Comments on: Frustration with TracFone Prepaid Wireless http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217 Not a photo blog. A personal blog with photos. Mon, 21 May 2012 08:38:42 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Rob http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-45440 Rob Tue, 28 Feb 2012 14:40:52 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-45440 ive been thru at least 6 tracfones over the years and Every one of them has somehow crapped out. warranties? ha,why bother they cant even give decent customer support,im not even gonna go for a warranty. the latest one,now will show theres been a call or text,but the second i open the flip it all disappears and i have to go thru the menu just to find out whos called or texted. before it worked just fine and showed me. and,to make things so much better,the Delete All function has vanished as well. i now have to manually delete Every single text by itself!!!?? wth is that about?? its easier to throw this fone out and just buy a real phone that works like it should. using their website is a joke,half the time it takes you to a error page and then you Cannot back up or you have to sign in all over again. calling their CS dept is unreal and a comeplete waste of time,they will give you the runaround and keep you on hold forever. i highly suspect they are praying you hang up,so they dont have to admit they wont do anything. just a complete waste of time please Save Yourselves and Dont buy a Crapfone,err Tracfone yeah. thats what i meant...sure. ive been thru at least 6 tracfones over the years and Every one of them has somehow crapped out.
warranties? ha,why bother they cant even give decent customer support,im not even gonna go for a warranty.

the latest one,now will show theres been a call or text,but the second i open the flip it all disappears and i have to go thru the menu just to find out whos called or texted.
before it worked just fine and showed me.

and,to make things so much better,the Delete All function has vanished as well.
i now have to manually delete Every single text by itself!!!??
wth is that about??
its easier to throw this fone out and just buy a real phone that works like it should.

using their website is a joke,half the time it takes you to a error page and then you Cannot back up or you have to sign in all over again.

calling their CS dept is unreal and a comeplete waste of time,they will give you the runaround and keep you on hold forever.
i highly suspect they are praying you hang up,so they dont have to admit they wont do anything.

just a complete waste of time please Save Yourselves and Dont buy a Crapfone,err Tracfone yeah.
thats what i meant…sure.

]]> By: Marissa http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-43720 Marissa Fri, 29 Jul 2011 18:11:48 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-43720 Minnesota - I bought a tracfone for my mother. We got it home charged it up and it should be ready to go, since WalMart activated it for me. I had ZERO reception in the middle of a very large town. The only way I had two bars was standing outside. So - I returned the phone to Walmart - no problem BUT they would not refund me my $19.88 for the 60 minute prepaid card I bought. I had to go directly thru Tracfone. So, while standing at WalMart I called Tracfone and had the worst customer service I have ever delt with. I had to talk to manager upon manager and still no one would return me my money for the lack of service that thier cell phone provided. I did get another number and the man that I talked to there said I could FEDEX the card to him and he would try to look into it. What a joke! I will NEVER recommend this phone to anyone again. Customer Service should be your number one priority! Minnesota – I bought a tracfone for my mother. We got it home charged it up and it should be ready to go, since WalMart activated it for me. I had ZERO reception in the middle of a very large town. The only way I had two bars was standing outside. So – I returned the phone to Walmart – no problem BUT they would not refund me my $19.88 for the 60 minute prepaid card I bought. I had to go directly thru Tracfone. So, while standing at WalMart I called Tracfone and had the worst customer service I have ever delt with. I had to talk to manager upon manager and still no one would return me my money for the lack of service that thier cell phone provided. I did get another number and the man that I talked to there said I could FEDEX the card to him and he would try to look into it. What a joke! I will NEVER recommend this phone to anyone again. Customer Service should be your number one priority!

]]> By: ART http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-43145 ART Tue, 24 May 2011 21:39:43 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-43145 Transfer ph number @ minutes from a dead phone to a new one went ok except only 810 minutes would be transfered out of a total of over 1000 minutes. They have funny rules in quatemala. They must deactivate the dead old phone before the transfer , then say they cant check the old minutes that remained. We just got screwed a little. Transfer ph number @ minutes from a dead phone to a new one went ok except only 810 minutes would be transfered out of a total of over 1000 minutes. They have funny rules in quatemala. They must deactivate the dead old phone before the transfer , then say they cant check the old minutes that remained. We just got screwed a little.

]]> By: Pauline http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-40559 Pauline Sat, 28 Aug 2010 08:16:09 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-40559 I am writing from Iowa. I ordered two Tracfones on Aug 4, 2010 from the website. Both were Samsung T101G models with double minutes for life programmed into the phone. I wanted to keep my previous cell phone numbers, so that\'s how I activated the new Tracfones online through their website. My phone #1, worked. The #2 phone said SIM not registered. So, I called customer service... (outsourced - you cannot speak to an English-speaking American) they tried troubleshooting, then transferred me to tech support. After many calls, taking about NINE hours, and asking for a supervisor, they agreed to send me a new SIM card for phone #2. (It took that long because they would hang up (accidentally?) and/or I got a rep who didn\'t understand and I had to call again.) Oh, and if you use your Tracfone to call them, it uses your minutes. So, while waiting for the new SIM card, I found out that my phone #1 was not able to receive incoming calls. ? I decided to wait until I got the SIM card for phone #2, and call from someone else\'s phone (landline) to resolve both problems. The SIM card came, and I installed it. You still need to call them to program the codes to get it to work. I call them and get a rep who seems to understand and speak good English. We program the phone #2, and it turns on. YAY! So far, so good. I proceed to mention about how my phone #1 hasn\'t and isn\'t able to receive incoming calls. He \"researches\" and tells me I cannot keep my transferred phone number. Since this is the primary phone on my Sprint account, and we kept the same phone number for #2, that we just fixed, I said that doesn\'t even make sense. I already have the number assigned to the phone and I\'ve been making calls with it! His reply was oh, you can make outgoing calls? (Was he even listening to me?) Up to this point, I\'ve been on the phone for an hour already -- I\'ve been patient, but I\'m losing my cool. He has tech support still waiting on his line, and he puts me on hold many times to talk with them. While waiting for him, I notice #2 phone now says SIM not registered. (??? Can you believe it???) He comes back to me and says, \"In this case,\" your phone #1, will not be able to get incoming calls. In what case? \"The case that I transferred them online.\" What?! Do you feel my frustration? I am NOT even going to start over with the #2 phone either. That was my breaking point! I said, I give up, and I\'m sending these phones back. I wanted to speak with a supervisor. The supervisor explains to me she needs the order number from the purchase order. I said, I am not at home, and I did not intend to send them back when I called, so I don\'t have it. I have worked in customer service for many years as a phone rep, and I know that if she doesn\'t have access to the records, they can call the correct department to get it. She could at least email the request. I told her I expect HER as a supervisor to be able to get that information and process my refund request. She tells me, she is NOT a supervisor! SIGH She transfers me to her \"supervisor\" Angelie. Angelie asks me my name... and tells me I have to have the order number to process a refund request. I say that she needs to take initiative to contact whoever and get the info she needs to assist me. (Isn\'t that customer service?) So, she says she will escalate and get the order number. It will take 24 to 48 hours to process. Thank you, but now she wants to know how much I paid for the phones, so that she can request the refund. I say, I don\'t remember, - it will be on the paperwork with the order number. She insists that she needs that info to further assist me. I ask for her supervisor, she says she\'s the manager, and has no boss. I ask for company owner or president information, can does not give me any other contacts for Tracfone. After realizing she was not going to give me any contact info, I gave her my summary of expectations. I wanted them to send me the instructions to send the phones back for a refund -- and I wanted the info sent to me by email. She asked for a phone number to call me back. I said I do not have a working number and I\'m not going to put out someone else to use their landline. She stopped talking to me, and after several hellos from me ... she said\" thank you for calling Tracfone\". That was her signal to say she was done. (I guess their policy is to not hang up first.) After thinking about the call, when I got home, I decided to email the Tracfone customer service. I wrote about my conversation with Angelie and mentioned I didn\'t have confidence in her resolving my problem. The next day they replied saying they needed to speak with me to finish the process. By now, I have gone back to Sprint and renewed my contract. So, I email them my phone number. I was called within the hour, and what do they ask me? What are the serial numbers of the phones? I couldn\'t believe it! I asked them what else do they need, because in my email to them I wrote at the bottom, my name, address, Tracfone #\'s and serial numbers. She said we need the serial numbers. I said, READ MY EMAIL, and I hung up. Yes, I was rude. I then sent an email to them and said don\'t call my number again. TODAY I got an email with the address to return the phones. (my expense) They say it will take 30 days for refund. The 186 remaining minutes on the phones will not be refunded. I think they could have at least paid for shipping back to them, if not the minutes. I used all my minutes to call them, and had to purchase more. I said all this to say - If you buy a Tracfone and it works, great! If you need customer service for any reason, prepare for frustration. They read from script, and don\'t pass on information from one rep to another. If you get transferred, you have to tell them your name, serial numbers, and detail about what the problem is AGAIN. If they listen, you might get an appropriate response - otherwise you have to rephrase to get them to understand. Good luck Oh, and I did get company contact info from the BBB. That\'s my next step! I am writing from Iowa. I ordered two Tracfones on Aug 4, 2010 from the website. Both were
Samsung T101G models with double minutes for life programmed into the phone. I
wanted to keep my previous cell phone numbers, so that\’s how I activated the
new Tracfones online through their website. My phone #1, worked. The #2 phone
said SIM not registered.
So, I called customer service… (outsourced – you cannot speak to an
English-speaking American) they tried troubleshooting, then transferred me to
tech support. After many calls, taking about NINE hours, and asking for a
supervisor, they agreed to send me a new SIM card for phone #2. (It took that
long because they would hang up (accidentally?) and/or I got a rep who didn\’t
understand and I had to call again.) Oh, and if you use your Tracfone to call
them, it uses your minutes.
So, while waiting for the new SIM card, I found out that my phone #1 was
not able to receive incoming calls. ? I decided to wait until I got the SIM
card for phone #2, and call from someone else\’s phone (landline) to resolve
both problems.
The SIM card came, and I installed it. You still need to call them to
program the codes to get it to work. I call them and get a rep who seems to
understand and speak good English. We program the phone #2, and it turns on.
YAY! So far, so good.
I proceed to mention about how my phone #1 hasn\’t and isn\’t able to
receive incoming calls. He \”researches\” and tells me I cannot keep my
transferred phone number. Since this is the primary phone on my Sprint account,
and we kept the same phone number for #2, that we just fixed, I said that
doesn\’t even make sense. I already have the number assigned to the phone and
I\’ve been making calls with it! His reply was oh, you can make outgoing calls?
(Was he even listening to me?) Up to this point, I\’ve been on the phone for
an hour already — I\’ve been patient, but I\’m losing my cool.
He has tech support still waiting on his line, and he puts me on hold many
times to talk with them. While waiting for him, I notice #2 phone now says SIM
not registered. (??? Can you believe it???) He comes back to me and says, \”In
this case,\” your phone #1, will not be able to get incoming calls. In what
case? \”The case that I transferred them online.\” What?! Do you feel my
frustration? I am NOT even going to start over with the #2 phone either. That
was my breaking point! I said, I give up, and I\’m sending these phones back.
I wanted to speak with a supervisor.
The supervisor explains to me she needs the order number from the purchase
order. I said, I am not at home, and I did not intend to send them back when I
called, so I don\’t have it. I have worked in customer service for many years
as a phone rep, and I know that if she doesn\’t have access to the records, they
can call the correct department to get it. She could at least email the
request. I told her I expect HER as a supervisor to be able to get that
information and process my refund request. She tells me, she is NOT a
supervisor! SIGH
She transfers me to her \”supervisor\” Angelie. Angelie asks me my name…
and tells me I have to have the order number to process a refund request. I say
that she needs to take initiative to contact whoever and get the info she needs
to assist me. (Isn\’t that customer service?) So, she says she will escalate
and get the order number. It will take 24 to 48 hours to process. Thank you,
but now she wants to know how much I paid for the phones, so that she can
request the refund. I say, I don\’t remember, – it will be on the paperwork
with the order number. She insists that she needs that info to further assist
me. I ask for her supervisor, she says she\’s the manager, and has no boss. I
ask for company owner or president information, can does not give me any other
contacts for Tracfone.
After realizing she was not going to give me any contact info, I gave her
my summary of expectations. I wanted them to send me the instructions to send
the phones back for a refund — and I wanted the info sent to me by email. She
asked for a phone number to call me back. I said I do not have a working number
and I\’m not going to put out someone else to use their landline. She stopped
talking to me, and after several hellos from me … she said\” thank you for
calling Tracfone\”. That was her signal to say she was done. (I guess their
policy is to not hang up first.)
After thinking about the call, when I got home, I decided to email the
Tracfone customer service. I wrote about my conversation with Angelie and
mentioned I didn\’t have confidence in her resolving my problem. The next day
they replied saying they needed to speak with me to finish the process.
By now, I have gone back to Sprint and renewed my contract. So, I email
them my phone number. I was called within the hour, and what do they ask me?
What are the serial numbers of the phones? I couldn\’t believe it! I asked
them what else do they need, because in my email to them I wrote at the bottom,
my name, address, Tracfone #\’s and serial numbers. She said we need the serial
numbers. I said, READ MY EMAIL, and I hung up. Yes, I was rude. I then sent
an email to them and said don\’t call my number again.
TODAY I got an email with the address to return the phones. (my expense)
They say it will take 30 days for refund. The 186 remaining minutes on the
phones will not be refunded. I think they could have at least paid for shipping
back to them, if not the minutes. I used all my minutes to call them, and had
to purchase more.
I said all this to say – If you buy a Tracfone and it works, great! If you
need customer service for any reason, prepare for frustration. They read from
script, and don\’t pass on information from one rep to another. If you get
transferred, you have to tell them your name, serial numbers, and detail about
what the problem is AGAIN. If they listen, you might get an appropriate
response – otherwise you have to rephrase to get them to understand. Good luck

Oh, and I did get company contact info from the BBB. That\’s my next step!

]]> By: Doris http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38641 Doris Mon, 05 Apr 2010 18:08:46 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38641 I was unable to activate my new Tracfone online or through the automated phone method. Instead I had to call customer service. They said the SIM card in the phone didn't match my calling area. I don't understand why they are sending out phones with SIM no's that don't match calling areas. I was unable to activate my new Tracfone online or through the automated phone method. Instead I had to call customer service. They said the SIM card in the phone didn’t match my calling area. I don’t understand why they are sending out phones with SIM no’s that don’t match calling areas.

]]> By: Frankie http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38436 Frankie Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:00:07 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38436 I couldn't activate my Tracfone online either. Waiting for their customer service line to answer is a joke. I'm going to take my phone back and get T-mobile. I couldn’t activate my Tracfone online either. Waiting for their customer service line to answer is a joke. I’m going to take my phone back and get T-mobile.

]]> By: Tina http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38406 Tina Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:27:29 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-38406 Despite their claim, Tracfones cannot be activated online. If you try online activation it always refers you to their customer service toll free number . They also ask for a lot of personal information on their website (name, address, DOB, home phone, e-mail, etc.) which is not required for phone activation. How many people willingly give them this information only to discover their phone will not activate online. Where does this information go? What is Tracfone doing with your personal information? Why do they even bother putting online actvation on their website ? The bottom line is in order to activate a Tracfone you have to call customer service. Good luck with that. I waited 50 minutes to talk to a nice woman who spoke broken English. She told me they have "a lot of problems with online activation. " When I asked her why, she said she would transfer me to a supervisor. I was conveniently disconnected. Despite their claim, Tracfones cannot be activated online. If you try online activation it always refers you to their customer service toll free number . They also ask for a lot of personal information on their website (name, address, DOB, home phone, e-mail, etc.) which is not required for phone activation. How many people willingly give them this information only to discover their phone will not activate online. Where does this information go? What is Tracfone doing with your personal information? Why do they even bother putting online actvation on their website ? The bottom line is in order to activate a Tracfone you have to call customer service. Good luck with that. I waited 50 minutes to talk to a nice woman who spoke broken English. She told me they have “a lot of problems with online activation. ” When I asked her why, she said she would transfer me to a supervisor. I was conveniently disconnected.

]]> By: TracFone Spam hate it http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-36436 TracFone Spam hate it Wed, 19 Aug 2009 19:25:00 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-36436 I hate TracFone spam and I have never been their customer. They started having an automated caller call and leave messages on my work phone, sometimes twice a day. It leaves an 800-293-4306 number to call back, at which point you get another recording. My work phone number has been on the national DO NOT CALL list for over 4 months now. I finally called their office and aske them to remove me from their automated calling list or I will pursue legal action...Call TracFone back at their office 1-800-867-7183. Talk to someone in sales. Tell them to take your phone number off their automated calling list or you will pursue legal action, especially if your number is on the DO NOT CALL list as mine is. I hate TracFone spam and I have never been their customer. They started having an automated caller call and leave messages on my work phone, sometimes twice a day. It leaves an 800-293-4306 number to call back, at which point you get another recording. My work phone number has been on the national DO NOT CALL list for over 4 months now. I finally called their office and aske them to remove me from their automated calling list or I will pursue legal action…Call TracFone back at their office 1-800-867-7183. Talk to someone in sales. Tell them to take your phone number off their automated calling list or you will pursue legal action, especially if your number is on the DO NOT CALL list as mine is.

]]> By: shirley http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-34287 shirley Sun, 15 Feb 2009 15:32:00 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-34287 I'be been trying since 1/29/08 to have my old phone number and minutes transfered to a newer phone. I've called about everyother day and e-mailed a number of times. Each time they tell me to wait 24 -48 more hours. It has now been 15 days and still no results. my old phone was # esndec074110050038 new # 268435456709768704 Phone # 308-991-2323. Home phone 308-472-5270. You took of the minutes on my old phone so I have been without a cell phone for 15 days. I’be been trying since 1/29/08 to have my old phone number and minutes transfered to a newer phone. I’ve called about everyother day and e-mailed a number of times.
Each time they tell me to wait 24 -48 more hours. It has now been 15 days and still no
results. my old phone was # esndec074110050038 new # 268435456709768704
Phone # 308-991-2323. Home phone 308-472-5270. You took of the minutes on my old phone so I have been without a cell phone for 15 days.

]]> By: thill http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-32912 thill Mon, 29 Dec 2008 20:31:48 +0000 http://regex.info/blog/2006-07-20/217#comment-32912 I have been a customer for many years and have found that the 'service' in customer service has been dropped from Tracfone's dictionary. In the more recent past I have had to loose minutes due to a lost phone that they moved the phone number over from but would not give me the minutes. Today I called when I noticed that the tracking number for my new phone was not moving beyond 'package data transmitted to FedEx'. After calling FedEx and then Tracfone the customer service rep from Tracfone quickly informed me that the phone was lost and a refund would be submitted to me. I waited three times for the rep to check with other internal offices to finally be told that the refund would be made to my account within 7 to 10 business days; however, due to the phone being lost I cannot repurchase until this refund is clear. I am now without a phone for what could potentially be two weeks due to the old phone not being functional. Are we having fun yet? I asked the customer rep to not take this personally BUT these listed conditions have existed within my realm of experience with Tracfone and I am sorely disappointed as they compile upon each other. I purchased a bluetooth earbud to match with the phone and it is charging on my desktop as I write this. It was getting ready for it's mate which was supposed to arrive today. Once disappointed shame on you, twice disappointed shame on me. It won't happen a third time. I wonder what happens when the Tracfone employees have a similar experience? I have been in business for over 30 years and know that I would not have been successful if my clients were told to eat the experiences Tracfone is expecting me to. I suppose I now have to look for an alternate phone provider for both my husband and myself. Change is not something I look forward to especially when life is so busy that you just want to be able to rely upon the services you pay for. I have been a customer for many years and have found that the ‘service’ in customer service has been dropped from Tracfone’s dictionary. In the more recent past I have had to loose minutes due to a lost phone that they moved the phone number over from but would not give me the minutes. Today I called when I noticed that the tracking number for my new phone was not moving beyond ‘package data transmitted to FedEx’.

After calling FedEx and then Tracfone the customer service rep from Tracfone quickly informed me that the phone was lost and a refund would be submitted to me. I waited three times for the rep to check with other internal offices to finally be told that the refund would be made to my account within 7 to 10 business days; however, due to the phone being lost I cannot repurchase until this refund is clear. I am now without a phone for what could potentially be two weeks due to the old phone not being functional.

Are we having fun yet?

I asked the customer rep to not take this personally BUT these listed conditions have existed within my realm of experience with Tracfone and I am sorely disappointed as they compile upon each other. I purchased a bluetooth earbud to match with the phone and it is charging on my desktop as I write this. It was getting ready for it’s mate which was supposed to arrive today.

Once disappointed shame on you, twice disappointed shame on me. It won’t happen a third time.

I wonder what happens when the Tracfone employees have a similar experience?

I have been in business for over 30 years and know that I would not have been successful if my clients were told to eat the experiences Tracfone is expecting me to.

I suppose I now have to look for an alternate phone provider for both my husband and myself. Change is not something I look forward to especially when life is so busy that you just want to be able to rely upon the services you pay for.

]]>