Sorry T-Mobile customers, buying a new phone will cost an extra $18 now that the telecom has resurrected the handset upgrade fee killed off last December. The telecom apparently couldn’t handle going months without the cash-generating but otherwise useless fee, which T-Mobile described as “a real customer dissatisfier.”

“Beginning April 15, the $18 handset upgrade fee will be reinstated for all handset upgrades completed through Retail, Customer Service, RPS, Business, and the Web.”

In eliminating the fee in December, the company said:

Handset Upgrade Fee Elimination
We have received feedback from you on behalf of our customers that the $18 Handset Upgrade Fee is a real customer dissatisfier. Based on your feedback, we are eliminating the $18 Hand set Upgrade Fee effective immediately.

This change will provide an overall better experience for our customers by lowering the costs associated with upgrades and staying with T-Mobile. It will also improve the employee experience by removing a barrier in the retention process.

Eliminating the Handset Upgrade Fee helps customers stay effortlessly connecting in new and different ways by making T-Mobile’s latest devices—with our latest features—even more affordable.

So, assuming everything in their December statement was accurate, it looks like T-Mobile has consciously decided to dissatisfy consumers and employees, and if you don’t like your junky old hardware, you should feel free to check out AT&T and Verizon’s new phones.

Upgrade Fee Back From The Dead! [TmoNews]
story category T-Mobile Quietly Reinstates Handset Upgrade Fee [DSL Reports]
PREVIOUSLY: Tmobile Introduces $18 Phone Upgrade Fee
(Photo: JD Pavkovich)

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.