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Hello everyone,
I have one hell of a story to tell about one boy, two phones (the htc hd2 and the samsung vibrant), and one freakin' committed customer service team (T-Mobile's). OK, so I'll begin my story of how I ended up with a brand-new Vibrant for essentially 350 bucks. Bear with me here, it's a bit long. So, I originally purchased an htc hd2 way back in mid-June for 300 bucks on Craigslist. The phone ended up being defective because of a hardware issue, and because it happened to be under the "buyer's remorse" period, at least the way T-Mobile saw it, I was able to return it by mail for a brand new one for free. I was surprised when I called to learn that T-Mobile didn't require a single piece of information to verify that I was the original owner of the phone, all they saw was that an htc hd2 had magically been activated on such and such a date. So, I returned that hd2 and recieved a new one in a couple of days, which ended up being just as buggy as the last one, so I decided to abandon the hd2 altogether in exchange for the Samsung Vibrant. I called T-Mobile customer service today to setup the exchange for the vibrant, which would cost me 50 bucks since the hd2 cost 450 and the vibrant costs 500, and I was FINALLY told that they had no record of me ever buying an hd2 (I wonder why, lol). I then explained to them that I wasn't the original owner of the phone and that I had bought it from the original owner, but that the phone had been purchased only a few days before they sold it to me. They told me at first that I would have contact the original owner and get the 450 bucks credited back to there account. The only problem was that I had no way of contacting the original owner, and that they had switched carriers almost immediately after purchasing the hd2. After about four hours, and many many phone calls later, I called t-mobile one last time to explain my situation, keep in mind that I was totally honest the entire time, I reached a very nice customer service rep, and after explaining what had happened to me, and after speaking to her supervisor for over ten minutes, she told me that even though they almost never do this, that they would "take my word for it" and send the vibrant, no questions asked, for basically 50 bucks. I was over the moon considering that less than 5 minutes ago I had thought that I had thrown away 300 dollars. I would like to give some major props to T-Mobile's customer support, never in a million years would I have expected a customer service team work so hard to keep a a customer happy. Talk about going the distance. Well, that's my story. Tell me what you think, and what your experiences with them have been like.
Peace, bobofosho12
I got mine for $164 and i wasnt even due for a full upgrade. Got my phone around august. Even my sister which is due for a full upgrade has to pay more. So i think im super lucky except for the tax and all that
Alex530 said:
I got mine for $164 and i wasnt even due for a full upgrade. Got my phone around august. Even my sister which is due for a full upgrade has to pay more. So i think im super lucky except for the tax and all that
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Yeah, its an online Special. However i Would Suggest your sister to call T-mobile and ask to be transfered to the Loyalty Department to get hers. because she will get a good deal as her contract is up...... They will give it to her at full Discount and provide her with a data plan of $24.99 a month. instead of $30.00 like you got... and she wont have to pay no upgrade fee's whatsoever.
Alex530 said:
I got mine for $164 and i wasnt even due for a full upgrade. Got my phone around august. Even my sister which is due for a full upgrade has to pay more. So i think im super lucky except for the tax and all that
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Same here. I renewed my contract last year, so did my GF. We both are eligible for full discount so I jump on it right away.
I hate buying ANYTHING with a contract, I know that even though I might pay through the nose up front, i'm saving tons more than I would if I had a contract for two years. I just generally buy an "almost" brand new phone on someplace like Craigslist and then I return it to T-mobile and get a brand new one for free, hence what I did with the hd2. Just my strategy though.
minogue said:
Yeah, its an online Special. However i Would Suggest your sister to call T-mobile and ask to be transfered to the Loyalty Department to get hers. because she will get a good deal as her contract is up...... They will give it to her at full Discount and provide her with a data plan of $24.99 a month. instead of $30.00 like you got... and she wont have to pay no upgrade fee's whatsoever.
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I have the 24.99 data plan and i will thanks for the info
my story on getting the vibrant new WITHOUT a contract for $133. Please note, this cannot be duplicated anymore as the "loop hole" has been caught and closed. I noticed this post on slickdeals.net the 2nd day it had been posted:
http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2132124
So basically costco has the cell phone kiosk's which sell tmobile and a few other carriers. as we know, T-mobile offers and "even more plus" program with is NO contract. also as we know that if we went to tmobile and got a vibrant with this even more plus program is $500.
BUT for the first 3 or 4 days that costco sold the vibrant they were selling it for $250 with the "even more plus" plan or $99 with contract. EDIT( this $250 price was a wholesale price they were offering)
so went there and bought 2 samsung vibrants for 250$ each plus tax. ended up being about $540 by opening 2 new lines on the "even more plus" plan. note that this is different then the "even more" plan which is a contract. Even though "even more plus" is not a contract, costco would not sell the phone without an actual plan but thats ok because this "even more plus plan is no contract because normally you pay full price for the phone.
so then because the "even more plus" plan is not a contract, I called t mobile and told them that I want to cancel the even more plus plan and that I paid full price for the phone. (which i did pay costco's full price). they canceled the plans over the phone on the first try without any hassel (some people had a little trouble canceling)
So then i sold 1 on ebay for $485 including shipping and kept one for myself. After paying shipping, ebay listing fees, selling fees, and paypal fees. I came out basically paying the difference which is only about $130 for my new, NON contract vibrant
keep in mind I already have a tmobile contract from my mytouch, so i just put the sim card in the new vibrant and was good to go.
Costco and Tmobile both caught on to this within days, and now it went from 250 to 479 the day after i got mine.
so i basically ended up paying $130 for a New Vibrant, not subsidized, and non contract even less then if I had signed a new 2 year contract.
If so many people had not ONLY gotten this deal just to sell all the phones on ebay and craigslist, the deal probably would have lasted a little longer. (i just sold 1 to offset the cost of buying one for myself)
so keep in mind, this deal is now dead, and no one has had success trying to replicate it since the price change because costco and tmobile had caught on quickly.
Im still under contract with tmobile for another year because i bought mytouch last year. Wife's phone is still eligible for an upgrade I can use later this year
I got mine for $100 after $50 mail in rebate. I bought mine at Costco warehouse . It included the car charger, a carrying case and a Bluetooth headset.
still cant beleive you guys didnt just spam these forums spreading the good news on the price. so sad.
well thankfully, i got mine on bing cashback and so the phone might end up being $350 for me.
oh what i could have done with $100 extra, sigh
by the way did you need to be a costco member to get that price or could anyone get it?
I actually got mine for free, but in an extremely roundabout and lucky sort of way.
Got a Samsung Behold II with a new contract at the beginning of June for free from Letstalk.com. I won't rehash all the ridiculous problems I had with the phone, as it's fairly legendary at this point.
Had even more problems after the now infamous 1.6 OTA update, took my problems to T-Mobile corporate, and after 2 weeks worth of emails and phonecalls with their director of customer relations they basically convinced Samsung to toss me a Vibrant to make me happy enough to go away and leave them alone.
I sort of rode out the "perfect storm" here and was just in the right place at the right time. Still, this is the best free phone I've ever had!
Got mine for the same price as Alex.
i got mine for $534 after tax!
Well, lucky me. my screen cracked (just the touchscreen, glass is fine). I do have the TEP plan. How does that work. I read and if I understood right, I can send for repair (how long would that take) or pay the $100 deductable and get a replacement? Is that right? How do i go about taking care of this??
If I decide to pay the deductable, would it be better to clam lost/stolen and get a replacement, then repair the screen myself when i can find one. or will the phone be useless in sprints system due to them thinking its stolen?
Thanks for the advice.
You will have to pay the deductible because it's physical damage. I doubt you'd be able to fix the screen yourself for less than $100. Also, once the phone is reported lost/stolen, it will not work on the Sprint network anymore.
Insurance claims should be sent out to you next day, but they currently don't have any instock and are 7-10 day backorder. Best bet is to pay $120 repair fee at the store as a repair store might be able to harvest parts for you. And if they can't, repairs/replacements should be getting priority over upgrades/new lines.
yeah how it works is you pay 7$ a month. and if you have to go through asurion (the insurance company) than if its a feature phone (basic crap phone) its a 50$ deductible. if its a smart phone (evo) its 100$
goto
www.phoneclaim.com/sprint, online is alot easier to file it than calling in. its usually overnight or 2 business days. Sprint does also have a 120$ fee and they will fix or replace in store if you dont have TEP. but thats all gonna be changing soon starting sept 1st.
well, called asurion today. got the 100 billed to my account (my worry wasn't paying the deductible at all, just, paying it right now), and they said 7-10 business days. luckily, enough of the screen is usable to make/receive calls.
should i bother unrooting the phone before sending it back in their envelope??
i would have done the repair since that wouldnt have cost, but none of the stores in my area are repair stores. and at least now i can use the phone till i get the new one. if i sent it in to repair, i would have been without the phone for who knows how long.
Just bought my phone yesterday & have 14 days to decide if I want opt in with Sprint's insurance plan.
I did so because I wanted to see what other "alternative" insurance competitors had to offer.
Ensquared seems to be pretty good but some things to take into consideration before choosing them:
Monthly premiums are less: $4.91 vs. Sprints $8 which comes out to $58.99/yr. vs Sprints $96/yr. And with Ensquared you pay the whole plan fee up front.
Ensquared's deductible is $75 BUT it's my understanding that there is a $35 admin fee for the first claim and a $25 admin fee for the 2nd & 3rd claim (wtf!!!).
So with Ensquared it comes out to $110 for the 1st claim & $100 for the 2nd & 3rd claims (admin fees included), whereas Sprint has a $100 deductible for 3 claims within a 12 mo. period & no admin fees (I think)
Both Ensquared & Sprint cover up to $1000 on each claim.
On Ensquared's 1 yr. plan you can file up to 2 claims within a 12 month consecutive period, their 2 yr. plan covers up to 3 claims BUT the 2 yr. plan asks for an up front payment of $99.99 which comes out to $4.16/mo. or $49.99/yr.
Sprint also allows one the option to cancel at anytime & receive a prorated credit of your unearned premium, not too sure about Ensquared.
So taking everything into consideration we can see that Ensquared's monthly premiums are lower BUT when filing a claim it costs more.
When calculating all the numbers between the two on a 1 yr. plan basis & using 2 claims within that year. Ensquared comes out to $268.99 & Sprint comes out to $296 (but you have one more claim left)
In the end I'll probably go with Sprint for 3 major reasons: The biggest is no admin fees, the 2nd is a higher number of allowed claims given within each plan period & the 3rd is the ability to recomp any unearned premium.
If anyone here has experience with both can you please post any additional pro's & cons between the two including the level of customer service.
Thanks.
I pay the $8 insurance on both of my phones. It is really nice being able to walk into a Sprint store and walk out one hour later if you have an issue. When I had my OG Epic, my screen went bad. I brought it in and they not only replaced the screen but also the keyboard and battery cover. It was like getting a new phone.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using xda premium
JohnCorleone said:
I pay the $8 insurance on both of my phones. It is really nice being able to walk into a Sprint store and walk out one hour later if you have an issue. When I had my OG Epic, my screen went bad. I brought it in and they not only replaced the screen but also the keyboard and battery cover. It was like getting a new phone.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using xda premium
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This is where having the insurance doesn't seem to make sense... I don't carry it, but if my screen goes bad, I wall into a Sprint store, pay $35, and they replace the phone under manufacturer warranty. Only down side is it sometimes takes a day store a replacement to arrive.
In your case, you had to pay $100, or the cost of repair, right?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
Maybe I'm wrong, but as I understand it, any insurance claims require you to send the phone to Asurion. I don't believe the Sprint stores handle any insurance claims.
EL TEJANO said:
Ensquared's deductible is $75 BUT it's my understanding that there is a $35 admin fee for the first claim and a $25 admin fee for the 2nd & 3rd claim (wtf!!!).
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Where did you read that the first claim has a $35 fee? First claim is $75, after that it's $100. So for one year it's $60 and two claims ($75, $100). 2 year it's ($75, $100, $100)
mzaur said:
Where did you read that the first claim has a $35 fee? First claim is $75, after that it's $100. So for one year it's $60 and two claims ($75, $100). 2 year it's ($75, $100, $100)
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I read it on their page, unless it was for a different type phone. Either way it's still ridiculous.
I don't have Sprint. Ensquared is considerably cheaper than my options with AT&T. Even compared to Sprint's TEP, if something happens after 12 months, that's 96+100= $196 for replacement. With Ensquared it's $135 if you have 1 year plan and $175 with 2 year plan. Not ridiculous at all.
I was going to stop my Sprint insurance last week because I baby my phone and nothing ever happens. Then my phone stops working. After 45 mins the tech couldn't bring her back to life so they swapped it out right then and there. Usually they order one and it takes a day to get there but I got lucky. Lesson learned it's nice having Sprints insurance. lol
Dalmus said:
This is where having the insurance doesn't seem to make sense... I don't carry it, but if my screen goes bad, I wall into a Sprint store, pay $35, and they replace the phone under manufacturer warranty. Only down side is it sometimes takes a day store a replacement to arrive.
In your case, you had to pay $100, or the cost of repair, right?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
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The $100 is only for lost/stolen phones when you go through Asurion. I have taken phones into the Sprint store and got them fixed or replaced without paying anything since I have TEP. A friend of mine that is a fireman and does construction on the side breaks his phone a few times a year and never pays for repair or replacement. Think on his latest phone he switched to Best Buy's insurance and then switched back to Sprint's after his first claim with BB. They sent his phone out for a month before finally agreeing to replace it. Sprint he has never waited more than 2 days.
blkhwkz said:
The $100 is only for lost/stolen phones when you go through Asurion. I have taken phones into the Sprint store and got them fixed or replaced without paying anything since I have TEP. A friend of mine that is a fireman and does construction on the side breaks his phone a few times a year and never pays for repair or replacement. Think on his latest phone he switched to Best Buy's insurance and then switched back to Sprint's after his first claim with BB. They sent his phone out for a month before finally agreeing to replace it. Sprint he has never waited more than 2 days.
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the $100 insurance claim also applies to broken screens w/more than a 1/2 inch crack. My wifes EVO dropped a few months back and the screen is nearly shattered. Only way to fix it is to file insurance claim and pay deductible. Sprint stores wont even touch it. Good thing for her is its still usuable and shes waiting a couple months for an upgrade.
Call your home insurance. We're with Amica, and when we asked them about additional coverage for our electronics, they said we could insure all of our electronics (2 cell phones, ipad, 2 Touchpads, computers, etc.) for ~$50 per year. This would be used for worst case scenarios, such as losing your phone, or breaking it beyond repair.
If you have an issue like a bad screen, broken camera, defective microUSB port, etc just take it in to Sprint and pay the $35 to have it repaired. The only way the $8 TEP program is beneficial is if you're very clumsy and/or your phones seem to always break.
I work in a metal fab shop and my phone speakers go out a lot so 8 bucks a month is a good deal for me.
Sent from my PG86100 using XDA App
thaprinze said:
Call your home insurance. We're with Amica, and when we asked them about additional coverage for our electronics, they said we could insure all of our electronics (2 cell phones, ipad, 2 Touchpads, computers, etc.) for ~$50 per year. This would be used for worst case scenarios, such as losing your phone, or breaking it beyond repair.
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Well I'll agree that $50 per year to cover your electronics is good but is there a deductible that must be met first?
Who do you recommend? Experience based on claims, thanks
obviously this one is kinda limited - but vodafone insurance have always been the best for me. had to claim twice before on my old sony ericsson, first time it got stolen, they sent me the replacement pretty much next day.
second time i was answering the phone, and as i brought it up to my ear, it slipped, went over my head and straight into a pan of gravy
still worked afterwards, except for the antenna was ruined and although it could get signal in places, it couldn't at all in weaker signal areas (places where it previously could get signal)
so i took it into a vodafone store, and they gave me a new one there and then. even let me keep the old one as it had all my stuff on it still.
one to keep away from, is natwest advantage gold phone insurance. they suck. altogether took about 3 weeks before i had another phone.
dropped my dhd, screen smashed. so they wanted to send it in for repair first. several days later they said it was BER, and a new handset would be issued.
so they sent a new handset, but instead of sending it to my address (which i had told them several times, and once even corrected them because they had the complete wrong address for me) they went and sent it to the local natwest branch.
so i called them up (at which point i didn't know it was at the natwest branch) and they said ok we'll send another.
In the meantime, i did some googling, and found out that this '5 high street' (previous address they somehow had for me) was actually the branch, so i went down there to get it. after some security questions etc, i got the phone.
Sorted I thought... Nope in fact it wasn't
a couple of days later, the phone had been reported stolen (by insurance company) and it was blacklisted, couldn't get any sims to work in it.
The next handset never actually arrived!!!!!!! They sent yet another one, which actually came to my address, and I had to send the old one back. (before they would send the new one out)
So basically, unless you're confident it won't go tits up like that, don't bother with a banks phone insurance. I promptly changed back to vodafone insurance after that incident. A bit more costly, but well worth it.
Not sure about any Insurance companies apart from Vodafone's sucky p.o.s Insurance. It used to be really good but then they changed to a new company a few years bac. Heres my experience with them.
I used to have Vodafone Insurance and they changed to a new company, cant remember their name but they were useless and way more stricter than the last company. The deliveries would arrive late, they offered to replace my faulty HTC HD2 with a HTC Wildfire or some rubbish Wildfire. I said I wanted a Desire at the least, they wouldn't up it to anything else.
When the Desire arrived it was just a refurbished Wildfire in a generic Vodafone box. I complained and got an exchange and received a brand new Desire. I also made a complaint about the Insurance company, about how much they suck ****.
I then received a letter from Vodafone saying My Insurance has been cancelled and that if I take out any further Insurances, they will also be cancelled.
The only reason I'm still with Vodafone is that i have a friend who works for them and he always sorts out any problems I have, e.g. 24 month is getting too long for me and I want it shortened to 12 months, no problem. ;p
I use the insurance with my Barclays account which costs me £7 per month. Also gives me RAC breakdown. Excess in phone claims is £25 and when I've used them in the past they had a couple of week turnaround. Worth it for me.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA
I'm currently using CUSC Foneguard, but i've never claimed, so I have no idea how happy I am to use them. £5 a month but that means nothing...and I see a clause in the T&Cs is no cover for "negligent use", which could mean any accident damage.
If your in the UK check your bank account benefits a lot of accounts cine with free mobile insurance as standard,I use mine all the time only had to claim once but no issues
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
Who is the insurance company your bank uses? I am with Lloyds TSB, and they use Lifestylegroup (LSG), who are another company that gets appauling reviews on the internet.
Ripley said:
Who is the insurance company your bank uses? I am with Lloyds TSB, and they use Lifestylegroup (LSG), who are another company that gets appauling reviews on the internet.
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to be honest, every insurance company has a bad review on the internet, as the people who were successful in their claim have the new handset and couldn't care less vs the people who were refused, went mental (rightfully) and went to the internet to complain about it.
True, but i'd like to see some good reviews lol
I do bank with HSBC and they dont give any mobile phone insurance Gutted
Ripley said:
Who is the insurance company your bank uses? I am with Lloyds TSB, and they use Lifestylegroup (LSG), who are another company that gets appauling reviews on the internet.
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I'm with Lloyd's tsb and yes my claim was with them and while they would not win any awards and it took a month resolve (luckliy had another phone) thay paid up in the end after trying to palm me off with a branded locked handset
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium HD app
Yeah that sounds crap tbh
Mine's on my home contents insurance, with accidental damage, new replacement and cover away from home. The whole lot's under £15 quid a month, with the NFU, which includes contents. My student son is with Endsleigh, who charge about £7per month, to include laptop insurance too and are taking ages to sort out his drowned one x replacement whilst they ascertain whether the phone was submerged in a highball tumbler or not!
I wouldn't pay extra for separate cover; not when my policy is as good as it is and it covers everything and they don't quibble.
Protect your bubble: great insurance company, costs me 14 a month for my one x and transformers prime. Claimed last year on my lost desire hd, had a replacement in a week. Very professional and friendly company
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
Ripley said:
Who do you recommend? Experience based on claims, thanks
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I bank with Barclays and use their mobile phone insurance.
As I am on the old Additions account, there is no fee .
vincepg13 said:
Protect your bubble: great insurance company, costs me 14 a month for my one x and transformers prime. Claimed last year on my lost desire hd, had a replacement in a week. Very professional and friendly company
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
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Protect your bubble has good reviews online, surprisingly, although these are most if not all, based on registering, not claims.
esure cover both my one x and my wifes sensation included in our building and contents insurance for £15/month (all in) - it's thrown in with most policies these days under items away from the home. Covered for accidental, loss and theft.
Only problem is £100 excess. But when you consider that an additional policy will be at LEAST £60/year over and above and will likely have it's own excess of at LEAST £30 it's a no brainer not to bother.
Hope this helps.
How does insurance with a bank work exactly? im 99% sure i have mobile goods insurance with my account which includes laptop, phone, sat nav etc and covers against accidental damage, theft and loss.
But as far as im aware ive never had to register any of these goods with the bank, so if i were more devious i could pay the £50 excess and get a brand new laptop or phone or whatever very cheap after claiming it to be lost even though i didnt own the product in the first place.
I wont, because im good at heart but i wonder how many false claims actually go through every day from criminal masterminds
When I had Barclays additions with my bank account, I was required to register the devices with the insurance company, or I wasn't covered. When they upped it to £6.50, for no good reason, I checked with the home contents insurance policy. I have specified items with it now and its far better value.
Banks often charge up to £15 a Month and unless the customer benefits, it's just a good way to make more money.
lostunsunghero said:
How does insurance with a bank work exactly? im 99% sure i have mobile goods insurance with my account which includes laptop, phone, sat nav etc and covers against accidental damage, theft and loss.
But as far as im aware ive never had to register any of these goods with the bank, so if i were more devious i could pay the £50 excess and get a brand new laptop or phone or whatever very cheap after claiming it to be lost even though i didnt own the product in the first place.
I wont, because im good at heart but i wonder how many false claims actually go through every day from criminal masterminds
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you 99% of the time have to register it with them, and its something like for the first 2 weeks after registering you can't claim
As we won't have uh ho insurance in UK, can anyone recommend a good phone insurance policy that ignores rooted/modified phones inline with HTC's warranty?
What are HTC like generally when fixing phones (speed/cost)? Thanks
Sent from my LG-D855 using XDA-Developers mobile app
From my experience with the Desire, Desire S and M8 with HTC repairs... they are fast and accurate, very understanding, but they are very expensive with repairs. HTC phones are EXTREMELY fragile for metal damage and especially with water damage. My second M8 unit had a broken screen, HTC charged me £120 for it. At which time, the full phone itself was only worth £80-100 max.
Sent from HTC 10
I just have insurance through my bank, £10 a month get phone insurance with £30 excess (no mention of rooted or not) Nd various other goodies
My insurance is with EE, my provider. They do a 24hr replacement service where you just swap your old phone for a new one with the courier and if the claim is made before 11am, you get one the same day. I've never had them come back to me with any issues about being rooted or having an unlocked bootloader and I've been doing it since the the days of the Samsung Galaxy S2. (if you claim the fault is with software too, you don't even pay an exces :victory: )
squ89r97 said:
My insurance is with EE, my provider. They do a 24hr replacement service where you just swap your old phone for a new one with the courier and if the claim is made before 11am, you get one the same day. I've never had them come back to me with any issues about being rooted or having an unlocked bootloader and I've been doing it since the the days of the Samsung Galaxy S2. (if you claim the fault is with software too, you don't even pay an exces :victory: )
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What's the excess? And how much is the insurance?
Sent from HTC 10
£10 per month and includes accidental damage. I broke my screen and paid £25 for the excess.