Here at UCAN, we constantly deal with customers who are told one thing and receive another by cell phone sales people. Verizon, Cingular, Sprint, Nextel, and T-Mobile have all gone to court (or settled out of court) on charges of misleading advertising. But all too often, cell phone companies’ deceptive marketing practices go unprosecuted, or unnoticed. This guide will help you recognize misleading sales tactics and provide tips that enable you to keep the cell carriers, and their third-party providers, honest.
Trial periods are the time to put your carrier’s claims to the test. After this time, you will be charged with a hefty cancellation fee. A commonly misrepresented feature in cell phone plans is the coverage area, or strength of signal. If the phone isn’t receiving a good signal in the areas in which you use it most, return it. Customer representatives will tell you to upgrade to a new phone. Don’t buy it. More often than not, customers who upgrade their phone due to poor reception are left with a more expensive phone, an extended plan, and the same bad service. Even worse is the promise of a new signal tower currently under construction. Rarely, if ever, is this statement true when it comes from the mouth of a customer representative. If your reception is bad, it probably isn’t going to get better. Take your phone back as soon as possible. Many sales agents will employ stall tactics. “The manager isn’t in.” “Your phone just needs a new battery, we’ll order one from our warehouse.” Document the first time you request to cancel your service because cancellation is measured from the date of initiation, not completion. Returns will not be accepted unless they include all the original packaging.
While misleading advertising and misrepresentation can occur throughout the life of your cell phone plan, you are most at risk at the point of sale. Sales tactics and sales incentives vary depending on where you purchase your phone.
Vendors and Kiosks. Vendors, kiosks, and “authorized dealers” can be a hotbed for false claims and promises. The cell phone stands at malls fall under this category. An authorized dealer means only that they are authorized to sell a company’s product, not that they are experts or spokesmen for that company. Most employees at kiosks are paid on commission and have a high incentive to make a sale. Too often, these employees are willing to say and do anything it takes to sell a phone and service plan. This includes misrepresenting: the length of the contract, the total cost of the plan, the quality of the phone, the quality of service coverage, and the penalties for termination amongst others. We recommend staying away from these dealers. If it’s the only way for you to purchase your cell phone, then take our Mobile Fact Checker with you for tips on dealing with kiosks and vendors.
Online Vendors. Some online vendors are like Internet versions of mall kiosks. They regularly promise more than they deliver. UCAN sees many complaints for Wirefly.com, a large online vendor. Wirefly offers some great deals on cell phones, but the advertised deals are not always honored, especially when it comes to rebates. One online vendor that we recommend is Amazon.com. If possible, try to buy from online retailers you know and trust. Avoid websites you have never heard of offering deals that look too good to be true, because they usually are.
Company Stores. Company stores, such as Verizon stores or Cingular stores, are more reliable than vendors or authorized dealers. Employees generally have more training with the companies’ policies and equipment and are under more supervision. This, however, does not ensure you will be safe from misrepresentation. Most company store employees have incentives to make sales. They may not promise the world like vendors, but they will sometimes leave out pertinent information and hidden fees. To ensure you know all the right questions to ask, please see our Mobile Phone Buyer's Guide.
Company Websites. Company websites can be a good place to find deals on cell phone plans. The promotions are more reliable than those offered by mall kiosks and online vendors because you are dealing with the actual company. With that being said, there is still a good deal of fine print to every offer. The benefit to dealing with fine print on the Internet is that you can usually follow a link that allows you to view the restrictions and limitations without having to search through a stack of documents. You can learn more about reading the fine print at our Fine Print page.
All major carriers offer service plans that include an extensive array of additional features and content services. Verizon has V-Cast, Sprint has Power Vision, Cingular has Media Net, and so on. UCAN has found that these features and services can carry a number of hidden costs and fees. If you don’t have an unlimited text-messaging plan, what is the cost for each message over your allotment? Is picture texting or video texting included in the standard texting plan? Both of these functions draw high fees at a per message cost. How is the mobile web usage measured? Do you know how many kilobytes of data you use to check your email? If you’re not on an unlimited web plan, checking your email could cost a lot more than you’re willing to pay. If you download a song from the company store to your phone, can put that song onto your computer without paying an additional fee? The answers are there; it just requires a little digging. Or, if you aren’t the digging type, see our Bundles page.
The UCAN Fraud Squad will take action on behalf of consumers with telecommunications complaints. They also offer valuable tools for consumers.
UCAN Fraud Squad
3100 Fifth Ave., Ste. B
San Diego, CA 92103
Phone: 619/881-UCAN (8226)
Web Form
Complaint Form -Sit back and let the Fraud Squad resolve your complaint
Mobile Phone Plan Checker -Bring this when you purchase a new phone to guarantee your provider delivers service as promised
Your state's public utilities commission may also oversee wireless providers and enable you to submit complaints. To find the contact information for your state's utilities commission, consult The Consumer Action Handbook, available free from the Federal Consumer Information Center by phone at (888) 878-3256, and on the Internet at http://www.consumeraction.gov/utility.shtml . The California Public Utilities Commission consumer complaint number is (800) 649-7570. It provides an online complaint form at www.cpuc.ca.gov .
You can also submit complaints to the following websites
Rip-Off Report -One of the best complaint sites on the Net
Consumer Affairs -A private website that gathers consumer complaints
Complaints.com -A decent complaint site
Consumer Xchange -Consumer must pay for complaint resolution services
The Squeaky Wheel -Allows consumers to create their own complaint page
Better Business Bureau -Highly edited and based on companies' voluntary membership
Cell plan comparison websites
ABtolls - Perhaps the best telecom comparison site on the Internet
SaveOnPhone - Decent listing of rates for all types of phone service
BillBusters -Good rate comparison site
If you are the victim of misleading advertising or misrepresentation, you can file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission or Federal Trade Commission.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, Consumer Complaints
445 12th Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20554
Phone: (888) 225-5322
E-mail: fccinfo@fcc.gov
Web: www.fcc.gov/cgb/complaints.html
Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
Consumer Response Center
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580
Phone: 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357)
Web: http://www.ftc.gov/complaint
Division of Advertising Practices
Division of Marketing Practices