Sprint has mailed postcards to its customers saying that, beginning January 1st, it will stop charging so-called “recovery” fees and create new fees to replace (or possibly exceed) them. Sprint customers are now asking themselves whether or not this is a change to the Terms & Conditions—if so, then they should be able to cancel their contracts without paying an ETF, or early termination fee.
One Sprintusers.com forum member posted that a Sprint CSR read the following to him:
Sprints current policy as read by account services: “On Jan. 1st 2008 Sprint customers who have been affected by the fees, [consumer and IL customers], will have their ETF waived if they wish to terminate their contract. There will be no post-dating of cancellation where the ETF will be waived as only customers affected by the new surcharges will be eligible.”
There’s some debate on the loooong forum discussion, but a reader wrote us to say he just used the pricing change to get out of his Sprint contract ETF-free, “staying on as a customer OOC, and receiving retentions deals and perks the same day.”
(Click image for larger version.)
This writer has a special hatred of Sprint from several years ago, when they debited over $1500 from my checking account (for a $120 bill) and then tried to insist it would take over two weeks to replace the stolen money. Sprint, may you rot in hell.
(Thanks to Harry and Ryan!)
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“Sprint Changing Terms And Conditions Of Service” [sprintusers.com]
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absolutely did NOT work for me. Got a CSR and a supervisor on the phone, and they both said these are TAXES and that their contract says they can change taxes and fees at any time.
Any Advice??
Hey Ratchet, can you post the text of your message so the rest of us can use it?
Thanks!
Hey is this for every state in the US? or just certain regions?
The posted response on the page says “There will be no post-dating of cancellation where the ETF will be waived as only customers affected by the new surcharges will be eligible”
That implies that not everyone is affected.
C
Well, i just got out with two phones as well by simply sending a request email to the eCare help on the sprint pcs page. I just asked to be released due to a material breach in the contract because of the new fees. Here’s there response:
“Thank you for contacting Sprint. I am disappointed to know that you wish to drop our services and port the numbers to another service provider due to change in contract terms.
You can go ahead and cancel your account without early termination fees. However, I would like to share the information that the numbers on the account cannot be ported out after the account is cancelled.
Thus, I request you to write back to us after porting the numbers and I will forward your request to the cancellation department to cancel your account”
So, now let’s see if it actually happens with out a big bill coming to me three weeks after asking for 500 in ETFs. But at least i have written proof now in email form.
iPhone here we come.
I got this email this morning.. thank you god!!!
Hello,
Thank you for contacting Sprint. I am disappointed to know that you
wish to drop our services and port your numbers due to change in
contract.
You can go ahead and cancel your account without early termination
fees. However, I would like to share the information that the numbers on
the account cannot be ported out after the account is cancelled.
Thus, I request you to write back to us after porting the numbers and I
will forward your request to the cancellation department to cancel
your account.
Thank you again for contacting us.
John K.
Business E-Care
Sprint
“Where our customers come first!”
OK, I’m trying via email. Sprint just hates me for some reason….maybe I’ve been a customer too long (6 years or so?)
OK, via email they say that if my service INCREASES due to the changes, that I can cancel withing 30 days of receiving an inctual invoice with the charges. It looks to me like my service will actually decrease, not increase, so it still doesn’t look like it will help. Anyway, she said to call #2 after I get my next invoice if the price goes up.
mine was signed Deborah R.
if you have any kind of past due amount on the account, can you still use this cancellation?
I tried to email to cancel but I want to keep my service on a month to month basis and this is the response I got.
“I would like to share the information that the account will incur an additional $10.00 as the monthly service charge for being on the month to month option.”
Has anyone experienced this? I tried to find any mention of this on the sprint website and I can’t.
I also was not able to cancel via email (started with the contact form). The person who was responding to my email was outright lying to me. My contract is up early March, so I’m not sure why they are being such hard asses about it.
I just called executive customer service. They’ve indicated that I can cancel without the ETF on Friday, since that’s when my next bill will be printed.
My accounts “rolled back” to a 2006 contract end date, and my monthly payment that was due for Dec (on all 3 phones) disappeared…phones shut off yesterday. Works for me!!
I sent Sprint the following email last night:
I would like to be released from my contract as of today, if possible, with no fee. I received a mailing from you stating that there were changes to my contract being made in reference to fees, etc. Due to this being a material breach in the contract because of the new fees, I have been told that I have the right to do so. Please let me know what
additional information is needed. Thank you so much for your response.
First thing this morning, I recieved this response. While the command of the English language isn’t the best, I get the point, which is that YES, I can get out of my contract!
Dear Krissa,
Thank you for contacting Sprint. I understand that you wish to get the contract on the account expired.
I noticed that the two contract on the account for the two active lines does not have an Early termination Fee charge. You may get the lines
cancelled without any Early termination Fee charge.
Please let us know if you have any further questions. Thank you.
Thanks so much, Consumerist! I am a forever-loyal fan!
After spending the last two days trying to get out of my Sprint contract I finally found success. Here’s how it’s done.
1. Find a monthly bill from 2007. Under SURCHAGES AND FEES you will likely find three different fees. The two that matter in this case are the Federal E911 of 40 cents per line and the Federal Local Number Pool and Portability of 15 cents per line. In my case with one line, the total was 55 cents between these two fees.
2. Under the new 2008 Terms and Agreement, both the Federal E911 fee and the Federal Local Number Pool and Portability fee have been discontinued. These have been replaced by the Regulatory charge of 20 cents and the Administrative charge of 75 cents per line. So instead of the 55 cents per month per line in 2007, I was now being charged 95 cents per month per line in 2008.
This is important, because Sprint will try to give you the run around and say you can only get out of your contract with the Early Termination Fee waived if there is a “net increase” in the fees.
Sprint may also say that you have to wait until you get your first bill in 2008 to see if you have an increase. I called back and got a different representative. The new representative tried to talk me out of it and give me 10% of my monthly bill (which would have been more than the 40 cents increase in fees/month), but it you stick to your guns you shouldn’t have a problem with it. If you just do your homework and make sure you have a 2007 bill in front of you to reference, you should be good to go. If you have any other questions or tips just post them.
Thanks Consumerist!
So much for 48 hours….I submitted an e-mail requesting to terminate my contract since I received their postcard, and I have yet to hear from them. Hmm I wonder if they just want me to call them so they can sucker me back?Or…..maybe its because I have not paid my bill and they disconnected my service…I did tell them I am paying any balance.
Their kzr phone was defective from the start and I called 3 weeks after receiving it and asked for them to replace it. They refuse to replace it and offered me a battery I was so mad since they offer the 30 day guarantee I never went to get the battery. So here I am their “new” phone completely died on me. Ahhhh I do not want to go through any type of conversation with them since I am sick and I can’t raise my voice. I will re-submit my e-mail and then give them a call tomorrow
I have tried to cancel with Sprint through e-mail and through their CSR and I have no luck. I don’t know what else to do…I have read everyone’s “blog” and have tried to make a convincing argument but nothing seems to work. I have the family plan and they state that since this is not affecting me, I am not allowed to cancel with no ETF. What should I do? I have been with sprint for about 6 years now but just recently I have been having so many problems with my bill and my phone that I cant take it anymore…..
I finally did it! After Sprint did not respond to my 3 e-mails from their website form I finally called them up last night. I was sick so could not deal with them. Anyways I followed the advice from an earlier post of having your old bill in front of you. After three reps and 16 minutes on hold they finally said that the changes were grounds for them to waive the ETF. I had to repeat the charges over several times everytime the rep said no you have to pay the ETF. I read the postcard fees and the old bill fees and asked him isn’t this an increase? He would’t respond just kept asking which taxes are these three times lol. Finally when he typed it up he put me on hold and that is when I think they hope you give up and hang up. The last rep did offer me five bucks a month or something like that, but I was no I just don’t want the service anymore. Now I need a good candybar phone from another carrier.
Dear *****
Thank you for contacting Sprint. My name is Anna and it is a pleasure
to assist you.
I apologize for the inconvenience. Let me assure you that Sprint makes
every effort to provide the most convenient products and services with
the lowest possible rates and fees.
Sprint is charging the Administrative Charge to help defray various
costs imposed on us by other telecommunications carriers. The Regulatory
Charge is being charged to help defray costs of various federal, state
and local regulatory programs.
Please note that effective 12/31/07, Sprint stopped charging:
$1.55 Federal Programs Cost Recovery Fee
$0.40 Federal E911
$0.15 Federal Wireless Local Number Portability
$1.15 Service Fee
$1.99 Account Infrastructure Fee
We value your business and again make every effort to provide our
products and services at the lowest possible rates.
The message you received in regards to new regulatory charges was sent
out to all of our customers; however, this will not effect all
customers in a negative manner.
Customers who are not effected by the new regulatory charges or receive
a net decrease in fees will still be charged Early Termination Fees if
they decide to cancel.
As these changes do not take effect until January 1, 2008 it is
undetermined how this information applies to you and your account. Once your
invoice is generated after January 1,2008 you will be able to determine
what effects these changes have on your account and wether you are
eligible for cancelation without Early Termination Fees.
If you receive an invoice with these charges after January 1,2008 you
may then call *2 to discuss cancelation.
Your bill cycle ends on 1/16/2008. Your next invoice will be viewable
online within 3 to 5 days after your bill cycle ends.
You may view your bills online using the following steps.
- Click the Billing and payments tab near the top of the screen.
- Select Billing History and Analysis.
- Click view and Print Bills.
- Choose the date of the bill you are interested in.
- For printing purposes please select PDF format.
Should you have any further questions or concerns please reply back and
I will be happy to assist you.
Sprint values your business and always looks forward to the opportunity
to provide you excellent service now and in the future. Thank you and
have a great day!.
What should I do? I really want to get out of sprint and have tried through the phone and through e-mail and nothing seems to work for me. Dang it! I want to be a success story too!!!!
THIS IS WHAT SPRINT SENT ME….TWICE!! WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Wow that is crazy ! I read a post here about someone that stated that she received the postcard and that she told sprint that nowhere did it say (something along the lines “IF they change the fees). Unless the charges differ from state? I am from TX.
I did forget to mention that the rep did not give me a confirmation number. He told me that there was no need and that the changes were to occur on February. I asked him if there were going to be any other fees since I was paid up and he said not. He did offer his id number and first name.
I think if I ask for him though, it would probably be too obvious….know what I mean. Well I am going to send them another e-mail….should I be mean?
Wanted to follow up. This DID NOT work for me, even the supervisor told me these were fees, and that my contract could be changed at any time without it terminating my contract.
So I filed a complaint with the FCC, and sent an email to the Sprint Press people (regarding the upcoming Pro-Rated ETF’s), and after a week or so, I was contacteb by a Senior executive at Sprint. He was very nice, thanked me for my 6 years of Sprint service, and eventually let me out of my contract.
Bottom line, the change is fee’s does not work according to the plethora of reps I’ve spoken to. However, being a good customer might help if you ever get the right person on the phone.
I have been a nextel customer for about 8 years. This morning I called the service termination department. I spoke with someone and told them that I was going to port my number to another carrier because I didnt agree with the terms and conditions changes. That is the key from what I found out is that you dont say that you want to cancel because of the fees but because you do not agree with the terms. I even told them about how in their contract it states that if there is a material change to the terms and conditions the customer can cancel the contract without penelty. I was put on hold 4 times during my conversation while she asked her supervisor. Everytime but the last time she came back telling me I was still in a contract. I had to keep explaining things over and over. It sounds like sprint knows that they cant charge the fees so they are just dragging their feet and making it a pain to leave so alot of people will give up. I stood my ground and never changed why argument and after being on hold 4 times for about 30 mins the lady came back and told me that they would waiv the ETF. I am going to call back today to make sure that she notated it on my account info and then I will be switching to another carrier. Good luck to all, and thank you consumerist.
just following up on my post from yesterday. I was able to call back and verify that my account will not be charged an ETF. So right after that I ported my number to a different carrier.
Did they terminate your contract right away or until the billing cycle ends?
they said that my service would be terminated when I ported my number to another carrier. I switched that day. My friend is cancelling his service and switching to another carrier. They told him his service would be shut off feb. 4th. So It sounds like they are cutting off after the billing cycle.
I have 4 lines with sprint and i want to port the numbers ,and I know the increase is noted on my jan bill, so from what i have read on here , i have not contacted sprint yet. My question is should i notify them first before i port the numbers or port then write them and object to the ETF
I would probably talk to them first. They ask you at the end if you want to port the number.
Ok you guys so I just got my bill and hey guess what!!!?? My bill went up by $1.15..which is going to be $13.80 more that I will be paying a year. I’m sorry but I am going to call sprint and just act a fool on them! I got a second response from Sprint, and as you know they hot potatoed me around and said if they increased my bill they would REFUND me the additional charges. But of course I am not going to stand for that and ask them to cancel with no ETF. What do you guys think? I tried being nice and that obviously didn’t work…so now, they better be prepared for me. I will let you guys know tomorrow what happens : ) Until then, wish me luck!!
Ok, I finally canceled with Sprint!!!! I’m sorry but I had to be the rudest person in the world because I was dropping the “F*” word like there was no tomorrow, but hey, it worked! They are waiving the ETF and not charging me for porting my number! How awesome is that!!!! I am soooo excited, I am thinking about going to T-mobile now…..ahhh, yes! The sweet smell of success and freedom (for now). Anywho, you guys have any questions, just let me know : )
okay i have made the call and as of right now they said my service contract will be canceled as of Feb. 04 2008 (the last day of current billing period) with no ETF. They said I will need to pay off the remaining balance of last month’s service and for this month’s service in feb. now, does that sound okay to everyone? is everyone else getting the same message? im just so paranoid and thinking they’ll screw me. b/c i read messages on here stating we shouldn’t pay on our bill until they cancel the service.
my aim is buffbison82 if anyone cares to assist me. thanks!
jason
Thanks guys, I just emailed sprint customer care and this was the response I received:
Thank you for contacting Sprint. I will be happy to assist you
regarding the change in contract.
I apologize for the inconvenience you have experienced due to this, I understand that you have received a mail in the regards of change in contract.
I would like to share with you a happy news for you that you can cancel you account without paying early termination fee. I have also put a supportive note on the account and you can continue with us as long as
you want after changing your plan on month to month basis.
Have a great day!
Peter P.
E-Care
Sprint
Guess I have good luck.
i have 4 lines, I ported one to tmobile today and i will be porting the other 3 as soon as my wifes employee account is setup on tmobile, I hope i will also be given a free pass on the ETF from sprint. Good Job espejel congrats to you
Thank you my friend! I just got T-mobile and there is this store that is having a really awesome sale until the end of January…the store is called TM Wireles (aka T-Mobile Wireless) and I got the new sidekick LX for $100!!! Now that is including the mail in rebate….I really hope you take advantage of this sale and you save money. Good luck!
Persistence is the key! I bombarded e-care with emails and was successful in having my ETFs waived. Save your emails as confirmation because retention representatives tend to tell you one thing and completely deny it later on. I switched to t-mobile via wirelessbuy.com and got a brand new sidekick lx for $50 w/ mail-in-rebate! They also have blackberries for ridiculous deals as well. Good luck!
Sprint gave me the okay to port my numbers and cancel. I did and now are fighting to get 3 ETF’s off my account. I have faxed my email from ecare over 15 times to some dude named David Sodaval and nothing from him yet.I will keep fighing and I will win.SCREW SPRINT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
my wife and I have an ancient old Sprint “talk 15″ plan because we rarely use our cell phones. Sprint sent me a letter saying my antique of a Nokia 6185 phone (about 10 years old) will no longer work after February 18 (and another letter that says Feb 25th) because of “upgrades with new wireless technology designed to enhance….blah blah blah.” That old Nokia 6185 is a dual band phone. What is Sprint really trying to do—just sell me a new phone?
This also worked for me. After sprint completely lost my bill (which I still have never and will never see) for the month of November following thier web upgrade I had enough. The key for me was to record every conversation you have with them, and keep calling. The first person I called lied to me over and over and was unfamiliar with the Sprint terms and conditions. He wanted me to call back after I had a bill generated with the new fees. After reading all the terms with him he was finally willing to let me speak to his supervisor. When they gave me the confirmation number for the call and asked if I had a pen ready, and I said that they could just go ahead because they were being recorded they just about died of disgust, and accused me of breaking laws and fcc regulations by recording them. I told them I live in Texas and dont need their permission to do anything. The superviser then told me he didn’t agree to talk to me now that they know they are being recorded. I was promised a call from his boss within 3 days that never happened. Never did get any names there unfortunately. The next morning I called back and told the lady I wanted to cancel because of the new terms of service, and she immediately offered 15% off. I declined (I would stay for no less than 90% off) and she waived my etf. Although she told me I could not port my numbers. That was a small concession to get away from them, even though I dont think that is legal. She however was the second most helpful person I ever dealt with at sprint in my 6 years. The most helpful person I ever dealt with was when I was lied to and overcharged and caught all of it on tape and had an attorney I am friends with mail it to the companys presidents office. Bottom line is make sure you record everything when talking to customer service. They lie and dont seem to care.
I cancelled with no ETF a month ago, but I wanted to wait before I got another carrier * i do not trust sprint. I got tired of waiting for Sprint to send me an email or letter making it official, so just when I was going to buy a new phone I got a sprint e-mail. THe B&*&*&%* are charging me another month plus a $25 reconnection fee. I called them back transfered me to fraud dept., never picked up, called back, busy tone after three calls. I will try again today.
I tried to get of my contract but sprint told me I was too late, what can I do, it is only april and march was the deadline.
I want out of my contract now that I am fully informed that there are cheaper contracts with other service providers. Will someone show me a loophole to get out on?