I just wanted to share a letter I wrote to Alltel. I also filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureua. I wrote this letter through planetfeedback.com. It's a great site, that will help you when a big business treats you unfair. You should check out alltel's feedback on planetfeedback.com and (Better Business Bureua) bbb.com They do the same thing to alot of other people that they did to me.
Here's the letter.
I'll post their reply when and if I get one.
Here's the letter.
[b said:Quote[/b] ]July 21, 2004
TO:
Joe T Ford, CEO
Alltel Communications Services
1 Allied Drive
Little Rock, AR 72202-2013
FROM:
Mark Todd
XXX XXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX ,XX XXXXX
voodoodancer@hotmail.com
RE: PLANETFEEDBACK REFERENCE NUMBER 2182112
Dear Mr. Ford,
The world thrives on communication today, which is why I'm so upset with the
customer service at Alltel Communications Services. Quite honestly, I'm furious
about this issue. Just for the record, here's my telephone information: ### ### ####.
Here's my complaint: I am very annoyed at alltel. I feel that I have been conned
by the company, and my money has been stolen from me twice.
The problems started as soon as I got my new phone. The phone worked ok for two
days. Then it said I had no service. I called customer service and they told me
that they must have a tower down and to wait for a day then my service should be
restored. I waited the problem was never fixed. So I called back, again they
told me they had a tower down and I should wait. Again I waited. The next day I
called back, they told me that there was no tower down, there must be a problem
with my phone, and told me to take it back to the store where I bought it. I
informed the technician that I bought the service over the phone with them. He
then went through my info and found that my service was turned off. I can
understand things go wrong and mistakes happen, so I let it slide.
The next problem happened after I had the phone for about two months. My phone
was destroyed by my dog. I know that was my fault, but that is no excuse for
what happened next. I went to an Alltel dealer and asked to buy another phone. I
was told it was cheaper to cancel the service and open another one. So I did.
When I made my last payment I (in good faith) overpaid by $4. I was planning to
use your service for many years, so I knew that in time I would use that money.
You told me that it is your policy to not refund money from a prepaid account.
The $4 was mine that I worked for. You did not provide me any services for it. I
think if you cared about your customers you would not steal money from them.
Like I said I was wanting to be a longterm customer, so I let this slide too.
The next problem happened about 2 weeks after I got my new phone. All of a
sudden I couldn't get any reception in the town that I live in. The phone would
say no service. When I was near a tower I would get maybe one or two bars of
reception. I called customer service and they told me once again that a tower
was down. I waited a day and then called back. I was told that there was no
tower down but they would put in a work order to see if there was a problem with
the towers. I waited another day. I called back. I was told that there was a
problem with my phone. They said the software needed upgraded. Like I said this
was a brand new phone, why would the software need upgradeing? But I wanted my
phone fixed so I let him try to upgrade the software. He said it didn't work and
I had to take it in to a dealer to be upgraded. This was Saturday on Memorial
day weekend. He told me that the closest dealer to me would be open on Sunday. I
already knew that they were closed on Sundays, and I asked him to check and see
if they would be open on Monday. He told me yes. I went there on Monday and they
were closed. I went back on Tuesday. The dealer tried to upgrade the software
but said he couldn't. I had to take it to a dealer in the next town. So I drove
to the next town. They upgraded the software. I left and I still had the same
problems. So I once again called customer service. I told them all I had went
through and my phone still didn't work. They told me I had to take it back to
the dealer. I went back to the dealer where I had bought the phone and told him
the phone still didn't work. He told me that he would have to send the phone off
to be repaired and that could take six weeks. I said what do I do while the
phone is being fixed, I need to have a phone. He said he would give me a loaner
phone but he was out of them. He told me that if I go to the store in the next
town they may have a loaner for me. So I went back to the other dealer. They
told me since I didn't buy the phone there they couldn't give me a loaner. Again
I had wasted my gas because of misinformation your agent gave me. So I once
again called customer service. I told them all I had went through and my phone
still didn't work. The response I got was I'm sorry there is nothing I can do. I
asked to be compensated for all the time I had been without a phone, the
misinformation I had gotten from your customer service, the wasted gas I had
used going back and forth to one dealer to the other. They told me that since I
was a prepaid account they couldn't reimburse me. They said since I was prepaid
there was nothing that they would do to make it up to me. I almost canceled the
service right then. You should realize that I don't have a contract, and since I
don't I can close my account with you at any time and go to another phone
company. You should work harder to make me happy instead of treating me like a
second class customer. I went back to the dealer I bought the phone from and
demanded that he either fix my phone, give me a loaner phone, or give me a new
phone. I refused to leave the store until he did one of the three. After about
10 mins he saw I was serious, and he agreed to give me a loaner phone.
What happened next was the final straw, it not only made me cancel your service
but proved to me that you don't care at all about your customers, and you are
nothing but a common thief.
I got a call from the dealer that sent my phone off to be repaired. He said my
phone was in. I went to pick it up. He told me that the phone had moisture
damage and it couldn't be fixed. He told me I had to buy another phone. I told
him that this phone was brand new, I used it less than two weeks. There was no
way it could have moisture damage. There was no signs at all of any moisture in
the phone. The screen was perfectly clear. I figured that was just a trick by
you and the dealer to make me buy another phone instead of fixing the phone I
had. I told him I refuse to buy another phone and I want to cancel the service.
I had paid my bill in full two days earlier. I told him that I wanted my money
back. He spent 45 mins on the phone and then told me that a supervisor was going
to call him back. He said he would call me when he hears something. He called me
about an hour later and said that I couldn't have my money. The money I work
hard for. You didn't do anything to earn that money. You took it and then
refused to fix my problem. In my opinion that is the same thing as stealing. I
just want you to know that I will not go away quietly. I'm also going to contact
the Better Business Bureau. You need to do the right thing here. Before this
happened I was going to get another account for my wife, so you have already
lost two customers. I read your feedback on Planetfeedback.com and I see that
you have stolen alot of peoples money. This is no isolated event.
I'm not surprised, and do you know why? I've been very dissatisfied with your
company in the past. But given the nature of this problem, I'll take my business
elsewhere from now on. And I'll definitely tell other people about my negative
experience so they can avoid it in the future.
Here's what I'd like to see happen: I want you to refund the $4 that you kept of
mine from my first account, I want the $40 from the second. I want you to pay
for the miles that I had to travel because all the misinformation that you gave
me. (135 miles x .50 a mile)I also want you to pay for the brand new phone that
I can't use and the days that I couldn't use my phone (10 days - $15).
I would also recommend that you make a policy change so this doesn't happen
again. Just because somebody chooses not to have a contract, doesn't mean that
you should treat them with any less respect. They still pay their money just
like you customers with a contract. You should do more to keep their business
because they can at anytime drop you and go to another carrier, just like I did.
I hope you get back to me soon. In this age of modern communication, seemingly
simple things should not go unresolved. I'll expect a response within 10
business days.
Sincerely,
voodoodancer@hotmail.com
CC:
mark
Marcy Kaptur
Mike DeWine
George Voinovich
I'll post their reply when and if I get one.