A former call center worker told us how to get to, and deal with, Sprint retentions department so they will fix billing errors, or waive fees.

Call customer service. You will probably get “Chris” in India. Ask for what you want, like the credits on your bill due to overages. The front-line guy won’t be able to do anything so escalate to his manager. Go through the same rigmarole, the goal being to get notes on your account. This manager won’t make changes to your account either so ask for account services so you can cancel your account.

Never use the term retentions, it makes reps go on the defensive and they will treat you like you’re fishing for deals. Instead, ask for “account services.”

(Photo: Maulleigh)

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Just explain that the CSR promised to fix your issue but was unable too. And that you are no longer happy with their services. Then explain clearly what you want. Say something like “I want to upgrade to the Treo 700p” and the telesales guy said it would be XXX amount but now they are telling me its +XXX amount.” They will solve that problem. Retentions is all about fixing problems with giving you new equipment tied to Reups. As well as fixing billing issues. Don’t let them bullshit you. They can and will fix any provisioning error, like being overbilled due to incorrect plan codes.

Ask for specific, reasonable things, like new phone upgrades at discounted prices. Find a Sprint employee’s email address and say they told you to use the SERO plan (Sprint Employee Referral Offer).

You can also try asking for

• % based savings off your monthly bill
• Waived upgrade activation fee (18 dollars)
• Waived activation fee (first line or add a line)
• Give a 25 Dollar Credit on your Next monthly bill when you purchase a new line
• Free shipping

The company only cares about one thing: new subscriptions. If you can manage to hand them a “new” subscription while getting yourself a new phone with discounted service, then it’s wins all around.

— BEN POPKEN

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