ATT bricked my phone, set up a temporary account to fix it and now that account is in Collections.

There's a lot going on in that post. 

Your phone number isn't locked. To use it with a different provider, you talk to the new provided and they will port the number over. As long as you have the account number and PIN, that should be a problem. If it is, the new provider would be able to tell you that. 

Unlocking a phone (the physical device) requires you to have paid off the phone in full. If you've done that, you can go to the AT&T unlocking portal and request it be unlocked. Having a phone locked to AT&T will not prevent you from using another provider, just from using that particular phone with another provider. 

I'm not sure where collections comes from. Who didn't you pay? Why?

The new provider was not able to port the number over because of something ATT did before closing out the account. And once they closed out the account, they cold not fix the mistake. That is what bricked my phone, or at least the number, which is effectively the same thing.  The phone/brick issue was solved by the temporary account and a new SIM which provided the opportunity to fix their initial mistake. The temporary account, one month of service, resulted in the collections. I paid my last bill and then received another bill and called ATT and said, Hey, what's this bill? I thought I was done. They said, yeah, you're good. Your account is all paid up and closed out. Now I'm getting phone calls from a bill collector...

I can pay the bill collector, but then my credit record is damaged. I am disputing the bill, but that can take many months. I believe ATT has the ability to make this all go away. Thing is, if I were paying for my phone instead of my employer, I'd still be with ATT. The coverage is sooo much better than T-Hat other provider!

It's illegal for AT&T to brick a phone can't since 2016 

 I know this is a bad time to point fingers, but you really kind of messed this up from the start. Dearly wish you had come here and asked us fellow customers how to switch carriers properly. 

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@chasjo wrote:

The new provider was not able to port the number over because of something ATT did before closing out the account.

No, At&t closed the account because you asked.   It is not possible to port numbers unless they are active. This means you have to keep your account open with AT&T and port out.   This of course means your account has to be paid up to date and not suspended. 

And once they closed out the account, they cold not fix the mistake.   Yeah they could have, or you could have by porting your number back and re-opening your account. 

That is what bricked my phone, or at least the number, which is effectively the same thing.  No, Not at all. Your phone is locked to AT&T until all of your financial obligations have been completed. That means both paying off the phone and having a zero balance on your account. We strongly advise people to pay off and unlock their phones first, before you port your number. This means all you have to do is worry about a small final bill at most.

The phone/brick issue was solved by the temporary account and a new SIM which provided the opportunity to fix their initial mistake.   But  you then had to call AT&T and cancel that account. It’s not just gonna cancel itself magically. 

The temporary account, one month of service, resulted in the collections. I paid my last bill and then received another bill and called ATT and said, Hey, what's this bill? I thought I was done. They said, yeah, you're good. Your account is all paid up and closed out. Now I'm getting phone calls from a bill collector...

A temporary account was a terrible idea.   Really wish you would asked us customers how to do this. 

 

I can pay the bill collector, but then my credit record is damaged. I am disputing the bill, but that can take many months. I believe ATT has the ability to make this all go away. Thing is, if I were paying for my phone instead of my employer, I'd still be with ATT. The coverage is sooo much better than T-Hat other provider!

 What do you do next is entirely up to you. Personally it’s not worth the damage to my credit to let something like this go on, but that’s my choice you have to make your own. 

 

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@sladewilson56 wrote:

It's illegal for AT&T to brick a phone can't since 2016 

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     They did not ‘brick’ your phone. Your phone is locked until you’re financially clear of AT&T. I assume that has been accomplished? Yes? No?. 

     there is absolutely no legal requirement that any carrier unlock a phone. That is not true. There is a voluntary agreement signed by all carriers that they will unlock phones if possible. Each carrier agrees to publish the terms of the unlock on their website. Carriers cannot and do not unlock all devices. For example the Amazon fire phone and the original iPhone cannot be unlocked and are no longer supported.    All 2G phones IMEi are purged from the network and cannot be unlocked.

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@lizdance40 wrote:

 I know this is a bad time to point fingers, but you really kind of messed this up from the start. Dearly wish you had come here and asked us fellow customers how to switch carriers properly. 

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@chasjo wrote:

The new provider was not able to port the number over because of something ATT did before closing out the account.

No, At&t closed the account because you asked.   It is not possible to port numbers unless they are active. This means you have to keep your account open with AT&T and port out.   This of course means your account has to be paid up to date and not suspended. 

And once they closed out the account, they cold not fix the mistake.   Yeah they could have, or you could have by porting your number back and re-opening your account. 

That is what bricked my phone, or at least the number, which is effectively the same thing.  No, Not at all. Your phone is locked to AT&T until all of your financial obligations have been completed. That means both paying off the phone and having a zero balance on your account. We strongly advise people to pay off and unlock their phones first, before you port your number. This means all you have to do is worry about a small final bill at most.

The phone/brick issue was solved by the temporary account and a new SIM which provided the opportunity to fix their initial mistake.   But  you then had to call AT&T and cancel that account. It’s not just gonna cancel itself magically. 

The temporary account, one month of service, resulted in the collections. I paid my last bill and then received another bill and called ATT and said, Hey, what's this bill? I thought I was done. They said, yeah, you're good. Your account is all paid up and closed out. Now I'm getting phone calls from a bill collector...

A temporary account was a terrible idea.   Really wish you would asked us customers how to do this. 

 

I can pay the bill collector, but then my credit record is damaged. I am disputing the bill, but that can take many months. I believe ATT has the ability to make this all go away. Thing is, if I were paying for my phone instead of my employer, I'd still be with ATT. The coverage is sooo much better than T-Hat other provider!

 What do you do next is entirely up to you. Personally it’s not worth the damage to my credit to let something like this go on, but that’s my choice you have to make your own. 

 

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@lizdance40 

you do realize that post you responded to was from 2018 right?

Lol.  No.  Didn’t even see user name was different. 

Wow, a blast from there past is right. Yes and you weren't even being useful. And I didn't mess it up from the start. From the start was when I asked them, "What do I need to do to take this phone to my new provider?" And they messed it up. My mistake came later. Unless you are thinking of the one I made when I didn't  ask you (who can't read a date and just fires off her useless opinion) how I should go about moving my phone to a new provider. Right. Yes, I knew your type existed, but Didn't have your user name. I'll be sure and send all of my questions to you from now on Liz. You've been such help.