Getting Screwed by Cingular

Getting Screwed by Cingular (Updated 12/5/02)

Background Info:

Here's what Cingular has done to me in the first two and a half months since I've opened a new contract with them (under my sister's name).

On October 10, I called them to inquire when I would be charged $93.41 (first two month's service + activation fee). I was advised that the charge would be made on time and that there will be no late fee. Turns out the charge was never made and I had to call them back on 10/21 (10/20, the original due date of the bill, was a Sunday). The CSR assured me that I would not be charged a late fee (and guess what? A $1.40 late fee was assessed to my account the next month).
On November 5, I noticed my online bill did not reflect the $93.41 that I did pay the previous month. I also noticed an additional charge of $50.75 (one month service + late fee for last month). I checked my credit card statement and noticed a authorization for about $144 on my credit card. The second CSR assured me that it was just an authorization and I would never see the charge. Two days later, guess what? A charge for $144.16 appears on my credit card on Nov. 7. For those of you keeping score at home, that means I've already been lied to three times. And I've already paid $237.57 for < 3 months of service.
I was supposed to get a $50 rebate check for my phone, but the rebate processing company screwed me out of the rebate, saying that my phone was ineligible for the rebate (even though the form CLEARLY states that it is). A call to another CSR clears the rebate and gives me a $50 credit which should have been applied immediately...it was not. My monthly bill is < $50, so I should not have paid anything for the month of November...instead, I get hit with that $144.16 bill that I was barely able to pay off. BTW, the rebate wasn't officially credited to my account until early December (that's four lies now).
Upon discussing my displeasure about the billing, all I was told was that "it's the website's fault." Yeah, right...a huge company like Cingular has to blame their website for their inability to get their billing right. NOTE: They eventually credited my account properly, and there is a $97.12 credit on my account, which is stuck there unless I give them a call to release the funds. That will take > 30 days (which, by then, will mean I'll have to pay for another month of service already!)

The Plot:

Even though the math works out properly, I was still very displeased with being lied to so many times. I called them up once more and was told that I was pretty much out of luck and they would not do anything to rectify the situation, except to speed up any refund I request from them. I was also told to email Cingular if I was really upset with them. I sent them a (quite angry) email about my displeasure:

First and foremost, I apologize for the length of this email.

I am frustrated and very upset with Cingular.com and the CSRs over the phone. I have been charged $237.57 for less than 3 months of service, and I have a $97.12 credit on my account as of right now for a refund. The math works out correctly, but the fact that I was overcharged at the beginning really upsets me, especially since I was forced to pay that money in advance to my credit card company. I was told by a CSR over the phone that it would take 15-30(!!!) days to issue a refund (by then, of course, the refund would be moot because I would have to pay the next month's bill).

This is just the latest problem I've had with Cingular...and none of it has to do with the phone service itself. Here are all the other problems I've had with either Cingular.com or Cingular over the phone:

1) I had to call in manually to charge my credit card even though I had the credit card set up online. I was assured that I would not be charged a late fee, but I was (lie #1).

2) Upon calling about the late fee, I was told that it would be refunded immediately (lie #2).

3) I was charged $93.41 for the first month of service...for some reason, it did not show on my online account, so I had an authorization of $144.16 the next month ($93.41 + $50.75, including that late fee). I was told that the authorization would be made, but I would never be charged the $144.16, which I was charged two days later(lie #3).

4) I had a $50 rebate on my phone that I never got…the rebate company basically lied by saying the rebate form was invalid for the model of phone I bought (even though the rebate clearly said it was OK)...upon calling, I was told that the $50 rebate would instantly be made to the account (lie #4).

The best part is, this entire situation has occurred over a brief 3 month period in which the account has been opened. The last phone CSR suggested that it was out of their control and nothing could be done about it. I beg to differ. I feel that, for all the headaches that have occurred over such a short period of time that I should be entitled to compensation of some sort, something along the lines of either free months of service or a discount (per month) of service for the duration of my contract. I respectfully hope that you will agree.

And if any of this sounds too unbelievable to be true, I have online statements and credit card statements to back up my case.

Obviously I wasn't happy with their service. What really ticked me off was their reply:

Thank you for contacting Cingular Wireless and allowing us to assist you
with your inquiry.

We apologize that our service did not meet your expectations. Your
comments are appreciated and have been shared with the appropriate
members of management. We are committed to providing the best wireless
services at the most competitive price. The opinions of our valued
customers help us to achieve our goal.

Upon review of your account, I noticed that you were issued a credit for
the late fee you were charged due to our website not properly working.
The credit was applied to your account, which you may view on your last
monthly statement under Adjustments to previous balance. You were
also credited by one of our customer service representatives $50.00 for
the rebate you were promised. This credit was also applied to your
account, which you may view on your last monthly statement under
Adjustments to previous balance. Below, I have listed all of your
current charges, payments made, adjustments made, and your current
balance of your account:

9/27/02 $93.41 monthly service charges (due on or before 10/20/02)
10/22/02 - $93.41 payment
10/23/02 - $50.00 adjustment for rebate
10/27/02 - $50.75 monthly service charges (plus $93.41 past due)
11/04/02 - $144.16 payment
11/12/02 - $1.40 adjustment for late fee
11/27/02 - $47.69 monthly service charges
12/030/2 - $-97.12 current balance

At this time, you do not owe anything on your account and you have a
current credit balance of $97.12. We have issued you a total of $51.40
in credits to your account as a courtesy to you. Upon review of your
account, no credits are due to you at this time. If you have any
questions or concerns, please feel free to respond to this email,
leaving all original text attached, and we will be happy to assist you.

We at Cingular Wireless appreciate your business and value you as a
customer.

Sincerely,
Danielle Monroe
Cingular Wireless
E-Care Services

I applaud Cingular for their obvious ignorance. Clearly I acknowledged above that the math was right, and I had no problem with that. I had a problem with their awful Customer "service" and yet that was never addressed in the response! What really ticked me off is the highlighted line above...they issued me a "courtesy" credit of $51.40??? That's my $51.40 ($1.40 late fee + $50 rebate)...how is that being courteous?

I sent them a more heated reply about this:

Thank you for your prompt reply. I noted in my original email that the math
works out correctly (and that I'm not owed any money, per se) and I have no
problem with that. And I was also aware that the web site was not properly
working...I was notified of that.

The problems I'm having with Cingular Customer "Care" (and I use quotes for
a good reason) is due to the fact that I've been lied to four times as noted
in my original email, and I had to pay for 5 months of service in advance
(if you think about it) with no fault on my own! If there was a problem
with the website, and the problem was going to persist, why wasn't I told
this in the first place? Why was I promised that no late fee would be
charged to me, since it was the website having problems? Why was I told
that I would never see the $144.16 charge on my statement, and that the
"charge" was nothing more than an authorization? And why was I promised
that the rebate credit would be made immediately to my account?

Needless to say, I'm displeased with an answer of nothing more than "the
website's not properly working" as I've been told numerous times as the
reason for all the problems.

What could be more clear than the first couple lines of that second paragraph? Obviously I wasn't happy with the service itself, and I thought that would make it perfectly clear. Apparently, that's not the case...

Thank you for visiting our website and allowing us to assist you with
your billing inquiry.

At this time, our Online Customer Care team handles correspondence seven
days a week, within 48 business hours. As we develop this new channel
of customer communication, our email response time will become more
prompt.

I do apologize that you feel Customer Care lied to you. You were told
you would receive credits to your account, and you did. Your first bill
had prorated charges as do all first bills, it went unpaid and the next
statement came out at which time you did make payment. You also made a
payment that was $51.40 over what was due, so the remaining stayed on
your account as a credit balance. You have never been billed for 5
months of service in advance. I do hope that we all have an
understanding of the full situation at this time.

We realize there are many choices in the wireless market, and we thank
you for choosing Cingular Wireless! If there is anything we can assist
you with in the future, please feel free to contact us again at
www.cingular.com.

Sincerely,

Cindy Darnell
Cingular Wireless
E-Care Services

No...apparently they don't have a full grasp of the situation. Do you see them addressing the fact that they lied to me? And why do they keep bringing up the fact that the math works out properly? I have already conceded this, yet they continue to insist that I'm wrong! BTW, note the first highlighted line...they do acknowledge a problem with the site there...at least. And yes I have been charged for 5 months in advance (I later figured out I was wrong there...$237.57 was for four months of service, not five).

No, apparently you don't have a full understanding of the situation.

I was charged $244 in the first two months. I acknowledge that I wasn't
supposed to pay that much, and I acknowledge that the website was messed up,
and that probably led to the overcharges. However, I was lied to. On more
than one occasion, as mentioned before.

Also, the $51.40 was what was owed to me ($1.40 was a late fee that I was
promised wouldn't be charged to me--do you not consider that a lie?--$50 was
for a rebate that your rebate company tried to screw me over!). I did not
make a payment of $51.40 over what I was owed. I now have a credit of $94,
which, for all intents and purposes, means that I was forced to pay for 5
months in advance (and I didn't appreciate the over-the-phone CSR saying
that at least I wouldn't have to pay for the next two months). Look at the
math in the last email I sent you...the prior CSR acknowledged that I was
overcharged. Furthermore, the first month's bill only went unpaid because of
the website! I was assured in early October by a phone CSR that I will be
charged before the 20th, which never happened...is this also not a lie?

And if you are acknowledging that I did eventually make payment on the first
month's charge, then why the heck was I charged the same $94 on top of the
next month's fee on the next statement? And why was I told that I would
never be charged the $144, even though I was? Is this also not a lie?

I'll acknowledge one thing, however...$244 doesn't constitute 5 months of
service, only 4. I guess I lied there...

There...at least I was big enough to acknowledge my error. Yet they still haven't explained why their CSRs lied to me. And they have yet to give me a good reason for the erroneous charges. And doesn't saying that I was lied to on multiple occasions earn at least a good explanation? Apparently not:

Thank you for visiting our website and allowing us to assist you with
your Cingular Wireless account.

We apologize if we have been unable to properly explain the contents of
your billing statement. At times it is best to speak to our
representatives for further insight regarding billing, pricing plan, and
service issues. For a more in-depth clarification of your current
monthly service statement, please contact our Customer Financial
Services Department at (800-393-7267), during the hours of operations
below:

Monday - Friday: 8:00am to 8:30 pm
Saturday: 8:30am to 5:00pm

Sunday: Closed

Should you have any further questions, please feel free to email us via
at www.cingular.com, or you can contact our Customer Care at
1-866-CINGULAR.

We at Cingular Wireless appreciate your business and value you as a
customer.

Sincerely,

William Atkins
Cingular Wireless
E-Care Services

Talk about passing the letter buck!!! The phone CSR told me to email my concerns to Cingular, and now they're telling me to call up a phone CSR!!! And do you notice they still haven't addressed the issue about their lousy CSRs lying to me???

I would love to speak to a Customer "Care" rep...however it was a rep that
told me to email my complaints about the website and these billing issues.

For the last time, I acknowledge that there is no problem, per se, with my
billing statement. There is no problem with billing, there is no problem
with my pricing plan, there is no problem with the phone service itself!

The problem I'm having with Customer "Care" is the simple fact that you guys
obviously can't keep your word. And it's not just one incident...I have
been lied to 5 times already, with no good explanation as to why this is the
case, other than a simple "the website's messed up." Why was I told what I
was told (five different times) if there was some uncertainty? I would much
rather have heard your company confess that the site is messed up and that
any overcharges will be fixed...but I was never told that. Instead I was
lied to...I was told by your Customer "Care" represetatives that I wouldn't
have any problems with billing and that all problems would be fixed ASAP.

Three months is not ASAP...and I am sick and tired of the "passing the
letter buck" that is apparently going on. I'm also sick and tired of how
Customer "Care" is sweeping under the rug the fact that I was deceived by
your service reps.

I look forward to hearing your reply.

Even when I'm really pissed off, I can be a nice guy =). Note that I told them that I had already contacted a phone CSR, and that they did NOTHING for me. I thought I clearly addressed the issue with that third paragraph. Apparently, they could care less...

Thank you for contacting Cingular Wireless. We would be happy to assist
with your inquiry.

In reviewing your account, I do see that you have already been assisted
by one of our E-Care representatives and this is a duplicate email.

Should you have any further questions, please feel free to email us at
www.cingular.com or you can contact our Customer Care at 1-866-CINGULAR.

We at Cingular Wireless appreciate your business and value you as a
customer.

Sincerely,

Jannette Baltazar
Cingular Wireless
E-Care Services

WHAT? What does that answer? Have I really been assisted???

Here's the email I sent back to them:

Apparently customer "care" really doesn't exist over there at Cingular. I
have YET to hear a good explanation for why your CSRs lied to me numerous
times. This latest email serves no purpose but to tell me that a CSR has
"handled" my situation...yeah, right.

Oh, and if the CSR handling this email has no idea what I'm talking about,
I've decided to summarize this entire debacle on this web page.

http://home.earthlink.net/~ungsunghero/cingular.htm

This way, the next CSR should have no problem understanding the entire
situation (I apologize for the length of that page, but that's exactly what
I've gone through in the last 2+ months no thanks to customer "care").

If I don't get a good explanation as to why I was lied to so many times,
this will be forwarded to the BBB.

I have nothing more to say.

Sometimes I'm a nice guy...sometimes...=).

I decided to give Cingular a call, just for fun. I actually got to speak to a nice rep (what a change!!!) who felt that I was wrongfully treated. Although she was unable to explain why I was lied to so many times, at least she faulted "human error" as the cause (the first time I've seen this!). I was offered a $10/month credit for the next three months (December through February), which should leave me six months of full price service until I have to make the decision of whether or not to keep the contract. I feel better already, knowing that there is at least one CSR who's honest and straightforward! We'll see what happens...

Here's their latest reply:

Thank you for visiting our web site and allowing us to assist you with
your Cingular Wireless account. I apologize for the delay in responding
to your request.

Our records indicate that you have called into our Customer Care
Department and they have assisted you on December 5, 2002.

Should you have other questions, please reply to this email (leaving the
original email attached), or contact us via our web site at
http://www.cingular.com. We appreciate your business and we look forward
to assisting you further.

Sincerely,
Patricia Terrell
Cingular Wireless
E-Care Services

Applause! At least they were smart enough to realize that everything has been "fixed." Guess that's the end of this ordeal...at least for now.

Latest Update (2/28/03)

It's been over two months since my last update, and I must say it appears that Cingular might have finally rectified the situation (sort of). The $30 was credited to my account, and I finally have to pay a Cingular bill for the first time since the whole ordeal. It's about $15, so it's no big deal...but I didn't mind the $10 discount. This contract ends in about six months...I can't wait for that day. I wonder what I should ask them for. Free months of service? A brand new phone? A monthly discount?

I can't wait...(insert evil grin). BTW, I have nearly 2000 rollover minutes to this point...there's no way I'm going to change the terms of my contract.

What's Next?

There's still the BBB...I've already received a reply to them about where to send a complaint. Should I still do it? And my friend suggested I go live with this story (news.com)...but I don't know if I should do it. If you feel I should, email or IM me!

I still have not been given a good reason for being lied to other than "human error."...

Email me @ ungsunghero@hotmail.com or IM me @ ungsunghero for suggestions.