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Being Billed for Service after Cancellation and After transfer to another carrier.
Until recently I had an AT&T cellular account and hotspot for two cell phones.
Reception in my building was poor for several years and i finally switched carriers.
I had no contract and owned my phones.
I ported the phones to the new carrier on Feb 1 and Feb 4 2018. I began active use on those dates and have telephone records to show this.
I called Customer service and cancelled the Hotspot and accepted the fact I had to pay a $134 cancellation fee.
I understand that many utilities have a policy to advance bill. AT&T does this. They charge for the next months service in a current billing cycle so they effectively have a deposit on the services to be provided.
I was charged in the cycle ending Feb 4 for the Period from Feb 5-March 4.
But my service was transferred so I have been charged in advance for services AT&T cannot render. So I should be refunded.
The Manager on the Customer Service line named Epigmenio tells me AT&T does not reimburse for these services that that are unable to provide. Yet I paid far all of the services i received. So essentially AT&T is swindling me and others by advance billing us and then not providing services.
[Edited to comply with Guidelines]
Thank you,
Bruce
AngryCust319
Tutor
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3 Messages
5 years ago
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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116.6K Messages
5 years ago
@AngryCust319
If all your numbers were ported out, you wouldn’t have a $100 bill for 3 months in a row adding to $300. Read the bill, what numbers and devices are still on the bill. Tablet? Watch?
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AngryCust319
Tutor
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3 Messages
5 years ago
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sandblaster
ACE - Expert
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64.7K Messages
5 years ago
@AngryCust319 You are talking to other customers here, not ATT employees. No one here can talk to the service rep or check the call details.
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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116.6K Messages
5 years ago
@AngryCust319
Again, read the bill. Cellular service are billed continuously only if you have a device still “active” because you did not cancel it.
Is there a phone number and device still on your cell phone bill?
Phone numbers can be ported out to a new carrier, which cancels phones lines. Numbers for Tablets, watches or other devices are NOT ported, so you must call and cancel them.
And if my reference to ‘cellular, cell phone, devices, tablet, watches’ makes no sense to you, you posted in the Community Cell phone forum so may be in the wrong place.
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Reach3
Contributor
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1 Message
5 years ago
Good luck with that. Customer service is a joke. Have your bank stop payment! I canceled regular wireless account switched to prepaid. I received a full months bill ($96) for the old wireless account. I switched on the 24th new billing cycle on the 7th so why would I be billed for an entire month? Went into the store where I made a switch. They could not help me. Called 611 they couldn’t help me. They gave me a phone number. That customer service rep gave me another phone number then transfered 6 times!! After demanding to speak to manager, “Tony” claims I’ll receive a refund. This month I received another email stating I’d be billed $43 for the wireless account that I’m no longer using. How I solved the problem last month and it looks like I’m going to have to do it again this month is having payment stopped by my bank. I’m only allowing the prepaid account to be paid. I’m going to report them to the BBB.
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Gary L
ACE - Expert
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16.5K Messages
5 years ago
No proration when you cancel.
If you have autopay, you'd likely be paying about the week after you canceled for the previous cycle.
I'm not sure why it would be so low, that seems like it's a half-month. But keep in mind the postpaid bill that got paid around the end of the month was for the PREVIOUS cycle, when you canceled you were a few weeks into a new cycle that wouldn't close out for a few more weeks and not even generate a bill for a few more days.
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Rscarol
Scholar
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156 Messages
5 years ago
Did you really cancel your service (disconnect the number) prior to the number porting to another carrier?
If you did, the port would fail. Can not port a number that is not active, per FCC rules.
Maybe you meant you canceled the auto pay. If the port didn't go through immediately (they usually don't) you might have the a credit on your prepay balance but it would probably be lost (instead of used towards the monthly plan you had been on)
Next time, cancel autopay, and change to a pay per use voice and data plan a few days before porting from att prepay to another carrier. Assuming you have a couple bucks on the account to sustain the usage costs while you wait for the port.
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Mow7861
Tutor
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4 Messages
5 years ago
This sounds like an Att employee. If I’m not refunded, I’ll just have to let all my friend on Facebook and Twitter know that ATT steals your money when you eventually transfer to another carrier. Not to mention every wireless forum online I can find.
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MicCheck
ACE - Expert
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14.1K Messages
5 years ago
@Mow7861, why would you do that? AT&T makes it obvious to every customer in their terms and conditions. Non-customers can even go to the AT&T website and read this before becoming customers. It’s the worst kept secret in the world.
Almost St all the other carriers do the same thing and they are just as open about it.
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