T-mobile - Voicestream ripoff Lied about service issues and charged me disconnetcion fee even though my cellphone didnt work Bellevue Washington

People don't get phones and pay the bills because it is fun...they, like myself, want the phone to work. I'm in Lincoln NE, and even though their coverage map says I should have good service, I DON'T. I know their contract says I'm stuck for a few more months, but their lying maps are saying I have good service. They need to fix the service before they try to penalize people for leaving their network.

From the T-Mobile contract I signed when I became a T-Mobile customer:

Section 6:

"Coverage maps only approximate our wireless coverage area outdoors; actual service area, coverage, and quality may vary and change without notice. There may be gaps in Service within the estimated coverage areas shown on coverage maps...

WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY SERVICE LIMITS, FAILURES, OR OUTAGES"

and in Section 4:

"If you select a rate plan with a fixed term longer than 1 month, then this Agreement will continue for the full number of months selected (Term). You may cancel Service for any reason by providing us with notice (we may require up to 30 days), which cancellation will take effect on or before the beginning of the next billing cycle after the notice period, BUT IF YOU CANCEL SERVICE OR BREACH THE AGREEMENT BEFORE YOUR TERM ENDS, YOU AGREE THAT THE RESULTING HARM TO US IS IMPRACTICABLE OR EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO MEASURE AND YOU AGREE TO PAY US IN ADDITION TO AMOUNTS OWED, AS A REASONABLE ESTIMATE OF OUR HARM, A $200.00 CANCELLATION FEE PER NUMBER...
Our cost of providing your Service and Phone is not incurred evenly over the Term. Our monthly charges and other rates are based on the assumption that you will remain a customer for the whole Term. You and we agree that it is reasonable for your rates to include the amount of the cancellation fee."


The contracts I signed when I had Cingular and Verizon also had very similar clauses... the fact is that when you purchase a cellular phone with a service contract you are actually paying far less for the phone itself than what the phone costs the company...the company (T-Mobile, Verizon, Cingular, whoever) will recover the cost of the phone and make a profit as long as you continue service for the duration of the contract. This is why so many cellphone companies offer "free" phones. If someone got a $200 phone for $50 and cancelled their service after a few monthes the company would lose money...hence the Early Termination Fee. I've had many different carriers in different areas and they ALL have areas where there is NO SIGNAL...and NO cell phone company GUARANTEES coverage.

My suggestion: read the contract next time. Also, if you anticipate moving or traveling, definitely go with a bigger company than T-Mobile. Anyone who compares the ESTIMATED coverage maps will see that T-Mobile does not, by their own approximation, have the widest coverage.

When I moved from Minnestoa to York nebraska I had the exact same problems what I did was I threatened a lawsuit and an investigation into their comapny before they really did anything and I also had a friend of mine who is a lawyer give them a call as i had put him on retainer in case they wanted to take it to the grass.
My friend talked with them for like 15 minutes and then asked for their legal departments phone number and a supervisor promply picked up from where the customer service rep was and they cancelled any and all fees associated with their services and i received a check for all of the money I had put into their service since i had moved down here ( about $1000. The best way to do it is just that talk with them or take them to court they're option

I had the same problem as Frank and Dave. I am STILL fighting with T-Mobile, who has now turned me over to AmSher, their "big-time" collection agency, for $400 in early termingation charges. I maintain that there was no contract, once they didn't provide service to me in an area where their maps showed service available. They blamed it on the house, the phone itself, (I'm still using the phone with no problems whatsoever with a different wireless carrier.

I'd like to know what steps to take to turn them into the Attorney General's office too, so that they'll quit harrassing me, trying to ruin my credit, and now of all things, hassling my 73 year old mother in Texas. Good grief! They must get a kick out of this. Any suggestions appreciated.

I had the same problem. My Tmobile phone didn't work in my new house. They said because it was brick. What a crock. I complained for 6 months, they kept saying there is nothing wrong with the area, it must be my phone, which I replaced, and still didn't work. Finally I got the Attorney General involved, and then Tmobile let me out of my contract.

However, since I was now on a month-to-month contract, I decided not to change until I checked out other services. In the meantime, Tmobile added a new tower near my house, and bingo! the service is perfect. You are right, they lied about checking it out. They don't care about customers. Only when you turn them in, will they do the right thing. I had 3 lines with them, they wanted $525.00 to cancel my service!

I had the same problem. My Tmobile phone didn't work in my new house. They said because it was brick. What a crock. I complained for 6 months, they kept saying there is nothing wrong with the area, it must be my phone, which I replaced, and still didn't work. Finally I got the Attorney General involved, and then Tmobile let me out of my contract.

However, since I was now on a month-to-month contract, I decided not to change until I checked out other services. In the meantime, Tmobile added a new tower near my house, and bingo! the service is perfect. You are right, they lied about checking it out. They don't care about customers. Only when you turn them in, will they do the right thing. I had 3 lines with them, they wanted $525.00 to cancel my service!

I had the same problem. My Tmobile phone didn't work in my new house. They said because it was brick. What a crock. I complained for 6 months, they kept saying there is nothing wrong with the area, it must be my phone, which I replaced, and still didn't work. Finally I got the Attorney General involved, and then Tmobile let me out of my contract.

However, since I was now on a month-to-month contract, I decided not to change until I checked out other services. In the meantime, Tmobile added a new tower near my house, and bingo! the service is perfect. You are right, they lied about checking it out. They don't care about customers. Only when you turn them in, will they do the right thing. I had 3 lines with them, they wanted $525.00 to cancel my service!