Sprint horror story

[raqball]

I had 2 HTC EVO's on Sprint family plan... Yesterday I get a notification for an update to the Sprint software so I click download and install on my EVO...

The device reboots then freezes with a warning triangle... After an hour of waiting I call Sprint and they attempt to troubleshoot over the phone.. No dice so they tell me they can mail me a replacement phone or I can go to local Sprint store to get a replacement... I opt for Sprint store since I do not have a home phone and this is my only form of communication...

Go into the Sprint store and they take my phone to the back and say it will take about 45 minutes... After about 30 minutes they come out and say the phone is fixed and give it back to me, but they were acting a bit odd so for some reason I decide to check.. Sure enough it was not fixed and upon trying to install the update, the phone freezes again right there in the Sprint store..

They again take my phone and come back about 30 minutes later and tell me there is nothing they can do because the phone has water damage.... I know it has never been exposed to any water damage and I baby my phones... I look at the water sensors and they are in tact and have not been triggered... I ask the tech to show me the water damage and he says he can't because he cleaned it up...

HUH?

I ask the tech if the water sensors are in tact and not triggered and he yells and screams at me and asks "are you calling me a liar" as he stands about 2 inches from me... I again ask if the sensor are triggered and he snatches the phone from my hand, looks at it and says "nope" in a very loud and agitated voice.... I ask him to show me the water damage and he again starts yelling at me and asking if I am calling him a liar... I ask to speak to the store manager....

Of course the store manager is not available so I get the assistant store manager... I explain the situation to him and he immediately asks the tech to show the water damage.... The tech tells him he can't because he cleaned it up... The asst store manager then says he will back his tech up and since his tech says the phone had water damage there is noting he can do for me...

I ask if photos were taken of the damage and he asks me to wait while he goes into the back... He comes out about 10 minutes later and tell me no photos were taken of the damage and there is no evidence of this damage because the tech cleaned it all up... He says they have noted my account about the water damage and no body will help me from that point on...

He says I have 2 option for my $500 phone... Option one is borrow a phone from a friend that is not being used and option two is for me to call insurance, pay the $100 deductible, and wait for maybe up to a week for the insurance replaced phone....

I tell him neither of them are options as the phone did not have any water damage and if it did then someone should be able to show it to me or should have documented the damage prior to supposedly cleaning it up... I would think that if you are going to leave a customer with a $500 paperweight, that you'd document / CYA the damage...

I told the asst store manager that if he was refusing to provide me with service of a working device that I would take that as unable to provide service and I would need to port my numbers to a carrier that can provide service... I ported to Verizon as soon as I left and I have no intention of paying Sprint's ETF's...

This is hands down the worse customer service of my life... Pathetic... The asst store manager did say he had video but that the video would not be available for a week...

I will file a complaint with the BBB and my State Attorney General... In this complaint I will ask that the video mentioned be reviewed to not only show the way I was treated, and to show the tech in my face yelling and screaming at me, but also to show the lack of water damage... I will also offer to send the EVO anywhere requested to test for the so called water damage claimed by the tech....

 

[Seddy]

Something sounds fishy... I really hate it when our customers go thru this, which is why i'll stay on the phone for atleast an hour trying to fix whatever problem the customer is experiencing before I escalate the call. Sprint stores are a toss up. Some reps know how to do their jobs and will do what it takes to resolve the issue, but other just dont give a flip and will say and do whatever just to get the customer out the store...

But thats beyond the point... 1st of all... How the hell do you clean up water damage? Most phones have a white dot that turns red when exposed to water, not really sure about the EVO but i'm sure it has something where you can tell. Its not a smart Idea not to pay the ETF because Sprint will put a nasty number on your credit, BUT its good you're taking the steps to show Sprint that you mean business. Hopefully you'll come out dry in the end, but if you ask me, that particular store is on some serious BS. Keep us posted on how this turns out.

 

[AndroidSPCS]

Hmm sounds very strange. What store did this happen at?

It sounds like we're missing a major portion of the story somehow...

 

[Seddy]

Hmm sounds very strange. What store did this happen at?

It sounds like we're missing a major portion of the story somehow...

I was thinking the same thing... Maybe the OP went into the store with an attitude demanding a new phone or something like that... (just guessing here)

 

[raqball]

Hmm sounds very strange. What store did this happen at?

It sounds like we're missing a major portion of the story somehow...

That's pretty much the story... What else would you like to know?

 

[raqball]

I was thinking the same thing... Maybe the OP went into the store with an attitude demanding a new phone or something like that... (just guessing here)

Nope... All I wanted was the phone fixed... When they brought it back out to me the 1st time and said it was fixed I was like cool... But they were acting strange so I decided to check it right there and sure enough, it was not fixed....

I am pretty confident the video the asst manager claims to have will show who was in the wrong.... Now it would not surprise me one bit if they later say no video exists or that it did not capture the incident....

 

[Jude72]

I thought the story was explained pretty well. Not sure what some of you guys are getting at. Sounds to me like Sprint hired a pair of dumb asses who didn't want to swap out the phone. In situations like that, I pull out the 'intimidate' word. Managers hate to think their staff are 'intimidating' (although in this case the Ass. Manager was an ASS!). I think I'd have asked them to put the actual Manager on the phone.

 

[Seddy]

Nope... All I wanted was the phone fixed... When they brought it back out to me the 1st time and said it was fixed I was like cool... But they were acting strange so I decided to check it right there and sure enough, it was not fixed....

I am pretty confident the video the asst manager claims to have will show who was in the wrong.... Now it would not surprise me one bit if they later say no video exists or that it did not capture the incident....

In this case I would've went with the replacement option over the phone and found an old phone to activate until the replacement arrived. These days, ANYTHING is better than going into a store. The majority of techs in stores have attitudes because of all the sh*t they put up with dealing with ignorant customers that come in there with demands. I tell everyone, you come out better if you remain calm and explain the situation. I'm sorry you had to go thru that experience and I hope Verizon treats you well.

 

[raqball]

In this case I would've went with the replacement option over the phone and found an old phone to activate until the replacement arrived. These days, ANYTHING is better than going into a store. The majority of techs in stores have attitudes because of all the sh*t they put up with dealing with ignorant customers that come in there with demands. I tell everyone, you come out better if you remain calm and explain the situation. I'm sorry you had to go thru that experience and I hope Verizon treats you well.

Like they say, hind sight is 20/20... Knowing what I know now, I should have just let Sprint Phone support send me the phone and paid extra for overnight delivery....

She said my account was noted so I assume Sprint store tech could see her notes.... What really got me was when I was told they noted my account to indicate water damage and that even Sprint phone support would no longer help me because of the note they put...

My question is how do you clean up water damage??????????? (which is what the tech said he did and the reason they could not show it to me)

 

[Seddy]

Like they say, hind sight is 20/20... Knowing what I know now, I should have just let Sprint Phone support send me the phone and paid extra for overnight delivery....

She said my account was noted so I assume Sprint store tech could see her notes.... What really got me was when I was told they noted my account to indicate water damage and that even Sprint phone support would no longer help me because of the note they put...

My question is how do you clean up water damage??????????? (which is what the tech said he did and the reason they could not show it to me)

Thats what I dont understand... Water damage is not something that can be 'cleaned up'. And besides, if the phone had water damage to begin with, why would he come out and say 'its fixed'. I would suggest taking it to a different store but you've already ported out so thats not an option. I'm stumped on this one, but I can honestly say the store tech clearly had no clue what he was doing. You might have gotten better support posting your issue on this forum and following the steps to reflash your phone.

 

[raqball]

Thats what I dont understand... Water damage is not something that can be 'cleaned up'. And besides, if the phone had water damage to begin with, why would he come out and say 'its fixed'. I would suggest taking it to a different store but you've already ported out so thats not an option. I'm stumped on this one, but I can honestly say the store tech clearly had no clue what he was doing. You might have gotten better support posting your issue on this forum and following the steps to reflash your phone.

Thats what sux.... After I got home from Verizon I did flash the stock rom that I found here somewhere (it was a PC36?????) after that I did the update and it went through just fine....

Even so, since they noted my account as water damage then anything that happens to the phone from here on out is not covered....

I just don't get it either... I am sure the video will show what happened, maybe Sprints CEO should get his hands on it if he really wants to know how his customers are treated....

 

[Seddy]

Thats what sux.... After I got home from Verizon I did flash the stock rom that I found here somewhere (it was a PC36?????) after that I did the update and it went through just fine....

Even so, since they noted my account as water damage then anything that happens to the phone from here on out is not covered....

I just don't get it either... I am sure the video will show what happened, maybe Sprints CEO should get his hands on it if he really wants to know how his customers are treated....

If it comes to that, Mr. Hess will definitely be getting a copy of this so called tape. He's not one for court cases and lawsuits. He'll do what it takes to settle without the foolishness. I would've sent him an email personally explaining the situation so that there would be a record if things get salty.

As far as that notation goes, yeah its in the notes, but taking it to another store to get a second opinion would've been my next route, especially if you KNOW that your phone never came into contact with water. They probably put a DBR (Damaged Beyond Repair) notation in E-Ticket which can be removed by an Tech if they see that nothing is physically wrong with the phone.

The sad part is, customers have one bad experience at a store and just give up on the company all together. It really saddens me because not all stores are like that. I think they need to do a massive overhaul of all the stores and terminate those that are not fit for the job. Yea, working for Sprint is not an easy job, but lying and being rude about something as simple as replacing a phone is unacceptable.

 

[raqball]

If it comes to that, Mr. Hess will definitely be getting a copy of this so called tape. He's not one for court cases and lawsuits. He'll do what it takes to settle without the foolishness. I would've sent him an email personally explaining the situation so that there would be a record if things get salty.

As far as that notation goes, yeah its in the notes, but taking it to another store to get a second opinion would've been my next route, especially if you KNOW that your phone never came into contact with water. They probably put a DBR (Damaged Beyond Repair) notation in E-Ticket which can be removed by an Tech if they see that nothing is physically wrong with the phone.

The sad part is, customers have one bad experience at a store and just give up on the company all together. It really saddens me because not all stores are like that. I think they need to do a massive overhaul of all the stores and terminate those that are not fit for the job. Yea, working for Sprint is not an easy job, but lying and being rude about something as simple as replacing a phone is unacceptable.

I sent an email to dan@srpint.com but something tells me its a spoof address for him... I did indicate everything noted here, including the video statement made.... I also CC'd the store manager who was unavailable....

All I got back so far was an automated response from the dan@sprint.com address.....

 

[Seddy]

I sent an email to dan@srpint.com but something tells me its a spoof address for him... I did indicate everything noted here, including the video statement made.... I also CC'd the store manager who was unavailable....

All I got back so far was an automated response from the dan@sprint.com address.....

Thats his email address but he gets so many that he has that automated system in play. Eventually he'll go thru them and reply to those that require responses. So just be patient. It may take a while but you'll get a reply. I say if you dont get a reply in a week or so, send another email. Its also good that you CC'd it to the store manager. Did u get a reply back from him/her yet? If not try calling up there and asking to speak to them.

 

[AndroidSPCS]

I thought the story was explained pretty well. Not sure what some of you guys are getting at. Sounds to me like Sprint hired a pair of dumb asses who didn't want to swap out the phone. In situations like that, I pull out the 'intimidate' word. Managers hate to think their staff are 'intimidating' (although in this case the Ass. Manager was an ASS!). I think I'd have asked them to put the actual Manager on the phone.

It's a pretty incredible story, that's why it's hard to believe.

OP - if things really did happen the way you say, you should be letting us know exactly what store this happened, because the techs at the store are defrauding you.

You should also consider filing a small claims case against the store for damages.

If someone committed fraud against me like this, I wouldn't be handling it like the way you did.

That's why I say this sounds fishy, and as we all know every story has 2 sides to it.

I'm hesitant to buy this story without further information / proof, because we have all been witness to other people trying to pass on some incredulous story and it turns out later there was a whole another side to the story.

 

[raqball]

It's a pretty incredible story, that's why it's hard to believe.

OP - if things really did happen the way you say, you should be letting us know exactly what store this happened, because the techs at the store are defrauding you.

You should also consider filing a small claims case against the store for damages.

If someone committed fraud against me like this, I wouldn't be handling it like the way you did.

That's why I say this sounds fishy, and as we all know every story has 2 sides to it.

I'm hesitant to buy this story without further information / proof, because we have all been witness to other people trying to pass on some incredulous story and it turns out later there was a whole another side to the story.

Well you can believe what you will.... The proof will be in the video the asst store manager made mention of as I left... Now lets see if it gets lost or never actually existed...

How am I handling this wrong? I have written the CEO and will wait a week for a response... If I don't get one then I will contact the BBB and my state attorney generals office....

The store was in Topeka, Kansas (Store # 906) the first names of the techs on duty were Adam, Jose, and French... The asst store manager I spoke with 1st name was Brent....

I am sure they do have a completely different story to tell.... They are now in a position of post CYA.... The proof will be easy to see in the video (assuming they don't loose it, over write it, or say it was not on) (LOL)

As a side note, I called Sprint customer service yesterday to see if my account was in fact notated and it was.... The note stated the phone was non repairable excessive physical damage (or something like that)....

If I get a copy of the video, I will most definitely you tube it and post it here for you to see....

 

[AndroidSPCS]

You should write the consumerist, contact your local news organization, etc etc if this is true.

If it is true, and you have provided the pertinent information, then I am very sorry for your experience and hope this wrong will be righted.

 

[SoulTerror]

Wow that really sucks. Good luck on getting out of the ETF.


We had a similar experience with a Sprint rep, nothing as bad as yours though. Guy refused to get a new battery for my wife's Palm Centrio and forced her to use her upgrade.

 

[stevenw00]

You can send your phone in to Sprint and they can fix the notations in the system if they are incorrect. This is one of the CYA features that Sprint has so that stores don't go rouge and do all kinds of crazy sh!t.

 

[raqball]

That was fast.... I just got off the phone with a rep from the Sprint CEO's office.... We shall see where it goes from here...

He said he will ask for the video 1st thing...

 

[SoulTerror]

Good luck.

 

[raqball]

Since questions were raised about the integrity and validity of my claim I want to keep this thread as transparent as possible...

Here is the email response I received today after my phone conversation.. The name and phone number of the Sprint CEO Representative have been removed by me..

Thank you for contacting the Office of Dan Hesse via Dan@Sprint.com and
speaking with me today. During our conversation we discussed the
initial concerns that prompted you to contact our office. I sincerely
apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced with your
account and service. My office is currently reviewing the matter that
has been brought to our attention. I am also contacting the store
manager for further investigation regarding your 10/4/2010 visit to the
store. I will follow up with you upon my review of your case. I want
to thank you for choosing Sprint and if you have any questions or need
additional assistance I can be reach at 000.000.0000 or by replying to
this email. I am in the office Monday thru Thursday 9AM-7PM and Friday
9AM-1PM EST. However, I will be out of the office 10/8/2010 -
10/11/2010.

 

[AndroidSPCS]

Good luck, let us know how it turns out. If this was indeed fraud by Sprint techs, we need to make sure there is swift justice.

 

[raqball]

Phone call and email today.... Sprint CEO Representative info removed by me again

Thank you for speaking with me today. I contacted the Topeka, KS store
regarding the water damage of your phone. At this time the store
manager is out of the office. However, I will continue to review your
case and will follow up with you by close of business 10/13/2010. I
want to thank you for choosing Sprint and if you have any questions or
need additional assistance I can be reach at 000.000.0000 or by replying
to this email. I am in the office Monday thru Thursday 9AM-7PM and
Friday 9AM-1PM EST. However, I will be out of the office 10/8/2010 -
10/11/2010.

 

[daddyd302]

Keep us inform on this subject.