A bad experience dealing with AT&T Wireless

http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html

Joe wrote:
> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html


I have a simple way of disputing bills:

Always use a credit card. This puts more power in your hands.

Waste little time with the front line people. Politely request a
supervisor. If the supervisor refuses to help tell them that you plan to
dispute the charge. Remind them that it takes a lot more work on their
end than on yours. Tell them that when the company replies you will tell
them you disputed it because ________was unwilling to help.

Never accept "I can not do that". Tell them you believe they will not
do it but you know that they can. If they disagree ask what they would
do if their boss told them to do that.

If all else fails get the companies main number, not the toll free
customer service but corporate headquarters (yahoo finance usually has
that under "profile"). Ask for the executive offices or the legal
department. You will not get a CEO or senior v-p but you usually will
get someone whose job includes keeping problems away from upper management.

George Grapman wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html
>
>
> I have a simple way of disputing bills:
>
> Always use a credit card. This puts more power in your hands.
>
> Waste little time with the front line people. Politely request a
> supervisor. If the supervisor refuses to help tell them that you plan to
> dispute the charge. Remind them that it takes a lot more work on their
> end than on yours. Tell them that when the company replies you will tell
> them you disputed it because ________was unwilling to help.
>
> Never accept "I can not do that". Tell them you believe they will not
> do it but you know that they can. If they disagree ask what they would
> do if their boss told them to do that.
>
> If all else fails get the companies main number, not the toll free
> customer service but corporate headquarters (yahoo finance usually has
> that under "profile"). Ask for the executive offices or the legal
> department. You will not get a CEO or senior v-p but you usually will
> get someone whose job includes keeping problems away from upper management.


P.S. Two things that often get their attention:

Consumer fraud.

Small Claims Court.

"Joe" <useful_infos@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:ec44be4c-c79d-4ef8-bce5-0846bc01dfd9@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html

Never had any problems with AT&T until Cingular took over. Big difference
when AT&T was just AT&T with billing issues resolved quickly over the phone.
My experience with Cingular is you just go around and around and nothing
would be resolved even after they agree to it verbally. I just don't do
business with Cingular or Sprint. Wish the old AT&T were back though.

" Frank" <noreplay@nothome.net> wrote in message
news:YPqdne9LVusJ1LnVnZ2dnUVZ_v3inZ2d@comcast.com. ..
>
> "Joe" <useful_infos@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:ec44be4c-c79d-4ef8-bce5-0846bc01dfd9@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
>> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html
>
> Never had any problems with AT&T until Cingular took over. Big difference
> when AT&T was just AT&T with billing issues resolved quickly over the
> phone. My experience with Cingular is you just go around and around and
> nothing would be resolved even after they agree to it verbally. I just
> don't do business with Cingular or Sprint. Wish the old AT&T were back
> though.
>

Where have you been the past year? There is no Cingular anymore. ATT bought
them out. If you're getting lousy service you're getting it from ATT which
normally doesn't give 'lousy' service. Their service is usually
'abominable'.

Frank wrote:
> "Joe" <useful_infos@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:ec44be4c-c79d-4ef8-bce5-0846bc01dfd9@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
>> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html
>
> Never had any problems with AT&T until Cingular took over. Big difference
> when AT&T was just AT&T with billing issues resolved quickly over the phone.
> My experience with Cingular is you just go around and around and nothing
> would be resolved even after they agree to it verbally. I just don't do
> business with Cingular or Sprint. Wish the old AT&T were back though.
>
>
You haven't been keeping up. Cingular is gone and the remake of the
original AT&T (not the AT&T previous to cingular) is back. Here is a
helpful video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZErX...eature=related

"Joe" <useful_infos@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:ec44be4c-c79d-4ef8-bce5-0846bc01dfd9@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
> http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/attwireless.html

A brandy new webpage devoted to a "wrong" committed four year before?

No offense, but while I don't put huge billing errors past companies like
this, I do think they have better ways of making money than outright fraud,
particularly when I've never seen anyone ELSE complain about "redated calls"
either on Usenet or HowardForums.

Unless this is a particular fraud they only committed on the web page
author?

Sorry- this story smells way too fishy- billing systems are all automated-
no one is "sneaking" extra calls to any one person's account, and it
concerns a company, frankly, that's no longer in business- the "AT&T
Wireless" complained about in the article (that had no relationship with
"AT&T" other than licensing the name) was bought by Cingular years ago. The
fact that Southwestern Bell (the owner of Cingular,) years later, also
bought AT&T (the long distance phone company) and renamed itself and it's
wireless company "AT&T" is essentially coincidence, and not the same company
our author is whining about.

Ironically, BTW, is there a reason you didn't add the AT&T or Cingular
newsgroups in your scattershot list? It would seem they have better need
for this "warning" than Sprint or Verizon customers. (Of course, there it'd
only generate a bunch of "funny, that's never happed to me" responses...)

At 09 May 2008 09:23:03 -0400 beadsbyirene wrote:
>
> Where have you been the past year? There is no Cingular anymore.
> ATT bought
> them out. If you're getting lousy service you're getting it from ATT
which
> normally doesn't give 'lousy' service. Their service is usually
> 'abominable'.


*Sigh* AT&T did NOT "buy out" Cingular. Cingular's parent company, SBC
(Southwestern Bell) bought (what was left of) AT&T,and renamed themselves
and their "Cingular" wireless divison, to "AT&T" for the name-brand
recognition.

"Todd Allcock" <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote in message
news:utaVj.37861$gB5.8129@fe105.usenetserver.com.. .
> At 09 May 2008 09:23:03 -0400 beadsbyirene wrote:
>>
>> Where have you been the past year? There is no Cingular anymore.
>> ATT bought
>> them out. If you're getting lousy service you're getting it from ATT
> which
>> normally doesn't give 'lousy' service. Their service is usually
>> 'abominable'.
>
>
> *Sigh* AT&T did NOT "buy out" Cingular. Cingular's parent company, SBC
> (Southwestern Bell) bought (what was left of) AT&T,and renamed themselves
> and their "Cingular" wireless divison, to "AT&T" for the name-brand
> recognition.

Actually they bought BellSouth which owned Cingular...

At 10 May 2008 08:22:45 -0400 Pangloss wrote:

> > *Sigh* AT&T did NOT "buy out" Cingular. Cingular's parent company, SBC
> > (Southwestern Bell) bought (what was left of) AT&T,and renamed
themselves
> > and their "Cingular" wireless divison, to "AT&T" for the name-brand
> > recognition.
>
> Actually they bought BellSouth which owned Cingular...

Almost- SBC (now AT&T) bought BellSouth who owned 40% of Cingular (SBC
owned the other 60%.)

I skipped that part for simplicity (and irrelevance.) Cingular was always
a joint-venture between SBC and BS. After absorbing both AT&T and BS, SBC
was free to rename Cingular to AT&T.