I JUST returned from the Verizon store and OMG!!!! Where do I begin ??? Let’s start from the beginning.
2/16 - I decided to upgrade from my Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max 1TB to the Apple 15 Pro Max 1 TB. I am told told I am eligible for $1000 rebate off the new iphone with my particular plan and current phone. Keep in mind this was at a Verizon Authorized Retail location, not the “official” Verizon store at Bellis Fair Mall.
2/20 - My new phone arrived and I went to the Authorized retail location and picked up my new phone. It was less than an hour before closing time and the time to transfer the data from my old device to my new device said it would be six or seven hours. At which point the employee instructed me to take my old phone and my new phone home and that I had up to two weeks to return my old phone.
3/3 - Today at 3 o’clock I drove to the authorized retail store and it turns out they are closed on a Sunday. I recall that there is the official ““ Verizon store in Bellis Fair Mall. I drove to this location with my old phone, intending to turn it in as I was instructed to do. I was also interested in a screen protector and a case as I assumed the authorized retail location would have a smaller selection than the official Verizon store, where I hope to find more options.
I was first presented with an employee who seemed helpful and he showed me several different cases. However, almost immediately I noticed something did not seem right because I had asked for the Belkin glass screen protector and he brought out a different screen protector when I asked him why he made it seem like I was in the wrong, and that the one he had brought out was correct, I then asked the manager whose name was Jason which brand he had recommended me when I first walked in the door and he again said Belkin.
The process of returning my I was told would be straightforward and very simple. I was told all I needed to do was relinquish my old phone and handed over to the VERIZON employees as all of the details of the trade-in had already been worked out. However, to my dismay, this was not the case. The Verizon employee informed me that I would not be getting $1000 rebate for my old phone but instead it was only $415. He then told me that he would need to be doing some substantial paperwork to correct the air and that I need to sit tight. Somewhere in the shuffle and over 1hr if being in the store, my old phone disappeared, and was no longer on the counter.
As time past, I began to feel more and more uneasy about the situation. After all I was being told conflicting information, and I was being told information that did not sit well with me, as it was contradictory to what I was told before. I feel it is natural that anyone at this point would begin to feel uncomfortable because they feel helpless. I’m in an environment surrounded by salespeople who are not there to advocate for me, and are clearly there to be predatory. It was at this point that I realized I would like to trade in my old phone To the location which I bought the new phone. I asked the manager whose name was Jason if I could have my old phone back as I was still within the timeframe to turn in the old phone and I would like to take it to the authorized retail location on Monday when they are open and turn it into them. Seem like a very straightforward request. It was met with hostel and I quote. Jason told me he would “make my life bad” If I took my phone back, and I did not turn it into them today.
At which point I decided to pull out my new phone and dial the one 800 number for Verizon corporate. Jason had already informed me that I could not record what he was saying, and he told me that I would be kicked out of the store if I attempted to record what he was saying. At this point, I felt extremely vulnerable and extremely helpless as all I was trying to do was return equipment to VERIZON as per agreement I had already entered into, with my intention of upholding my end of the agreement. 1/2
