Contributor
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3 Messages
Blacklist policy may create a safety risk
My sister, chronically ill, on my family plan, and residing in another state, had a friend notify me that her phone was lost during her trip from a medical clinic. I suspended her service then waited a few hours to file a claim for a replacement. The replacement phone was promptly shipped via FedEx. After it shipped, I am notified that the lost phone was recovered so the insurance company was promptly notified. No problem, I was told. Please use the return label provided in the shipping box and return the replacement. What was NOT conveyed: the return phone would be shipped by snail mail, not the prompt FedEx, so the phone number is blacklisted until the replacement is received. I spent days of calling and hours on hold with the Lost/stolen phone department to get the phone un-blacklisted! Hoping it will be resolved by tomorrow due to the serious surrounding circumstances.
Be aware that filing a claim on a lost phone may endanger the safety of your loved one if the phone is recovered before the claim is officially closed due to the shipping and handling time. There doesn't appear to be any provisions to expedite the reverse the blacklisting procedure, even for disabled consumers. If you use their shipping label, have a Plan B at the ready in the meantime.
sandblaster
ACE - Expert
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63.9K Messages
5 years ago
The phone number is not blacklisted, the lost phone is. Getting it off the blacklist does not do any good until you physically have the phone in your possession anyway. If it is in the mail, what does it matter if it is still blacklisted? As for the phone line, you could be using it on another phone, you just need to contact customer to provide the imei of the different phone. As long as ATT has the imei of the blacklisted phone on that line, the sim card won't work in any phone but as soon as the line is updated with an imei of a "clean" phone, the line will work again.
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NJengineer
Contributor
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3 Messages
5 years ago
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sandblaster
ACE - Expert
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63.9K Messages
5 years ago
Ok, my misunderstanding. So the issue is the insurance folks not removing the lost phone from the blacklist until they receive the replacement phone, yes? That is not right. They should remove the lost phone from the blacklist immediately. If the replacement phone does not show up, they can always bill you, in fact I am sure they would bill you. Keeping the found phone on the blacklist makes no sense. Have you contacted the insurance?
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NJengineer
Contributor
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3 Messages
5 years ago
Yes, thanks for asking. I contacted the insurance company more than once. That's why I posted the warning. The process time has been excruciating. I will post the start to finish timeline once I get the text notice that the blacklisting has been lifted.
You can suspend any device on your account. Reactivation is easy. Remember, you’ll still pay monthly charges for your plan while it’s suspended.
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