ATT Worst customer care.No regards for consumers [ Edited ]

[vipul_635]

My name is Vipul {Personal content removed for your safety}. I came to USA some 1.5 years back on work Visa.

Recently, I came back to India due to some personal issues. Now, due to federal immigration VISA rules and work commitment it seems I have to be here for some 8-12 months.

I called up the customer care and informed the situation. I asked them to move my call plan to a local plan here with their fellow concern company. ATT doesn't have a service here. If it had a service I had no issues in being with ATT. Moving to expensive international roaming in not an option for me.

The only option left was to terminate the line for now. Once I am back to the States I can get a new connection with ATT. I am having 2 phones (Iphone 4 and Samsung Focus Flash) with me which I would like to use here. I am being charged $470 as early termination fee (ETF) along with my monthly bill.

I explained the customer care executive that the only reason why I am moving out of service is since ATT doesn’t have service on this part of world. Since I was with ATT for such a long time I expect a better treatment on settling the issues. I was expecting that at least a part of ETF will be waived or there will be some waiver on my monthly bill but it seemed to me that my loyalty was of no value.

I am deeply hurt with this treatment and amazed by the insensitiveness by ATT. Can ATT give me one reason why should I join them again after my return to USA. I will also suggest my all friends on work VISA to get their cards straight and then decide to go with ATT, because for them consumers' concern is not a concern.

I expect at least an answer for this.

[MicCheck]

Moving does not release you from your obligations to fulfill your contract, either by paying your monthly bill or paying the ETF. You should advise any of your international friends to make this a factor when deciding to sign a long-term agreement with any carrier. For some people, it may save money in the long run to sign the contract and pay the ETF, for other, it may make more sense to go another route.

Again, for you there are several options. Since you do plan to come back to the U.S. at some point, it may make more financial sense to temporarily suspend your phones (which has a lower monthly rate) so you can continue your contract when you return. You probably wouldn't be able to use those phones on another network in the meantime, so you'd probably have to find different phone to use in India.

if you'd like someone to contact you to go over your options in more detail so you can figure out what will be best for your pocketbook, send a private message with your account information and contact information to Jamileh, the AT&T Community Manager for the wireless boards. http://forums.att.com/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/2548143

[Evandela ACE - Guru]

Hi there,

I'm very sorry to hear about your current issue.

From reading your post, it seems the ETF was legitimately charged. I understand that you did not have great reception in India, however AT&T is a U.S based company. If you travel outside the U.S, you will be subject to the international roaming costs if you dont have a global plan.

In addition, AT&T does not guarantee service in all areas. So lets say you wanted to leave because you had No Service in you area. According to the contract, you agreed to pay for monthly services even if you had little to no signal.

I apologize this was not the answer you were looking for, but this rule applies to all the carriers you encounter.

Hope that helps!

[jamileh]

I am sorry to hear that your travel plans changed and you found yourself without a need for a US phone plan. 

Unfortunately, the contract you signed means that you are liable for either the full service time or the Early Termination Fee if you choose to cancel the service. 

I understand this is not ideal for your unexpected situation, but we are bound by the contract; as are you.