request to get corporate help. I have no positive energy left to deal with this issue. I do know one thing. There is a serious communication problem when dealing with out-sourced employees. If our government relied on this type of professional help we would lose every difficult encounter our country ever ran into. I am a government worker and thought I have seen gross incompetence at the highest levels until dealing with Straight Talk / Tracfone. The corporate guys have totally isolated themselves from the cries of foundering American consumers and only care that they can make a fast buck with out-sourced help until they retire or the company collapses from within because of gross corporate incompetence.
I will never do business with Tracfone or Straight Talk after this. Something needs to be done now. This type of customer service spreads. When young people are dealing with this company. They see that all you have to do is duck and pass the difficult unscripted ordeal off to another clueless co-worker and life is good for them but really sucks for the guy who spent money on a phone and airtime card. I currently have no working cell and no Vonage home phone. Somebody out there must have an answer. We need to take back our country and get back to a level of pride when doing our jobs.
0 comments