Virgin Mobile replaces a defective phone WITH A REFURBISHED PHONE?!?

[Skelaz]

Is this true? I recently bought an HTC EVO V 4G off of the Virgin Mobile website and it turned out to be defective so I called them and they said they'll send me a new one. I was looking through the net to see how that works and someone says that they will send you a LIKE NEW?! (REFURBISHED) REPLACEMENT?!

I hope this is not fudging true because I'm not going to pay 300 dollars for a fudging defective phone only to have VM send me another fudging used phone.

Please excuse my language, and this is the source.

Does Virgin Mobile have a warranty for their phones? - Yahoo! Answers

 

[AntimonyER]

I am not sure how it is with Virgin, but with Verizon, if you are within your return period (14 days) you will get a new phone. After that, its a certified like new replacement.

 

[magohn]

My wife's Optimus went bad after 3 months. VM sent her a refurb. I think that VM should send a brand new phone up to a certain ownership date - but I would bet they wont.

 

[sounreal]

Virgin Mobile will send you whatever BS they feel like sending you.

 

[Spritey]

Why does it matter? If it's refurbished that means it WAS defective, and they FIXED it. That's what "like new" means...you literally won't be able to tell it isn't new.

 

[agentc13]

I am not sure how it is with Virgin, but with Verizon, if you are within your return period (14 days) you will get a new phone. After that, its a certified like new replacement.

This is correct as well, but I think you have a 30 day window with VM USA. I used to have a Motorola Triumph, and had to get a replacement. Usually they send a refub, but sometimes you will get a NIB (new in box) replacement as well. They should be in new condition whether refurb or not, if not then you need to call and complain.

 

[Leslie Ann]

I am not sure how it is with Virgin, but with Verizon, if you are within your return period (14 days) you will get a new phone. After that, its a certified like new replacement.

This is how most carriers and even buying direct from a manufacturer is dealt with in many industries. The .com I worked at, we operated the same way on things we exclusively imported. Often it isn't even 14 days. On some items it can be if it looks used at all you get a refurb, and some places will only replace it with new if it is dead on arrival.

This is why I buy from a store like Radio Shack or Best Buy, when you return it, they don't have a refurb inventory to pull from so you get a new one.

 

[koopakid08]

This isn't exclusive to virgin, basically every company that sales some sort of hardware product does the exact same thing.

I don't see what the big deal is, I always try to buy refurbished if I can anyway.

 

[cpht]

Very common issue with the triumph. Everybody was complaining about getting refurbed phones that had the same problem as the one they exchanged.

 

[mastersoup]

Very common issue with the triumph. Everybody was complaining about getting refurbed phones that had the same problem as the one they exchanged.

because it wasnt an issue with the fact it was used, it was how the phone was designed.

 

[euphan1555]

i dont understand why you linked a 2 year old thread about replacing a phone under warranty when you are exchanging a phone within the 30 day return policy.now unless they told you to just send the phone back and not the box,battery, etc you are getting a new phone in the box.now with the slim chance they do try to send you a refurbish one i would just tell them im returning the phone and then just buy a new one.

 

[Skelaz]

i dont understand why you linked a 2 year old thread about replacing a phone under warranty when you are exchanging a phone within the 30 day return policy.now unless they told you to just send the phone back and not the box,battery, etc you are getting a new phone in the box.now with the slim chance they do try to send you a refurbish one i would just tell them im returning the phone and then just buy a new one.

Just got my replacement phone. Oh yeah, it's refurbished. They told me to keep everything but the phone. This is a disappointment knowing the fact that I got the phone a week ago.

 

[euphan1555]

Just got my replacement phone. Oh yeah, it's refurbished. They told me to keep everything but the phone. This is a disappointment knowing the fact that I got the phone a week ago.

if i was you i would call them and tell them you want your money back and the reason why you want the refund.they might just decide to send you a new phone to avoid the hassle.if not you can just buy a new phone either through them or if its still on sell at radioshack.that is if you have the extra money laying around since it will probably be at least a couple weeks until you get the refund.

 

[OverByter]

If you complain about it Virgin's replacement policy is that you WILL receive a new class a phone within the first 30 days, but you have to complain in a firm but respectful manner. I personally went through 6 replacement Triumphs in about 4 months, 5 of them being nib class A replacement phones after they gave me a class C for the first one. Ahh yes I miss my Triumph, ;-) P. S. I've been trying to get a battery cover for over a month, being told that they are not in stock, after escalating the issue they just told me that the only way to receive it is to be sent a phone, keep the cover and send them the phone back. Crazy isn't it?

 

[Skelaz]

If you complain about it Virgin's replacement policy is that you WILL receive a new class a phone within the first 30 days, but you have to complain in a firm but respectful manner. I personally went through 6 replacement Triumphs in about 4 months, 5 of them being nib class A replacement phones after they gave me a class C for the first one. Ahh yes I miss my Triumph, ;-) P. S. I've been trying to get a battery cover for over a month, being told that they are not in stock, after escalating the issue they just told me that the only way to receive it is to be sent a phone, keep the cover and send them the phone back. Crazy isn't it?

Okay, thanks. I'll give them a call

 

[Leslie Ann]

I've been trying to get a battery cover for over a month, being told that they are not in stock, after escalating the issue they just told me that the only way to receive it is to be sent a phone, keep the cover and send them the phone back. Crazy isn't it?

Ebay.

 

[blh2012]

Just got my replacement phone. Oh yeah, it's refurbished. They told me to keep everything but the phone. This is a disappointment knowing the fact that I got the phone a week ago.

Did you buy the phone at a store? If so you should have just returned it and got a NIB one

EDIT - Nevermind, somehow missed the first line where you said you got it online lol. my bad.

 

[OverByter]

Ebay.

I know, but I'm getting it replaced under warranty. It's been loose from day one. Just find it so Virgin Mobile that they don't have it listed as a separate part and have to send me a complete phone just to replace the cover. ;-)

 

[Roxxas049]

Yeah I'm in the process of trying to return my Evo but VM says they have no class "a" phones in stock. However if you return the phone and order another one they just MAGICALLY have them in stock.

They are trying to get people to accept the refurb phones because they have so many of them because of the fact that these phones just do not work right.

 

[Leslie Ann]

Yeah I'm in the process of trying to return my Evo but VM says they have no class "a" phones in stock. However if you return the phone and order another one they just MAGICALLY have them in stock.

They are trying to get people to accept the refurb phones because they have so many of them because of the fact that these phones just do not work right.

They make money on new phones, refurb generate nothing.

Companies a always push to dump the refurbs so they can sell the new. It's not a matter of how many are in stock, it's a matter of money.

I don't think they have nearly the inventory of refurbs that you think they do. At least not for the reasons you think they do. They probably do have a lot but it's because of unsold Sprint phones that had been sitting around, not to mention those refurbs, and those damaged during flashing. This is why we are still seeing Sprint phones instead of them all Being Virgin. HTC made TON of these phones.

I don't think they sold as many EVO V's as people think.
Between the economy and price, it's not a cheap phone for people to buy. Especially on Virgin, who is traditionally a budget carrier.

 

[OverByter]

Yeah I'm in the process of trying to return my Evo but VM says they have no class "a" phones in stock. However if you return the phone and order another one they just MAGICALLY have them in stock.

They are trying to get people to accept the refurb phones because they have so many of them because of the fact that these phones just do not work right.

I don't think that they're as nefarious as you're making them out to be. The policy is quite simple, if you require a replacement within the first 30 days you are entitled to a class A replacement. Anything after that would normally receive a class C. Class A phones are usually returns that were never activated on Virgin's service.

 

[Roxxas049]

I understand what you are saying about the replacements, but when they tell me that no new phones are available and then out of the other side of their mouths they say that I can "buy" a new phone and have it within 5 days, there's something wrong.

 

[OverByter]

As I previously explained, a class A replacement is not usually a brand new unit, it's one that has been returned in the box but has never been used and activated. According to federal consumer protection laws they are not able to be sold as new. That's why Virgin has phones available for immediate sale but yet not have any class A replacement phones in stock. While they might appear physically identical, legally they are quite different. And obviously if you were entitled to a class A and none are available they could give you a brand new retail unit or have you wait until one is in stock.

 

[joshua8790]

This is correct as well, but I think you have a 30 day window with VM USA. I used to have a Motorola Triumph, and had to get a replacement. Usually they send a refub, but sometimes you will get a NIB (new in box) replacement as well. They should be in new condition whether refurb or not, if not then you need to call and complain.

I ALWAYS (3 times) got a NIB replacement when I owned my Triumph.

I was actually shocked to see a refurb unit this time. When refurb replacement stock runs low, I guess that's when they resort to their NIB replacements, since I owned my Triumph from November '11 - July '12, switched to Evo and never looked back at the Triumph.

 

[FatalIll]

In my honest opinion, and from experience with other appliances... Refurbs are better than off-the-line products. Especially with phones. A refurb phone usually goes into a dust-free room and is worked on by an expert to fix anything defective (screen, hardware) and works better than off-the-line.