AVOID - AVOID - AVOID - AVOID - AVOID - AVOID - AVOID
My advice is to avoid ST.Com "like the plague!!!" Straighttalk.com is a TracFone affiliate.
After 9 mos. of using their service (unlimited auto bill)... I woke up one morning 02/01/10 and they had given my phone number to someone else and deactivated my phone! So all my calls were going to someone else!
I spent over 6 hours on the phone trying to get the issue resolved.
After about an hour they finally admitted they had erred in reassigning my number to someone else. And they indicated they would give me my number back... but... they could only do so... if... if drove 500 miles from Dallas (where I was located to St. Louis) to return to my original area code, so they could reactivate my phone in that area code. In the meantime... I would not be able to receive any of my calls - business calls, or personal calls.
Let me repeat that...
I could not receive any of my calls, until I return to St. Louis a month from now!!!
After 2 days of talking with innumerable customer service folks and their supervisors, their Phillipines group referred me to their affiliate TracFone's customer service unit in Miami. They were a bit better, and ultimately reported they would have my number back to me and reactivated on my phone in "24-48" hours. 24 hrs later I called them back in Miami, and they told me that they were unable to obtain my number from Verizon - that Verizon had "confiscated" my number and would not release it to be returned to me. As you may know they use Verizon's network system. I assume Verizon does that to avoid legal risk over a disputed number - who knows why?
They finally reactivated my phone with a new number - which is a huge inconvenience and impediment to conducting my business.
No doubt I'll be moving back to my original carrier - ATT, after this abuse by TracFone / ST and Verizon!
Need I say more...
After 9 mos. of using their service (unlimited auto bill)... I woke up one morning 02/01/10 and they had given my phone number to someone else and deactivated my phone! So all my calls were going to someone else!
I spent over 6 hours on the phone trying to get the issue resolved.
After about an hour they finally admitted they had erred in reassigning my number to someone else. And they indicated they would give me my number back... but... they could only do so... if... if drove 500 miles from Dallas (where I was located to St. Louis) to return to my original area code, so they could reactivate my phone in that area code. In the meantime... I would not be able to receive any of my calls - business calls, or personal calls.
Let me repeat that...
I could not receive any of my calls, until I return to St. Louis a month from now!!!
After 2 days of talking with innumerable customer service folks and their supervisors, their Phillipines group referred me to their affiliate TracFone's customer service unit in Miami. They were a bit better, and ultimately reported they would have my number back to me and reactivated on my phone in "24-48" hours. 24 hrs later I called them back in Miami, and they told me that they were unable to obtain my number from Verizon - that Verizon had "confiscated" my number and would not release it to be returned to me. As you may know they use Verizon's network system. I assume Verizon does that to avoid legal risk over a disputed number - who knows why?
They finally reactivated my phone with a new number - which is a huge inconvenience and impediment to conducting my business.
No doubt I'll be moving back to my original carrier - ATT, after this abuse by TracFone / ST and Verizon!
Need I say more...
...
verizon most likely had little to do with this. The number is a "verizon" number that was purchased by straight talk. In active numbers go into a general pool and are taken as needed. If they marked your phone as "inactive" and verizon handed it out, there is pretty much nothing that can be done. It's like canceling your service with att and not porting your number, and then trying to get it back 6 months later.
...
A STATUS UPDATE...
At long last... after 18 days of hell... I finally have recovered my original number, and my phone has been reactivated!!!
A great customer service rep in the Miami office of TracFone (not StTalk.com) diligently worked with Verizon for two weeks to recover my number. She was great... and... never, never, never gave up... until she recovered it, and reactivated by phone with the original number.
My comments above stand - DO NOT USE StTalk.com's service, unless you can afford to experience what I experienced!
But... if you do... make sure you get to the customer service management team of TracFone's Miami office - don't spend even 1 minute on the phone with the StTalk.com customer service team - they have no idea...
(continues)
At long last... after 18 days of hell... I finally have recovered my original number, and my phone has been reactivated!!!
A great customer service rep in the Miami office of TracFone (not StTalk.com) diligently worked with Verizon for two weeks to recover my number. She was great... and... never, never, never gave up... until she recovered it, and reactivated by phone with the original number.
My comments above stand - DO NOT USE StTalk.com's service, unless you can afford to experience what I experienced!
But... if you do... make sure you get to the customer service management team of TracFone's Miami office - don't spend even 1 minute on the phone with the StTalk.com customer service team - they have no idea...
(continues)
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