Need point of contact for Small Claims (Edited per community guidelines) - Southern California San Diego Area for AT&T Prepaid

File a complaint with the BBB.  That may be a long shot since PREpaid does not generally refund but with extenuating circumstances, it's worth a shot.

Please note:  It is not wise to ask the entity you are wanting to take to SCC HOW to proceed.  If it comes to that, do your homework but I'll give a head start: AT&T TERMS OF SERVICE.  Please pay close attention to Sec. 1.3 thru 1.3.2.7

Don't bother with small claims. Whether what they did was ethical or not, it's probably pretty well covered in the terms and conditions. 

File a BBB or FCC complaint. Not only will you get a much faster resolution, those get forwarded to someone at AT&T with power...and who are able to take compassion and customer service into account. Someone else in a similar situation mentioned that was how they were able to get a refund. 

Pretty much spitting into the wind.  Att won't show up, but you'll invest time and trouble to try prove At&t has $500+ of your money and has to give it back... Which it doesn't.  Then you have to try to collect your money, which you have about as much chance of doing that as a snowball on a hot day. 

You can't even get the plan back because it no longer exists.

   Time to cut your losses. She can use the phone she has with T-Mobile service whether she goes through mint which is super cheap or similar mvno. 

    AT&T has provided a list of compatible phones since March 2020.  It's your job to check it, not count on foreign call centers, which DO NOT have internet access to see the list. 

https://www.att.com/buy/byod/identify?devicetype=phone

Non carrier branded phones that will work on AT&T now that 3-g is gone

FYI, pay per use plans deposit $25 every 90 days or $100 a year in order for AT&T to keep the account open. Usage is not factored. Whether or not you use the device every year is not a condition of keeping the account open and it does not guarantee keeping the account open. People outside of the USA with compatible devices still got their account closed because the device is not registered on the network

AT&T now requires you also have a compatible device. Pay per use plans without a compatible device registered on the network were closed no later than the end of May.

Thanks.  We pre-paid annually our account was paid through October 2022.  One huge problem is that the phone number we had for over 14 years is no longer available to us "even if" we opened a new account.   The device is a 4G LTE phone provided by AT&T.  We should have been good for at least October and be able to, at minimum, xfer our phone number (which we loved) to another carrier.   They were unable/unwilling to do anything and no consideration for my disabled wife.  They basically got free money for keeping an unused account active and then did everything not to be accommodating.  Terrible.  Thanks for the reply.

Is the phone is question (Asus Xenfone 2E) on the list in the link provided?

The phone was not on AT&T's list of approved devices. You were able to transfer your phone number to another carrier. The time to do that was before the data AT&T announced 3G would be retired. 

Like I said, your only hope is a BBB or FCC complaint. Good luck. 

The device is a 4G LTE phone provided by AT&T.

    The phone you mention is not AT&T capable or certified. (Asus Xenfone 2E). Is not listed, it's too old. It's imei will not pass the IMEI check. It's a 2015 phone.   It will not work on at&t anymore as it's not capable of voice calls over LTE. 

If you were notified it needed to be replaced, and I think you were or you wouldn't have contacted at&t about it in january, you should have done so.   

@formerlyknownas Why, oh why, do people call CS before they do their own research online?  The information is right there in black & white.  *smdh*

Let us help shed some light on what's happening with your PREPAID account, @DarinGoodman. We understand the need to get this resolved. 

At this time we are unable to guarantee that you will be able to get your number back. You can visit one of our AT&T Retail Stores to see if your number is available.

We’ve phased out our 3G network as of February 22, 2022. We’re making room for an even better network. 

• Devices Working on AT&T Network. It’s important to check the device model numbers to make sure it’s still supported since the 3G network shutdown. This includes iPads, tablets, and wearables. (The phone may be on the list, but is not guaranteed to work unless it is an AT&T device.)

Talk and data services will only work for AT&T PREPAID wireless phones and devices that support at least 4G LTE and HD Voice. Here’s how to upgrade an AT&T PREPAID device:

1. Visit one of our stores to get a new phone.
2. Place your SIM card into the new phone. (If your SIM card doesn’t fit, get a new SIM card kit from our store.)
3. Sign in to your AT&T prepaid account.
4. Select My Device, then Update Device.
5. Follow the prompts to update your IMEI or SIM card number.

If you are not planning to upgrade your device, and have concerns about the remaining balance/refund on your PREPAID account, please contact us directly for assistance at 611 from your AT&T PREPAID phone or call 800.901.9878 from another phone.

Thank you for contacting our AT&T Community! 

Sydne, AT&T Community Specialist