Forum Discussion
Be Careful when returning defective gateway routers
We've been home internet users for right at a year now. Ever since we got home internet through T-mobile, we have had issues with internet going out periodically. Generally, an unplug and wait for a couple minutes would solve the issue. About 3 weeks ago, the internet went out and never came back on. We went roughly 24 hours without any re-connection, so I contacted T-mobile, went through all the troubleshooting steps, and they agreed to send a new gateway. The old gateway sat on top of my 6 ft tall ikea cabinet the entire time we had it, only being touched when we needed to reboot it.
Once the new gateway arrived, I took the old one in the box provided and returned it to the local T-Mobile store. They packaged it up and sent it off. Today, I received an email stating my old gateway was damaged and I would be charged $79.00 on my next bill. I contacted a rep and they were able to send pictures of the "damage". I explained to the rep that this gateway is never touched, never been dropped, etc., so how in the world could it have been damaged?! They responded with "Well that's why we recommend returning to a store" which I told him again that I did return it to a store and everything was open/unboxed for them to inspect. The best excuse they could provide is maybe it got damaged in transit and I'm still on the hook for this charge….
LONG STORY SHORT… Take photos of your gateway if you have to return it. Photograph every single side of it, and return it to a store and have them visually inspect the gateway as well. I know well this thing was in pristine physical condition. The only thing wrong with it was whatever software issues it had when it was sent to us. The second photo in this post is the "Gross Physical Damage" that they claim is worth the $79.00 charge…. ¡Gracias T-Mobile!
I just wonder why T-mobile not responses to those accusations.
We had the same thing happen but we sent through UPS. There were no damages. When it was sent but we got a bill for damages and a photo. We did not damage anything. When we called the customer service said that their system is fool proof but I think now it is obvious that the company is charging for the damage caused by their own people or UPS. How can this happen?
This happened to me as well. After speaking to a customer service representative I decided to try out the T mobile 5g internet device , after having it for the trial period we decided to send it back because the internet connection wasn't working so well in our apartment. So I packed it up and mailed it back via UPS and received some time after a message that it was damaged and I was responsible for the fee. I called up T- mobile and got absolutely no where with the customer service representative. I can tell you that had I damaged the device then I would have no issue paying the fee but that was not the case at all. The device was sent back in the same condition as it was received. Needless to say this was it for me, there is no way I'm going to continue to give my money to a company that takes advantage of its customers. I'll be moving over to another cell phone provider . I hope this doesn't happen to anyone else and yes as is mentioned above take photos of everything you return.
Same thing is happening to me! My gateway was in PRISTINE condition when returned, and I'm now being charged for a "damage fee." The customer service representative I spoke with last night could not help me at all because I never set up a 6-digit PIN. Now I have to go to a store for them to "verify" my account for THEM to then call customer service to speak with me. T-Mobile is a joke. It's fraud, plain and simple. We no longer want / need their service, and they're sticking it to us with bogus charges. I loved the internet, but recently moved and T-Mobile internet was not available at my new address. I will never be a T-Mobile customer again. Who thinks of taking photos of the device before sending it back? Well, definitely do! At least you may have a leg to stand on, although they will probably charge you anyway.
The customer service representative last night (the one who couldn't help me at all because I never set up a PIN) said that this "hardly ever happens" which is a complete and utter lie. Clearly it happens alot. They are losing customers over this, so you would think they would respond and quit this activity. I myself am telling everyone I know to stay away from T-Mobile.
This is a scam. I got the $79 charge. I called to request a description of the damage or a photo. The rep kept me on the line pretending to do things for 30 minutes. They had no info.
I contacted my bank. They did an investigation and resolved it in my favor. They returned the funds to me.
I then received a statement from T-Mobile with the original balance and a $35 returned payment fee.
I contact T-Mobile again to request a description of the damage. They could not provide any.
One day later, I received mail from a collection agency dated 5 days after the statement.
Per the letter's instruction, I called the collection agency. They recorded that the account is in dispute and sent me back to the same scam call center T-Mobile operates.
On this third T-Mobile call the rep said they would file a “handset research form” and if they find the damage was from the shipper, they will take the balance off the account “within 1-2 business days” (why not just 2?).
In each call to T-Mobile, the rep tried to get me to contact UPS. That appears to be part of the script this customer support team has put together to get people to give up.
It’s all just a runaround scam designed to steal from their customers.
Thank you for describing your experiences here. It confirms that T-Mobile is running a scam. It also confirms that they know about it and don't care.
If this "handset research form" process doesn't clear the balance, I will file a consumer complaint with my state's attorney general. This is all a pain, but seeing how they are taking advantage of people regularly, it seems worth it to try to get the AG's office to do a real investigation.
