Some T-Mobile stores repackaged returned phones and sold them off as new
As if T-Mobile's own practices weren't bad enough to make long-time customers question their loyalty, third-party stores seem hellbent on making things worse.
When you walk into a T-Mobile store, there's no way to tell whether it's owned by the company or run by a reseller. Many of these resellers have been found to engage in deceptive practices.
Sales representatives are incentivised or even bullied into getting customers to spend more money than they normally would. Since the management ties commission plans and job security to performance, sales staff is often willing to go to any length to meet targets, even if it involves lying.
According to the latest from The Mobile Report, the situation is actually worse than previously thought and T-Mobile should step in immediately before any further damage is done to its reputation.
The outlet has relayed stories from employees of two third-party companies about their employers' shady practices.
Third-party retailers teach their staff shady sales tactics.
Arch Telecom has been called out for having unrealistic sales targets and threatening to put jobs on the line if they are not met. Exposés published on the company in recent times are making it reconsider some of its toxic practices though, with one employee claiming that a weekly call that was used to teach them how to manipulate promotions was canceled.
The second retailer mentioned in the report is GP Mobile, which mostly has operations in the Southeast of the US. What this company is doing is even more scary than pushy sales tactics designed to make you buy things you don't need.
According to a former employee, GP Mobile kept the devices that were returned to it instead of sending them back to T-Mobile. The company repackaged those devices and sold them again, potentially passing them off as new. Apparently, T-Mobile was aware of this practice and didn't object to it.
Since this tip came from someone who no longer works for GP Mobile, it's possible that the company has updated its policy since then. The report has also exposed the company's lax security practices.
Some T-Mobile stores silently add lines to customer accounts, which are only canceled if they are discovered.
Another common problem at third-party retailers is that there are numerous instances of chargebacks due to stores adding lines of services to customer accounts without being asked.
T-Mobile has enough problems of its own making. It surely wouldn't want to alienate customers further by letting third-party stores deceive them. The company needs to do a thorough audit of all third-party stores and make sure they are following its guidelines.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: