UScellular Reviews

I asked them to work with me for an ext on my bill because my billing statement comes out before I get my benefits every month. I also asked them if they help out people that are disabled and they said no. Wow, I pay my bill each month I'm not behind at all but the keep charging me all this money for things I'm not using.

PS. The date of this encounter was 08/28/2010 at about 10:30am and about 12:30pm the same day.

As of May 2010, US Cellular (USC) still has no automated way to check where you're at with the limit. You have to call and physically speak to one of their customer service representatives. Each time you do that, it takes about 15 minutes. Last month, we went over our 5GB limit by a few hundred MB (yes Megabytes) and had to pay over $250 for our bill (they have a $200 max along with the $49.95 monthly fee). Their overage fee is .49 cents per MB over 5GB. But if you're under your 5GB, they do not roll over what you paid for but didn't use. That's wrong! And it's wrong that USC customers do not have an automated way to check on their usage. Yet, we are penalized dearly if we exceed the cap. Stop the cap! This is the United States of America. We can and should do better than this.

Now, two years later, I go to apply for a mortgage and I have a surprise bill of over $400 from U.S. Cellular on my credit report! I was charged after I left U.S. Cellular. When I called U.S. Cellular to have them investigate and remove it from my credit report, they said they couldn't talk to me because my account had already been referred to a collection agency--Valentine something or other. U.S. Cellular was then kind enough to transfer me to Valentine (weird that it was an inside, transferable call) who told me that they couldn't do anything about the bill because U.S. Cellular sent the bill to them--which means that "the bill is obviously legitimate." Yeah! I love this!

So, instead of spending the next six months of my life in a small claims legal battle or attempting to deal with these nimrods, I'm choosing to share this information with all of you. So thanks for listening and please let me know where else I can post this.

I again contacted US Cellular and their response was basically, “too bad for you”. I sent them a check for $175 - my charges have mysteriously grown. And again I complained. I was then told I was charged because, this is a quote following from email I received, “the fee that is billed to customers who cancel their service prior to the end on their service agreement period. This fee is not intended to hurt or punish customers who choose to cancel their service, but simply a mechanism designed to help us to recover the financial loss we incur when selling a customer a handset at a discount at the point of sale.”

If they had told me to begin with that my daughter had 5 months left, I would have just changed to a cheap plan, not used the phone and waited to cancel. And if they had told me it was because of the phone, I would have returned it to them, because as we all know - you can't use one providers "equipment" with another provider. So far I have gotten 5 different answers and no satisfaction, except that I can post how bad US Cellular is and please do not use them, and please tell everyone you know not to use them.

Six months later, we received a bill showing more than $150 in charges that were not documented. We requested a detailed bill documenting the excess charges as we were concerned that our phone had been cloned. Four weeks later, we requested it again but based on a concern for disconnection, we paid the amount of the bill that was documented. After three more, we requested for a detailed bill (we are now three months down the road) we got disconnected. Contacted USC again and they told us that they would turn it back on if we paid the outstanding amount.

We paid the outstanding amount but got disconnected again when they lost track of the wired amount. Notified USC of intent to severe based on breach of contract. We changed provider. USC billed us for future service. Disputed bill, USC turned it over to collection agency. We paid USC to make them "go away". Credit agency is still showing up on report. I am notifying USC of intent to sue for cause. I will update as things progress.

I called to verify payment with the representative, and all he wanted was a payment, then he told me that the full amount would be taken out on 2/13 unless I edit it in the system. I tried to enter my information on the website with my password to do so, and it doesn't exist. I am quite concerned, because we cannot afford this to be taken out, and we will get overdrafts on all checks out. We cannot get caught up because they bill in advance for service. We did miss December's payment, and want to work out a payment plan, but was told that this full payment would have to be made. Otherwise, they will cancel our phones on 3/4/2010. Our phones have been placed on suspension with no service as of 2/2/2010.

First complaint. There has been significant advertising about a "free battery exchange". I have seen advertising on the internet, television and posters on many of US Cellular stores. I believed it was something to get you into the store so that they could try and sell a new phone. So expecting that I might buy a new phone, I walked into my local store at Wilson & Clark in Chicago and asked for a replacement battery. One of the reps who was walking by me looked quickly at my phone and said, "I don’t have a battery for that ‘old’ phone." He never even stopped walking as kept walking to another area of the store.

There was no attempt made to replace my battery or direct me to where I could get a replacement battery. To my surprise, no one tried to suggest that I could get a newer phone. I found the experience to be very disturbing because I believe that the "free battery replacement" advertising is total fraud. In addition, the behavior was rude and in general the service was very poor. At the time, there were at least three reps in the store and someone could have given me attention in this matter and at the same time made a sale for a new phone.

Second complaint. Today, 1/19/2010, in the middle of a call, without any warning, I was disconnected and the call ended. I called US Cellular customer service and found that I had a zero balance. I was concerned as I that I had a credit balance and believed that there was no reason to turn off my phone and asked how minutes I had used in the past month. In fact I asked the same question more than three times. The customer service rep "John" did everything but answer the question. I indicated we were having a communication problem and that I wanted to speak to a supervisor. The request to speak to a supervisor was made at least 2 times. John promised to connect me to a supervisor and put me on hold. My call was then disconnected.

I called back, and on the second call I asked to speak to a supervisor right away. The rep answering the call would not give me a supervisor without my account information and a password. He then forwarded my call to a person who was not a supervisor. Again the person I was talking to, "Michelle", did not tell me how many minutes I had used. Michelle also refused to give me the address for US Cellular. Neither John or Michelle would provide an employee number. I am made to provide a password to my account, but I can get information about who I am talking to. Michelle indicated that only a "supervisor" could provide the address. I asked Michelle to connect me to a supervisor because I had asked to be connected to a supervisor.

I was then connected to "Lisa" who indicated she was a supervisor. Again I was not provided with an employee number. Lisa said that "we need to protect our employees". Lisa also indicated that they do not provide an address. So it is hard to make a complaint to anyone at US Cellular in writing. Lisa promised to help me with my request to find out how many minutes I had used and what happened to my credit balance. Lisa did indicate that there had been a credit balance but could explain what happened to it. Lisa also explained that she could not understand the report she was looking at to figure out how many minutes I had used. So it seems that US Cellular can charge my account without being accountable themselves for what they charge me.

Lisa offered to call me back with information about how many minutes I used after she asked someone about the report that related to my account. Someone called three times from a US Cellular phone, but no message was left. So at this point I am frustrated because I spent over a half hour on the phone trying to find get an answer to simple question that even a supervisor could not answer. I am not too impressed with US Cellular and I am not certain what happened to the credit balance that I had. US Cellular benefited from fraudulent advertising. As a result of a lot of advertising, it appears that US Cellular is a generous company willing to provide service to their customers but that is not true. My loss is wasted time and a lost business call.

I will use the service Straight Talk after my contract ends. It does not charge outrageous taxes and fees and I can get unlimited text and airtime. Oh and by the way, no contracts. US Cellular, you cheated me out of 3 rebates. It's not as much the money owed as it is the general principle. If I break my contract, I am fined. What happens when you don't live up to your end of the contract? For those of you who have had great experiences, just wait, your turn will come. I will continue to encourage people to find other more honest companies as their cell phone providers.

US Cellular has a bunch of dishonest crooks that are pocketing their customers' monies. They should do background checks or check records of customers who have purchased rebate phones to see if they have received their money back. You all are a disgrace to honest companies.

I asked if they had any of those phones. I was told, "They went very quickly and some we had none at all." Talk about a bait and switch! We called several other US Cellular stores. They were all out or never had any. This is poor customer service at its worst. If they couldn't supply the phones, they should not have had the sale at all. Their ads for the last year tell us how important we as customers are and to "believe in something better." This is better? No, US Cellular, it's not. We have spoken to many friends who have US Cellular service and they ran into the same situations.

We contacted the Iowa State Attorney Generals office and have registered our complaints. I'd suggest that anyone who had the same service do the same. This is typical bait and switch. The pricing now is higher, much higher. The HTC will be nearly $200 more, the Blackberry Tour $219.95 and Quantico $139.95. During the sale, they would have been $49.95 and $69.95. For Shame US Cellular!

I was unable to make the payment because I did not have employment at the time and I was under the impression that if I made some form of payment, my service will not be disconnected because I had used this telephone number as a contact number for all my business and employment transactions. I did not have service for over a month. When I finally was able to pay within a few days, my service was disconnected again. This happened twice. I therefore decided to go over to the store to pay and find out what was going on since I am never lucky with speaking with someone on the telephone. At the location, I was told that my service was disconnected because the checks were returned. I had paid on the telephone using my checking account.

The manager called US Cellular and spoke to someone who claims that the amount I owed was $87.00+ (I do not have the information here on me). I made this payment and then was asked to speak to that person on the telephone. This person informed me that because they had completely disconnected the service, it would be like a new service so I will need to wait for 72 hours, before reconnection, as they will need to make sure that they had not given the numbers to another customer. And because it will be a new cycle and will be different from the old one, I will need to speak to customer service in order to determine what plan I wanted. This plan they claim will determine my new cycle.

The lady also told me that I was going to pay a $35.00 reconnection fee for each telephone because they had completely disconnected my service and I agreed. When I spoke to the customer service person, I chose a different plan that would cost $69.99 a month plus $9.98 for 250 minutes of text messaging on each line. She concluded that my bill will not be over $100.00 after taxes. I agreed with this plan. However, when my bill came for the next month, they added so much hidden costs that included over $40.00 in taxes. According to them, this was FCC and FTC's idea to charge such a high tax. The bill for that one month was over $464.00, which they reduced to $364.00+ by waiving four $25.00 fee on something I am not sure of - with over $50.00 in taxes.

Because this bill was so high, I asked them for a payment arrangement. I was expecting to break the payment into two payments and make one payment on the 1st of November and the second payment on the 15th. They refused and claimed that they do not accept partial payment and I must make the payment in full in ten days. They gave me until November 5th to pay, which was only ten days from my due date. Because I was unable to make this payment on Tuesday the 10th of November, my service was disconnected again. As of now, it is still not connected.

What is so upsetting about how these people treat me is that they have been lying to me from day one. When they disconnected my service in August, they lied that they do not accept partial payment and I discovered that they do. For some reason, I feel their actions mean that they feel I should be grateful to have a telephone service from them. Secondly, when they claimed to make a payment arrangement with me and refused to allow me to break my payment into two, this is also a lie because I was given a ten day grace period, which is the normal time frame given to every of their customers without payment arrangements. What they claim to do for me has nothing to do with payment arrangements.

I am not sure why they lied to me, why they are doing this to me and why they never told me about these hidden charges before they connected my service. Instead, they told me that my cycle will change because they had completely disconnected my service.

I wanted to get both myself and my wife the HTC Touch Pro 2 phones and purchase the additional data plans for both phones. I was told a week before the promotions by a local sales rep that the phones were in and that it would be to my advantage to wait until the four day promotion began to purchase the new phones (for free with rebate). Now I'm told that the phones are sold out and that I am out of luck to take advantage of this promotion. I was told by the local sales and national sales reps on phone the same story.

How dare they not honor what they advertised? Even today, the HTC Touch Pro 2 was listed as available on the internet for this promotion. I think they should at least offer a rain check to current US Cellular customers who are willing to upgrade 2 phones and spend an additional $24.95 times two for data plans. There is nothing that I can see in the fine print which states: First come, first served or limited supplies of certain models or promotion ends upon sell-out. I came in during the 4-day period and was told I can't have the phone of my choice under their free promotion.

The first time this happened, I complained to 3 people only to hear that there's nothing that can be done and to just not save any messages anymore to prevent this. Really? That's the answer? So, I decided if it happens again, I will call again. They waste my time, I will waste theirs, too. I called today, 3 weeks after the first time because it happened again. It took me 12 minutes to get to my one new message. I spoke with a supervisor right away and explained the problem. I sarcastically said they need to send me a date journal so I can transcribe my messages since the new system is discouraging me from saving them. He said if I wanted to buy one, he will knock $15 off my current bill to do so. I did get the tone that my complaint wasn't going to change anything, though. When I called him on that, he said he could discuss my feedback with his supervisor and get it elevated to the right group of people.

I just felt that a huge change in service would have a better feedback system in place, but it doesn't seem to be the case. I like my plan and my minutes and that's what has kept me there, but I've had this problem now and complained in the past a few times to them about their ** new phone selection choices. I suppose I have to choose between keeping my messages or shopping around for a new phone plan. Sometimes, it's the devil you know...

So, I went into the Homewood store and a sales associate named Laura ** took care of me. I picked out the phone I liked and we sat down at her station. She proceeded to figure out how much I owed for the phone. I handed her my credit card and she asked to see my DL. I handed her my card assuming she was being cautious that it truly was my card. She then told me she needed to go in back and make a copy of my cards. Not thinking anything about it, off she went. She came back about 5 minutes later with the box containing my phone and my cards in her hand but no papers. She sat down in front of her computer and entered the phone information into my account. Then she ran my credit card through, went behind the front counter, and brought the papers I needed to sign.

About 3-4 days later, I got my daily text message from my credit card company and my balance was over $385 less than the day before. I knew I had not used my card since I was at US Cellular, but I had no idea what happened because I had my card in my wallet. I went on the computer and checked the website of my credit card company. I was shocked when I found nearly $300 to Apple iTunes for songs purchased. I also found close to $50 to an online video game rental company and $30 to a weight loss tea company. I immediately cancelled my card and contacted these company's about getting my money back. They all said it was my credit card company's responsibility to refund my money. My credit card company said it was the responsibility of the companies that the charges were made to.

After three months of back and forth, I finally got my money back. Then about two weeks after I was at US Cellular in Homewood, my girlfriend went into the same store and the same employee took care of her. She purchased their wireless internet stick for her new laptop computer. She too was paying with her credit card and Laura asked her for her DL too. Then she told her she needed to copy her cards. Once again, she went into a back room and gone about 5 minutes, came back with the box with the stick in it but no papers. She sat down in front of her computer and put the information into her account. She ran the credit card through the system, went behind the front counter, and got her papers to sign.

Three days later, she called me up in a total panic. She just checked her bank balance and she was missing nearly $3,000 from her account. She immediately called the bank and cancelled her card. The bank ran the activity on her account and told her there was a charge of nearly $1,700 to FinishLine.com and charges to Macys.com and several other companies before the card was cancelled. We both went to the Homewood police department and spoke to a detective regarding fraud. Unfortunately, because they bought gift cards with my card and sold them overseas, they weren't able to trace where the ordering came from. But on my girlfriend’s charges, they were able to trace the IP address of the computer that was used. But because Leandra ** who is the employee that did the purchasing lives in Indiana, Homewood police won't cross into Indiana and Indiana won't come into IL to make an arrest. Both girls are still working at that store.

I started having trouble a few months back with my new phone because I was never shown anything about the phone. Because it is a slider style phone, whenever it slides apart, it ends up calling the last # I dialed. One day, it called my girlfriend five times in half an hour. I didn't even know it had done that. I complained to US Cellular and they exchanged my phone for the exact same one they refurbished.

On March 4, I called my bank to check to make sure my pay check was deposited as I do every Wednesday and found out there was a charge from Finishline.com on my debit card for $1,183.30. I canceled my debit card, filed a claim with the bank, and contacted Finish Line. I was told that whoever had my debit card info had access to the 3-digit code on the back. US Cellular was the only one that had my card in their hands. I don't shop online. I took off time from work and filed a police report with my local police station.

A few days later, I took time off again to go pick up my police report for the bank and was told that I should go to the Homewood Police Station, as this was where it happened. I was talking to a friend of mine, and the exact same thing happened to her in the same store with the same employee! Now we both had filed reports with the Homewood Police Station. The Dec. did his investigation and told me that he had talked to Jeremy at US Celluar as I did and that they suspected it was Leandra, as her brother was fired years ago for the same thing.

We received the subpoenas, and their address was in Griffith, Indiana. Homewood would not do anything, because it was Indiana; and Griffith wouldn't do anything as it was in Illinois. US Cellular will not do anything, as they were saying that they questioned both employees and they said they didn't do it. They also told me that they couldn't see anything on camera, as it wasn't pointed to the copier. The police never questioned either employee! Both employees are still working for US Cellular! In total, they tried to charge approximately $8,000.00 on my debit card, and US Cellular is still paying them to do this! All my personal and private information has been stolen by their employee, and they are doing nothing!

A few months ago, the battery went bad and when my wife went to the store location, they informed her that they had a free battery replacement promotion and after finally having them actually reward us by having gone into that store without having to pay for something, she was happy for a change. They then gave her a sales pitch about free LG camera phones and an additional line for $10 a month extra for our 17-year old daughter. They told her since our original contract ended less than six months, she could start a new service contract and since we know how teenagers are with cell phones, she attempted to make sure that the new contract would include the unlimited text messaging for $29.95 a month extra. She was told that any needed changes could be made in the 30 days following the new contract (which I did not authorize to begin with) since she paid the first month's charges at that time.

Then after the 30 days had passed, they sent a bill for $793 saying that there was in fact a 250 text per month limit and my daughter's line was showing 2300+ text messages in a month's time! Since the cell phone had become so important and my wife's number had been in use for so long as a contact number for important resources, she arranged to pay the additional fees plus the regular bill by mid-September to avoid disconnection. She paid the regular agreed upon charges and over $400 towards the overcharge.

On August 26, 2009, my wife had taken my daughter to a specialist's appointment at a Chicago hospital following a diagnosis of possible Cystic Fibrosis. When I tried to return her call, she made to home earlier that morning that I didn't get because of my hearing disability. I received an automated message stating that the cell phone numbers were no longer in service! I called US Cellular and when I got a snotty representative's response about the outstanding bill, I lost my patience and laid out the facts regarding the whole matter including the fact that I hadn't signed anything or authorized the new agreement to begin with. I was put on hold and then she got back on the phone and stated that someone had made a mistake and didn't make a note about the agreement my wife had made and informed me that the phones would be back on within minutes, but wouldn't do anything about any of the issues surrounding their many other mistakes.

I was also informed that the balance was due on Sept. 3 not the 13th. After paying over $500 in a month, we get a bill for $853 and decided to take whatever steps we can to legally resolve this matter, but would not give US Cellular another dime or even do business with this company in any way should we experience any service disruptions or a lack of willingness to come to mutually acceptable terms. The phones were disconnected at 12:01 am Sept. 4, 2009. My wife has all receipts, the original contract paperwork, and the second unauthorized contract, and I am putting together a file with everything they ever sent us or gave us for receipt of payments. I will provide a brief summary of the negative impacts so far in the space provided below for description of economic and physical impacts. Thanks for your time in reviewing this matter regardless of whom the reviewer concludes to be at fault here and the one who breached the contract.

The major difficulty that in all fairness would possibly justify a $200.00 deposit was that not only was I a new customer, but I also had no credit rating. I was in my 40s at the time and had always been employed and productive. However, 20 years previous to this, I had paid off my last bank loan and focused on staying debt-free. And by being debt-free for 20 years, I had no credit rating at all. As I reasoned with the CEO of US Cellular, John Rooney, in my e-mail, it took a great deal of diligence, careful budgeting, and hard work to provide for myself and yet stay absolutely debt-free for 20 years and I thought that this should be considered a positive and not a negative. Surprisingly enough, I received an e-mail reply from John Rooney in which he said he understood my situation. He said his own father had lived debt-free for most of his life and had no credit rating to speak of, but he still always paid his bills. He told me that he had instructed US Cellular to waive the $200.00 deposit in my case. I thanked him for this.

Sure enough, when I went back to US Cellular to buy a cell phone and sign up for their service, the salesperson checked with the credit department and the deposit had been waived and I was approved for a cell phone, even though I had no credit rating. About a year after this, I received a check for $200.00 to "refund deposit." Since I had not given them a deposit in the first place, there was nothing to be refunded. So, I called them to tell them of their mistake and to ask which office of US Cellular I should send the check back to. I was bounced around from one person to another until I ended up speaking to one of the higher-ups in Chicago. He told me to not worry about the check and to just keep it. I told him that I do not keep money that is not mine. He told me, with a sigh, where to mail it back to and I did.

Within a few days a US Cellular representative called me and profusely thanked me and really praised me for my "honesty" in returning the check to them. She told me that to thank me, they were adding 200 "courtesy minutes" to my account. I told them this wasn't necessary, but I thanked them for it. I've had cell phone service exclusively through US Cellular for 5 years now. I have a perfect payment record with them. I have never gone over my allotted minutes. I have never incurred any extra charges, late fees, or penalties.

Recently, I wanted to add a second line to my account. Like many baby boomers today, I'm looking after an elderly parent. My mother never calls anybody, but she told me she would like a cell phone anyway. So, I went to a US Cellular store to have a second line added to my account. I thought it would be a breeze. Boy, was I mistaken! First, I found I couldn't buy the quality cell phone I wanted without signing up for Easy Edge - which I did not want - and going through a complicated process of paying for, then cancelling Easy Edge after 90 days and then applying for some sort of rebate. So, I laid that phone aside and planned to buy a real cheapo cell phone that US Cellular offered.

The salesperson did not know my name or anything about me, but said that I would need to put up a $25.00 deposit in order to add a second line. I asked her, "I have maintained a perfect payment record with US Cellular for 5 yeas. Why do I need to put up a deposit?" She said that everyone has to, but she agreed to call the credit department to see if it would be necessary in my case.

In the first version, the credit department said that everyone had to put up a deposit regardless of payment history. This didn't make any sense to me, so I left the store and called their credit department directly. In the second version of the story, they told me that they require some customers to put up deposits, but not others. They claimed that I would need to put up a deposit because of something they read on my credit report. When I asked them, "If this decision is based on my credit report, then why did you ask me to put up a deposit before you even knew my name and had a chance to check my credit report?" They couldn't give me an answer. So we ended the conversation.

Their answer made no sense to me. I do not have bad credit. In the last 5 years, I have worked to re-establish a credit rating. I have taken out two car loans and paid them off - always paying the payments on time. Then I bought a house and a few years afterwards, I refinanced it. Both the purchase and refinance sailed through without the slightest problem. I've worked at the same job for 13 years. I have good credit. So this time I e-mailed US Cellular's credit department. I told them the whole story from the beginning just like I have recorded here. I told them of the CEO waiving the $200 deposit, me returning the $200 check a year later, a five year-long perfect payment record, etc. I asked, "When I was a stranger to US Cellular, with no credit rating, you folks waved the $200.00 deposit, but now that I have good credit and a perfect payment record with you, you won't wave a petty $25.00 deposit. Why?"

The e-mail acknowledged that I had not been charged the original $200.00 deposit, that I had returned the $200.00 check, and that I had a perfect payment record. Then they said that deposits are never waived. Then how was mine waved? And they added that this deposit was necessary and that deposits are "non-negotiable." I read on the internet where US Cellular is losing customers in droves. I read also that CEO John Rooney - the man who had originally waived my deposit - had implemented at US Cellular his personal motto of "complete customer satisfaction." As a US Cellular customer, I am anything but "completely satisfied." I tried e-mailing him again, but this time when I e-mailed him and explained my situation with his company, I did not even receive the courtesy of a response.

Other than this exchange, I have been entirely satisfied with the service I have received from US Cellular and have recommended them often to my friends. I think they have the best deal around: unlimited incoming minutes and I have the national plan. I don't see any other cell phone company offering anything close to this plan. But I am decidedly unenthusiastic about US Cellular anymore. I think the $25.00 deposit is petty. It appears to me that they charge this deposit to everyone and then when they are called on it, they backtrack and try to think up excuses for their policy. Some people have to pay deposits and others don't, but these are non-negotiable and are never waived. These contradictory statements just do not fit the facts.

Their final statement in the e-mail was really incomprehensible. They said that if I maintained "uninterrupted service for a year," the deposit will be returned to me. But I already have 5 years of uninterrupted service. Perhaps the worst part of this situation was in talking with US Cellular over the phone or in receiving e-mails from them, there was the repeated implication that I was not telling the truth. At one point in the conversation, the credit representative replied to one of my statements with, "I don't know if that is true." I confronted her and asked, "Are you calling me a liar?" Then she backpedaled slightly.

It is no marvel to me that US Cellular is losing a steady stream of customers. They have lost this one. I will let my contract expire and sign up with another company. The reason I haven't bought an iPhone or some other more modern gadget is that I would have to leave US Cellular to do so. Well, that is no longer an obstacle. I still can't help but think that this is the decision of mid and low-level managers. I wonder if the same CEO who welcomed my business 5 years ago would be in agreement with this petty $25.00 deposit now. I guess I'll never know. I e-mailed him and got no reply.

In the end, I guess I got off easy. I've read some of the complaints on this site that others have filed against US Cellular and the hateful way they were treated. It is incomprehensible to me that any company would treat long-standing customers like criminals and like dirt. Maybe someday US Cellular will be exampled in textbooks as a long-defunct company that is a perfect example of how not to run a company.

My wife told him the way business works, you cannot hold other people accountable for your mistakes and they were going to have to deal with losing a hundred bucks as a consequence of error because for six years, we had made our payment in full, on time, every time. The answer from US Cellular was "Oops, but tough!" The day after I called and had the unpleasant experience of dealing with Kathleen, the most wretched individual I have ever had the dissatisfaction of dealing with. Anybody thinking of doing business with this company should be made aware of the fact that they hire thugs and bullies to handle their claims. I explained to her that this was the mistake on US Cellular's part and that I did not appreciate the way my wife was talked to. I made my payment in full and their mistake was not mine to make up for.

She immediately reverted to the same rhetoric as the night before, "You're a thief, a liar, taking advantage of the company. Yes, we made a mistake but you are going to have to deal with it," even making reference to my personal financial situation as if to imply I was a welfare case looking for a handout. I explained that I was in business management and had any of my employees ever talked to a customer the way I had been talked to, I would fire them post haste. She told me flat out, "I don't care what you think. We have enough customers so you can leave and it ain't going to hurt us any!" I could not believe the audacity of these individuals. I have never in my life even on the streets been met with such belligerent and insulting behavior.

It is sad to me that US Cellular feels as though this is the best way to deal with longtime customers. Especially since when I tried to speak my side, I was hung up on. I will never again recommend that anybody use this company. They are entirely rude when it comes to handling their customers. I have never been so angry and offended at the same time. I hope people will think twice before choosing service with this company. PS: I recorded my phone call with Kathleen and I am considering posting it to YouTube so people will see the way they treat their clients.

FYI, I made the payment through the US Cell website. Using their system, they made the charge directly to my checking account. Remember this, this is important. So I call, and speak to the rudest person on the planet. She can't speak with me. My wife is the primary account holder so I am less than nothing. Okay fine, phone doesn't work so I can't call her at our apartment. Thank God she was meeting me here at work. So, a little while later, my wife shows up. We call US Cell. Once again, I speak with the rudest person on the planet, a different one this time. Where do they get these people?

Anyway, they want a payment. We had made the payment, my wife says. She gives the phone to me after authorizing me to speak with this witch on the phone. The US Cell rep says we had not made payment and demanded that I pay right now. I told her I had made the payment using their online payment system and the charge was posted to my checking account 10 days ago! Well, that simply wasn't possible because she had no record of it. The witch suggested I contact my bank, have them fax a copy of my statement to them, and it may take 3 days for someone to look at it and start the investigation.

Well, I'm doing some investigating. I'll be looking into new cell carriers. Screw these clowns. If this is how they treat people, and they can't even manage their own payment system, they don't need my money. This phone is my home and business phone. God knows the damage this could cause. I am trying to buy a house, sell a house, deal with schools and other business. I can't even contact my realtor!

With me not caring so much about electronic toys, I opted to take the free activation. I told him there would be a total of 4 lines including mine. He said that he could get my activation waived for sure, but will try to request for the other lines as well. And the free phones he had were crappy. I still ended up having to get a new phone for me and my son, out of pocket of course. I had some rebate but still it wasn't completely free. I checked my bills every month and he said that he did put the request in, and said he'll do it again.

I have called him at least 2 times maybe 3 times and he has never returned any of my calls. Not only did he lie about giving me the activation fee waived, he also failed to give me my employment/corporate discount that I was entitled to because of where I worked. A co-worker told me about our discount through Verizon well into the plan. I've also talked to a few people and they said that they hate the cellular sales (Verizon) at Hickory Mall. I missed out on much better phones and accessories which would have dollar figured to more than the activation fee.

We can not pay our bill online so we have to call the company each time to pay the bill. We were never told we had to call them to pay the bill. Now, she is saying they are trying to charge us $25.00 twice and which is one for a late fee. We never get the truth and we always get the runaround about the bill. They add on charges that they want to stick on the bill.

My service has been interrupted every month since January until I have to call and speak to a supervisor. I am unemployed and my phone is my lifeline between me and potential employers, and they are interrupting my service due to company error.

I have received two letters threatening to send me to collections. On 10/4/09, a rep named Eric agreed to waive the charges of $25.02. He was also going to remove the $20.00 fee. He promised me that this would be the last time I had to call. On 11/4/09, I received new charges of $45.02; I did dispute these charges as well. I cannot get them to close this account and refund my deposit. On 3/37/09, I received another collection notice but now the amount is up to $60.00. I need your help.

So, being just before the holidays, I was talking on the phone somewhat more than usual and not realizing what was going on till I got my bill. I got a bill for $710 the following month. Remember this all started by me trying to save $10 a month. So now I can't pay due to lack of employment and they are going to terminate me, so yeah, you're right there's another $150 tacked on (I'm lacking a couple months to fulfill my 2-year agreement) plus the last month's bill of about $62. Now I don't have a phone and they are turning it over to collections. I owe almost $1000 all because I tried to save $10. I truly believe these people at US Cell go out of their way to think of ways to screw people. They make it so complicated that it's difficult to keep track and figure it out. I'm sure many others have been stuck by these ** in a similar way. I will now get a TracFone. They work better anyway.

I didn't know that I had to document every conversation from the time I purchased a contract through US Cellular. I told the lady that she could look at my account and see that I have never downloaded an application since I had the phone and this obviously was not something I intentionally did. She then became rude explaining to me that I still had a program downloaded to my phone and I had to pay for the program. I asked to speak with her manager and was put on hold for at least 9 minutes before I became so frustrated that I hung up.

A second agent came on and in the meantime I rearranged my important bills like electricity and gas to accommodate the last $50. I talked to the second agent with a few less swear words and told him that I made this arrangement to pay the rest of the balance on January 30th. I gave him my two cents on the matter and he said that's just the way it is basically. I told him I would like to make this company better for them and for customers. Payment arrangements for cellphones should be a lot more lenient than public utilities, but it's just the same. If you don't give them all your money, they turn the switch off. I wish I could really do something about this. Maybe I will switch to a landline.

The first 2 US Cellular stores/repair centers didn't answer the phone. I finally drove to a store and asked what could be done. The sales girl didn't know, could not determine what was wrong and then said I was eligible for a 'FREE' upgrade in Dec. but could not tell me the details. I asked if I could upgrade early as apparently there was no one to fix the phone, which is my only phone, and I was leaving town that afternoon. She put me through to the customer service division who informed me the 'free' upgrade would cost me another 2-year contract (now note, I still have 10 months left on the current 2 year contract!) and I could then pay for a new phone. I asked why after only all these years, having paid all bills on time. Nothing could be done to just replace the phone, even temporarily until a tech could fix the one I owned.

I was told that my only option was an outright purchase and/or a longer contract. Then I was told I should have had their insurance - to which I replied that my previous phone lasted 6 years and I only upgraded as the old one was analog. Then I was told to go to a repair center to which I replied none answered their phone. Their customer service is not service by any means. I informed them I would not renew my contract next year and would let people know how bad they treat loyal customers. I then went around the corner to a cell phone repair shop and... get this... the young kid told me the phone needed to be reset for their towers. In 30 seconds, he had the phone on and it is working better than before - no charge! Next year I'm getting a different provider without a contract even it means T-Mobile...

This December they will waive the final 6 months of our contract and early fees as a courtesy. I find it ridiculous that I no longer get mobile to mobile minutes which are supposed to be free. I am roaming and using the Verizon Wireless network therefore I cannot do an over the air update for my phone since it is not using the US Cellular network. I cannot have my phone serviced, if need be, because there are no US Cellular stores anywhere around.

After calling several times to customer service they could only recommend that I increase my rate plan to accomodate for the expected increase in my minute usage (since mobile to mobile is no longer free and included). Now I am still stuck with their shotty service and have to pay $7/month + taxes fo a higher rate plan till December.

I have to pay $7/month + taxes for a higher rate plan because my mobile to mobile minutes are no longer included with my plan.

Bad credit record and collection agency calls demanding payment.

So I called them about the phone and I asked if the phones were refurbished and the operator hesitantly told me that they were but they inspect the phones before they send them out which clearly they didn't because if they did I wouldn't have gotten this POS. He told me that I would have to send the phone back and call them in 24 hrs with the tracking # and they would send a new one right out. I have yet to get the new phone but when I do I will re post.

I originally paid $135 for the phone that had to be repaired twice. Than it got ran over had to pay $50 for a replacement $10 a month for 10 months($100)for the insurance and got a loner phone that doesn't even hold a charge so I am phone less not to mention that essentially paid $285 dollars for the phone that should have only cost me $80.

I have been waiting on a manager to call me from US Cellular in Wytheville Virginia. No one will call. My son has used the loner phone longer than the phone we purchased for him. The loner phone is not even close to being the same as the phone that is being repaired. I am tired of waiting and 12 weeks is long enough for the phone to fixed.

Well, they said, you'd better check with your credit card company because they declined to pay your bill. I called my credit card company. They had never received a request--computer program or otherwise--from US Cellular to pay the bill, they said. Okay, I said, calling US Cellular back. We know we did our part, US Cellular said, because we sent you the e-mail, see?

Well, let me pay my bill over the phone, I said. Over the phone, I used the exact same credit card, on the same day US Cellular had sent the e-mail, and the bill was paid. Over the phone. Nothing wrong with the credit card. Nothing wrong with my credit, as the US Cellular CS staff person had intimated.

By the way, I suggested the US Cellular CS rep escalate this issue. As I said to him, this type of glitch usually doesn't happen to just one person. I suspect there is a problem that your superiors would be delighted to hear about. I could almost hear him rolling his eyes. Oh well, I thought. This couldn't happen twice.

Guess what. Today, Saturday, August 30, I got an email from US Cellular. You guessed it. Exact same message as the one I received on July 30. I double-checked my US Cellular account. Tried to re-enter my credit card information, top to bottom (including State), but got an error message saying it was all identical to the credit card account I already had on file at US Cellular.

I called my credit card company first this time. No, they said, they hadn't gotten any request. I called US Cellular. There would be a 15 minute wait, the recording said. I waited. Got someone named Jenny on the phone. She started repeating exactly what your July CS rep had told me. Eventually, she reluctantly said she'd have to check with another department it would be a very long wait--did I really want to wait? Yes.

She checked with the other department. Came back on the line many minutes later, and said that I'd entered my state wrong. I live in Wisconsin. I'd entered Wisconsin. But the US Cellular screen said Alabama. She said that I needed to fix that. Wait. I live in Wisconsin. I entered Wisconsin. My screen said Wisconsin. Her contact in the "other department" at US Cellular said his screen showed Alabama. I'm supposed to fix that? Well, she says, I guess I could call them back and see what they say. Do I really want to wait that long again? Okay.

She came back on the line eventually. Here's what she suggested. Delete my credit card information in my US Cellular Account. Wait a few days. TRY to re-enter my credit card information in my US Cellular Account. Wait until the end of the month. See if I get the e-mail again. (Actually, she said, "see if that works." ) Wait, I said, losing my cool. The mistake is on US Cellular's end. Why do I --the customer--have to fix it? Why are you making me jump through all these hoops to fix your glitch?

Throughout this last exchange, I tried to talk. She wouldn't let me talk. She just kept telling me all the things I had to do to fix your problem. And if it didn't work, she said, I'd have to contact-- I think she said the IT or IC department -- to see if they could figure it out the glitch. Good grief. While on hold, I'd located the names online or Mr. R. (CS honcho) and Mr. R. (CEO) --not an easy task, as you know.

I'd already written about half of this letter. And made coffee. And drank two cups. Petted the cat. Brushed my teeth. Thank goodness for ear buds. But, hey. If it there's an easy fix, I'll try it. Life's tough. This isn't cancer research, after all. So, I went back to my US Cellular account. Tried to delete the credit card account. Guess what? I'd been on the phone so long with customer service, I'd been logged out.

The next thing that occured I paid my bill on the Fri. at 9 am and my services where not restored at 2pm I called and spoke with a extremly rude Rep. that stated I need to go back to the US store where I paid my bill and have them to call US cellular with a receipt no. which I was never told before.

The services of US cellular suck, my husband, me and my two sister's have this services and we cannot even speak to each other because the calls drop every second. When you call the customer service line a group of rude, unprofessional, overtalker's who cannot help you answer the phone. I use to have Sprit and I was a fool to change services.

I could have taken my $90.00 and paid toward something else instead of paying for services that I can't get right away. Even the land line phone company have more customer service than this company.

Around April US Cellular came out with the HTC ppc 6800. Later that month I again went to my local store to ask questions. They did not have one on display. I stated what I wanted and didn't want. I would be due for an upgrade in August with a new 2 yr phone contract. To get their price I would also have to sign a 2 yr data service contract in addition to the 2 yr phone contract. I was told "US Cellular will not sell you the phone with out the phone and data contracts. "If I am willing to forego the rebates, would I still have to sign a web contract." The answer YES! I remember telling her "Your kidding, thats really stupid, I wonder how many phone contracts and phone sales their losing over that decision, they just lost me because I will not sign a contract for something I won't use.

I also mentioned something to the effect their on line pricing and contract descriptions for the HTC were misleading, it was not the same as I was being told in store. I asked about buying from an individual, since US Cellular HTCs were already being sold on ebay. Again I was told as long as it is a US Cellular phone you can have your phone service transferred, you won't have to have the data service or wait until August for the upgrade." One of the male employees offered to sell me a discounted pda (they had two to get rid of they were returns or models they were fasing out)without a data plan, but I did not want a blackberry.

So I started looking at the HTC 6800 on ebay and Craigs List. It was not the pda I wanted but if I went with this phone I would not have to think about changing carriers when my contract expired. The prices were higher than if the phones were purchased thru US Cellular, but people were buying them. I assumed people like me that wanted the pda and phone but did not want the web. I always asked specific questions "Does the phone and all pda functions (pictures, calendar, contacts, notes, load games and phone) work without the internet. The answer I always received was yes all those functions will work without the web, and you don't have to have the data services. Of course being a PDA phone, I knew they should all work without the web.

I ran across one close to home. The man had purchased it new, April 1, it was more phone than he wanted, there was a problem with answering it at work, and he also wanted to get out of his data service contract, and go back to a regular phone. When he realized I had a razr, he offered to discount his asking price for the trade of my phone. The deciding factor to purchase from this man, he was using the phone as we spoke, and he was more than willing to meet me at a US Cellular store to have our services transferred. Perfect, how could I go wrong, I would know the phone worked and if there were transfer issues I would know before purchasing.

June 16: met Mr Red D. @ the US Cellular store; West Florissant Ave Ferguson MO. Red D., his wife and I were greeted by three store employees. Red and I explained to the reps we wanted to have our phone services switched to each others phone and I was purchasing his HTC 6800. One of the reps said something about having the data services switched. I said " I don't have data service and I don't want data service. "One young man said you have to have the data service to have that phone switched to your service." I specifically replied "IF I HAVE TO HAVE THE DATA SERVICE I DO NOT WANT TO BUY THE PHONE. I don't email, text message or browse the net, I just want the pda functions with phone. I already pay US Cellular $230 to $240 a month for a family plan, I don't want to pay anymore for something I will not use.

Mr Red said "I was told when I purchased the phone I could cancel my data service contract anytime and still have phone. They asked him about purchase date and one of the boys said I will check with my boss. He left then came back a few minutes later, the young man said "You only have to have it for a month, then you can cancel but you have to have the data service to make the switch. I said something to the effect "Oh a one time service fee to have the phone switched over." He replied "YES" I asked the amount, he said 24.95. I asked again "Are your sure? I am more than willing to pay a 24.95 one time fee but I DO NOT WANT TO PAY THIS EVERY MONTH. He said "YES just make sure you call at the end of this month to get it cancelled so you do not go over into another month." He also told me I could not text message without the data service, I said fine I don't text.

So one of the two young men said he would take care of the switch. Red, his wife and I spent about another 30 minutes with this employee while he was transfering phone services. During which I questioned him on being able to load games off my computer onto my cell phone. He assured me I could, all the pda functions and phone were great. When he was done he said "Now don't forget to call to cancel so you don't get charged more than 1 month." I thanked him, paid Mr. D. and left. I went home and started playing with my new phone and toy. I sent my one and only text message ever "Did you get this" and received my first text message "Yes I did" I checked out other functions to make sure everything worked properly. I checked out a couple sites on the phone, definately did not like, too small. Everything works fine.

July 1: I made my first call to have the data service cancelled. When my account was pulled up I was informed by the rep "You have to keep the data service plan with the phone you have, you cannot cancel it." I replied, I bought this phone from an individual I do not have a data service contract, I only have a phone contract, and I do not want the web browser. I believe she said as of August 07 US Cellular requires these phones to have data if you want voice phone. After some discussion she transferred me to another rep.

This rep told me "US cellular only allows these phones to have voice phone without data service after having and paying for a two year data service contract." Applies to blackberries also. I was insistent I wanted the web cancelled, he said to cancel the data services you will have to cancel your phone service. I said "fine cancel my phone contracts" he said "all 5" I said "I dont know, but right now at least this phone." I am making this clear right now I want the web cancelled, if that cancels my phone, then you have cancelled it and I have not" He then says he is not authorized to cancel my phone I needed to talk to a superviser.

I was put in contact with Bill located in Knoxville TN. By this time I was pretty livid, I angrily went thru the whole scenario again and told him "I want the web cancelled, if that cancels my phone then US Cellular is the one breaking the contract, I am not." "I want to honor my phone contract but I will not pay an additonal 25.00 a month on top of my 230.00 for something I do not use and do not want. I do not email, I do not text message and I do not want to browse. I only use mabe 2 hrs at the most a month on voice. Up to this point I had been very happy with us cellular, I bought this phone not wanting to change carriers but if this was not resolved I will have to rethink my decision, when all of our contracts come due. I must say he was calm, cool, very polite and mannerly, and did an excellent job at calming me down, Not one time did he raise his voice or become sharp with me. He was a very nice man and understanding of my side of the issue.

I offered to give him the name and number of Red. He said that was not necessary, he believed my version of the previous conversations with us cellular agents. Given the fact I was given wrong information, by a US Cellular agent he was going to send in a Special form to get this issue taken care of. He was sure US Cellular would not want to lose my business. He said it could take 4 or 5 days before the data service was off. I was concerned about going over the month and he said I called early there would be no additional charges above the 24.95. Said if I had any other problems I could call. I did not speak with Bill after this and I sincerely hope he did not lose his job for trying to do the right thing.

The next couple weeks I kept checking the internet on my phone and the same thing I had pulled up earlier in the month would still be showing on the phone. I decided to wait until I received my bill to see what was going on. I was not sure if the phone was still on the net or if that just stayed there. It was pogo.com or microsoft on there. I did not even try to use my wifi to pogo for fear it would be thru us cellular. My bill date is July 10. I received my bill on Fri or Sat, July 18, or 19. My bill showed a charge of 19.96 for a partial month data service June 16 to July 9. It also showed an additional 24.95 for the following month of July 10 thru August 9. The bill total was 307.61.

Monday July 21: I called US Cellular again and asked to be connected directly to Bill in Knoxville. I was connected to Ron in Knoxville he said Bill was out of the office that day. Went thru the whole story again including conversation with Bill and some kind of form Bill was suppose to have sent in. Ron said it was a Special Remedy form and Bill had indeed submitted the form to a board or somewhere and for some reason there had been no movement on it at all. He was going to check into it, to see what the hold up was, he was sure it could be resolved, it was a no brainer US Cellular would want to keep me as a customer. He would get back to me. He evidently did call back that day but he called the cell phone, not my landline, and I did not notice until late in the day. Somewhere during the conversation, Ron did ask if it was the 24.95 I objected to. I said well YEAH! Why pay for smething I won't use.

July 22:, I called and asked for Ron, he was not available and I left a message that I had called. He called back later that day to say he was still waiting to hear something himself. My impression, was he had talked to his boss and was waiting for a ruling on the special remedy form submitted. He still did not think there would be a problem. I told him I really wanted to get my bill payment in and I needed an to know about the 19.96. I had agreed to pay a one month fee of 24.95 and had no issue with that charge. He looked at the bill to adjust and deduct the 19.96, there was also a 25.00 credit due to my daughter receiving two bad phones from Signal Insurance. Anyway he gave me a total of 260.15. He said he would get back to me as soon as he heard something. I again offered up Red D.'s telephone number, for verification of my story. He said not necessary I was being given the benefit of doubt, and he felt my story was true.

Wed July 23: Spoke with Ron. He suggested I call Red Donaldson to get my phone and my money back, I said he is not going to give me my phone or money back. He said "Oh I thought you said you could call him, I said, "call him to verify the conversations that occurred at the store between the 2 cellular reps, Red, his wife and myself. Ron said they did believe me but I was given bad information. He also suggested if I wanted a pda to get a palm. my reply "Palms don't have cameras." He then asked if I had another phone I could have my service transferred to. My answer was "No!" I purchased and traded my phone inside a US Celluar store in front of a US Cellular reps, after information they gave and assured me, was accurate.

He apologized profusely, for all the misinformation I had been given, but there was nothing that could be done about the situation. He had taken the issue to his boss, his boss had taken it higher. The code they have to make my phone work as a voice phone, will not work on my particular phone. He said it applied to the blackberries also. I believe he said something came out August 07 blackberries and my phone could not have voice service without data service. "Your particular phone will not work as a voice phone without the data service plan." He said a statement was made that no cell phone network will allow data services on a phone for free.

My reply "I dont need data services to make out a grocery list." If these phones will not work without data service then they are not phones. The description of these phones on the US Cellular site does not say they will not work as voice phones without data services. If this is the case this information needs to be put out to the public, because it is fraudulent advertising to call these phones if they cannot work without an internet plan. I know I am not the only person out there that wants one of these phones as a pda with telephone, and personal use only gadget without the web browsing and internet. People are buying these on ebay for the very same reason I bought from an individual.

I looked at and considered dropping my minutes from 2100 to 1400 which is 20.00 difference. to offset the 24.95 data charge, however our used peak minutes is right around 1100, I told him that would be taking chances, and I did not want to get caught paying 25 cents a minute if I went over. I was going to have to think this over. I was and I am not happy. Again I will say Ron was also polite, easy to talk to. I also asked if they had a lower price data service plan. Evidently not. As I told Ron I would have preferred to purchase the phone new with warranty and insurance. Ron said I could still have it insured, but after all the different things I have been told over a 4 month period, I think it best to wait and see if this problem has a resolution.

Thurs July 24: Since I was just told I would not have voice phone unless I paid an additional 24.95 dollars a month I called to have my phone number suspended. I do not want to accrue charges for something I will not use and do not want. I can have my number suspended for up 60 days, it will extend my contract 2 months. I do not have a problem with the extension as long as there is a resolution to this problem. I do not know the name of the last customer service agent I talked to, however this one was short and sharp. I did tell her I had sent a note to contactus@htc.com she said htc had no control over how the cell networks operated regarding the phones. I also told her I would be contacting the better business bureau, asked that my message be forwarded to Ron.

My note to HTC has to do with my being told that my particular phone will not work without an internet plan. If the phone doesn't work without the web, then it is not a pda phone it is an internet only device. If it is an internet only device that should be stated in advertisements because calling it a phone is misleading and fraudulent. I also stated I did not believe what I am being told about the phone and I would like to hear from them if this were true. I kept a copy of my note. I received an acknowledgement email of note received, I have not heard a single word since. I think my note is being ignored and I am being avoided like the plague.

Since having my phone suspended I have checked the net on my phone several times and I cannot get on to pogo or us cellular thru the web browser, which is good I do not want to get on. I was told my phone would not work without the data service, so how is it I can dial up US Cellular and and be connected to their whole recorded options menu and even speak to a customer service rep on the phone. The phone will connect whether I dial their 611 number, or the 1-888- number. Any number I dial will ring up US Cellular So it appears my phone does work without the data services on the phone.

US Cellular does not want to honor my phone contract, unless I pay an additional 24.95 a month for data service, that contradicts what US Cellular reps told me prior to purchase. My phone and data service has been suspended (turned off)yet my phone can dial up US Cellular and connect with a customer service agent. In addition I take issue with the way the phones pricing is being advertised on line, it is misleading.

Their online description should state the phone will not be sold without the data plan.

If the phones really will not work without the data service, then their on-line description should state that fact. If the phone will work without the data plan then I also take issue with their refusal to sell phones without a two year data service contract. If it is a phone sell it as a phone with contract. Data Service should be an optional addition. Internet should not be mandatory to purchase. It is wrong and bamboozling the consumer into additional contracts. I may be an old school baby boomer, but I don't believe the definition of phone has changed. If voice phone relies on internet then that phone needs a new name or companies better redefine phone in their descriptions of such phones.

Not all of the country is business people, some of us are just very busy housewives and moms that take care of numerous people in numerous places. Not everyone that wants a pda phone are internet junkies, some of us are just middle aged baby boomers that want to use a fraction of the convenient features these phones have. None of us wants to pay for something they will not use. I did not just dive into this purchase blind, I made 3 trips to stores and I asked direct questions of US Cellular employees and now they want to charge me for the very questions I asked and statements I made up front before purchase. Based on the several visits I made to the stores and the questions I asked of US Cellular reps prior to purchase I should not have to be taking the time to deal with this issue now.

I read the description of this phone on the cellular site numerous times while I was looking and trying to decide what to do. No where in the description does it say the voice phone is dependent on a data service or the phone will cease to work as a voice phone if you decide not to renew the data service plan at the end of 2 yrs. THE FOLLOWING IS US CELLULARS ONLINE DESCRIPTION AND PRICING ON THE PHONE

This is misleading. It sounds like you can purchase the phone with phone contract until you visit the store and you cannot without a web contract also.

My phone is slated to be reactivate Sep 21 when it does I will not pay 24.95 for data services I do not want. I will not pay taxes or late fees for that 24.95. And I will not cancel my phone or pay 150.00 cancellation fee for 1 phone let alone 5. Based on my efforts to get the right info and the fact my decision to buy this particular pda used was so I could stay with this cell phone company, I thought was the best cell company I had ever been with. This whole situation is just PLAIN WRONG. I have told so many people how happy I had been with US Cellular and now I am just extremely disappointed, I am being forced into this situation, to file a complaint. I had phone suspended so as not to accrue charges for something I do not want and something I was told I would not have to have

I have called U.S. Cellular Corporate about this, and although they admitted that there was a problem with their system and knew they had over billed me,(the $128.50 payment will be paid twice; it is included again in the $273.09 payment); They themselves could not release the funds back into my account without Bank Of America signing a statement that they would honor the payments. Bank Of America refused. Althought these payments were posted to my account, and obviously being paid, Bank Of America claimed they had to wait three days before they could honor the payments.

To anyone who loves the idea of "Debit", don't do it. I am learning a very hard lesson. One authorization gave this company enough power to wreak havoc on my account and there is nothing I can do. My Bank can't even help me. To me, this is Identity theft, and stealing. They are being allowed to do whatever they want to my account and it's to the tune of $423.59 and climbing. I received no notice that they were taking the payment out of my account. The times that they claim I accessed my account and authorized payments would be impossible for me to do, I was working at the time. No other person has the I.D. or password. I set payment up with my debit card, but they did not submitt payment using the card. They some how got a hold of my banking account numbers and authorized payment using them.

I actually was going to report the card stolen to stop the payments, and Bank Of America told me that the payments were done using my checking account numbers. I don't know how they got ahold of them. When I asked U.S. Cellular to provide me with authorization to use my checking account numbers, they told me that they cannot provide me with that information. When I asked for a copy of the dates and time that I authorized the payments, they could not give me that information either. Each person I talked too, when I asked for their full name, I was told they could not provide that information due to the privacy act. What about mine? I can't even get them to provide me with information about my account, but they sure know alot.

Don't deal with these people. I have filed a complaint with BBB, Consumeraffairs, Attorney Generals office, and here I am doing it again. I am so angry that I am looking for monetary compensation for having to fix a problem that is not mine to begin with, nor did I create it. My account is now $423.59 short of money I was counting on to pay other bills. Over and above these payments fess of $105.00 have been added due to overdrafts. My husband had to get an advance of $80.00 just so that he could continue to work. If he did not he would of lost his job. I am taking an emergency trip, my father is having surgery, I had to borrow the funds in order to make this trip.

This is not possible, I had to work that day and was scheduled to be in at 1:00. One payment for $150.00 is for the month of August: They do not know how or why I am being charged for August since it is not August. The $273.09 includes a second payment of $128.50, they will recieve that payment twice.

These payments totalling: $551.59 have placed my account in the negative. Additional overdraft fees of $105.00 have also been placed on my account. My bank has been trying to help resolve the problem and has replace two of the three payments, I had to sign an affidavit stating I did not authorize these payments. My account is still in a negative due to the overdraft fees. My husband had to request an advance on his paycheck so that he could continue to work. He is an over the road operator, very embarrassing to have to ask for such help.

I had told US Cellular reps that if they did not remove these payments, I would consider this stealing and Identity theft. I also told them that those payments have wreaked so much havoc on my account that if they don't remove them I will be living on the street by next week. They offered no resolution.

I wasnt buying that excuse. He said, well I can offer you a new phone of which he recommended the LG UX 260. This phone as it turned out was worse than the Motorolla phones with continual software issues of which I was told after calling Matt at the Orland Park store, to come in and a software upgrade would need to be done. My question is, why wasn't this done in the first place? I was told that it was an issue with an entire batch of phones bought by US Cellular and that US Cellular doesn't know what phones are faulty and which are good. So that said, I had to go out of town for a few days to a hot climate with this faulty phone. Once down in the hotter climate, I left my phone in my car where the heat "supposedly" cracked my screen on the phone due to the fluid in the screen expanding from the heat.

Now I'm sorry here, but aren't phones supposed to withstand the heat that is on EARTH?! Isn't that what they were made for? I remember old phones such as Nokia's could be dropped off a building and still be ok. Not a new US Cellular phone though. I was told I would need to file an insurance claim of which I would be billed the $50 deductable for. Matt assured me that US Cellular would reimburse me the $50 as a "good faith credit". I received my next LG UX 260 phone days later. Upon activation, I began having problems with the new phone almost instantly such as the phone's processor running slow or locking up all together and a hairline crack appeared at the top of the screen.

I called Matt back at the Orland Park/Tinley Park store and was told to once again bring this phone back and he would take care of the problem. I came back in irrate on a Friday afternoon after the phone this time locked itself up and was told that he would issue me a $10 credit for the hassel, but he could do nothing and that I would need to come back another time when the tech was in. I said fine and that when I got a chance I would be back. Nothing has been resolved as of yet. I had to file another insurance claim at $50 and have a loaner phone. DON'T BUY A US CELLULAR PHONE! WORST ON THE MARKET.

Today, I took my phone to work with me where I work in an office and had my phone alone by itself in my FRONT pocket of my pants and had not used it all day. At my time of departure from work I took my phone out of my pocket to use it and noticed that the screen's small crack had spread down the length of the screen and the new phone only 3 weeks old, was now un-useable. I called the US Cellular store from a work phone and was told to bring it in to the Harlem Ave location and that they would have to look at it and get me a loaner phone. I arrived and was told that I have been abusing the phone, and they would do nothing for me. I pointed out that there are no scratches on the phone and that the original packaging is still attached to the phone. I was told that I must have sat on the phone. I said, "I'm sorry I don't usually sit on my front, its kinda hard to do so" and that this phone was not used all day. So, after many people looking at the phone, they agreed that this phone was NOT abused, but still would do nothing due to the fact that there was physical damage to the phone and that I would need to file another insurance claim.

I called customer service where once again I was told that I must have dropped the phone. I told the woman on the phone that I never even took the phone out of my pocket, nor did I sit on or fall on the phone. She said sorry, the best I can do is offer you $20 for your trouble. I told her that I just wanted out of this contract so I could go somewhere that has "real" phones. Again no luck. So, after dealing with customer service over the phone from within the US Cellular store, I was then told, "sorry we ran out of loaner phones and you need to go to the other Orland Park store". BOTTOM LINE... DON'T BUY A US CELLULAR PHONE!!! WORST PHONES ON THE MARKET!!!

US Cellular says I owe them $150.00 for cancelling my contract, then they said they would reduce it to $75.00 but I think this is still unfair because I was told my contract would be over July 7, 2008.

About a year later our son's phone was water damaged. We found out that only then that US Cellular has a seperate company called The Signal that handles there insurance issues. So we called The signal and paid the $ 50 deductable and a rebuilt phone arrived in three days. After about two weeks this phone's flaws started showing. One the battery won't stay charged. This is probably because the charger connection is now loose. The volume on the side of the phone doesn't work correctly either.

So we call the signal. We find out they only warrenty their phones for 5 days. If I wanted to exchage this phone, I would have to pay another $50. I noticed on e-bay that this phone is being sold new for $49. If they ask you if you want the insurance, just say no. Its a rip-off. US Cellular used to be a great company. Now I don't think I could recommend them.

We paid $6 a month for a year, ($72) plus $ 50 for a used phone that doesn't work properly. Thats $122 for a phone that can be purchased new for $49 on e-bay.

So, I went to the US Cellular store in Brunsw3ick. I told them of my experience at the Topsham store. They told me "that was retail" like that makes it right. Thy checked my phone to make sure it had not been damaged by water. It had not. Then I was given the same choices I had been given before. I was in tears...no way can I afford $85 for a new phone. I wrote to thm online...pretty much the same story. So now I amexpected to pay for a phone...that does not have any of the features I have to pay for. That is not fair. I have a son in the Navy..overseas...I can't even get a call from him should there be any trouble...how could that be right?

Upon arriving, contacted US Cellular to see what we could do about our service, they informed us at that time they did not service this area. We had to cancel their service and take a local provider. I received a letter about a month later from US Cellular that we owe a cancellation fee of $150. I explained to them we had to move for employment purposes, and cancelled only because they did not service this area. They basically said "Tough" cancel your contract and you pay. I have called 4 times, speaking to one supervisor after another, written numerous letters to them and to the Collection company they have turned it over to. They won't budge.

Many years ago we had Sprint, when my husband was trasferred out of state, and they could not provide us with service, they told us the contract was cancelled and no fees would be charged because THEY could not provide us service, not because we chose to dump them. This is the same case with US Cellular, however they want their money.

I don't feel I should have to pay when it is they who cannot provide me service here. We offered to return the phones, they did not want them and refused. Its now on my credit report, they've addedd another $50 so I owe $200 at the moment and they are calling me once a week for payment. I am not paying, I don't care if it is on my credit forever, its the principle of the thing.

My phone does not work unless I plugged it in. I use it for business calls mostly and internet access.

I called us cellular as soon as I rec'd a call from a collection agency and us cellular told me my account is fine and upto date! I rec'd a collection letter and I again called US cellular and now the acknowlege that an acct was sent to collections and they can't help me that I have to deal with the collection agency! I went to US Cellular were I started the contract and the rep said that she sees what happended were they applied my pymts to the new acct and not the old and mentioned a disconnection and I told her the number was never disconnected and she said that the manager said that there is NOTHING they can help me with that I should have contacted them earlier! which I contacted them as soon as I rec'd the collection letter and they had said my account was fine! This has put a stain on my credit and I don't think this is fair. This also happended to someone I work with. They are very messing and very unfair.

My credit has been stained. One of my credit cards which I had a $3,000 credit line has lowered it to $300.00 because it has been reported that a deliquent bill has been reported to the credit agency.

I told them that I had been told by US Cellular that I had been paid in full. They said it wasn't true, yet refused to send me proof of the bill. US Cell said they could no longer legally look at the account. I was stuck. I was VERY upset about this and let them know it. I told them my father had had a massive stroke in Oct. and that this was very stressful. They said, Lady we all have problems in a VERY rude way. I paid it just to try to save my credit. I'd been with them for 10 years. I only canceled because my son is now paying for my service with Verizon. I will NEVER go back to US Cellular. No heart, and incompetence.

US Cellular is the only bad mark on my credit report. They refused to send me proof of the bill being owed and my hands were tied. I paid a bill that I still feel I didn't owe.

And when we contacted US Cellular to see what was going on, their response was, the other company owns the contract now, so it's not our problem. Problem is that this account was PAID IN FULL on the last date they had payment made.

Besides them trying to get an additional $172, this collection agency notice goes on our credit rating.

I spoke with several people at USC about this and apparently they feel they are justified in charging me $150 for a contract that had less than 6 months remaining. Personally had I known this in advance I would have done things differently. All I can do now is pay the charge, NEVER USE US CELLULAR AGAIN, and tell everyone I can what a bogus company they are. I hope this info will help someone else before they end up having to pay $150 for a phone number.

I lost $360.30 that was promised to be refunded to me.

I go in to the store, expecting to NOT pay a deposit because I had now lived here for one year. The credit department told the sales guy I still had to pay a $100 deposit because 8 of 12 of my last monthly payments had been late! I was shocked. I always mail my bill in 3-5 business days before it's due.

Apparently they count a bill as received when they get around to posting it, NOT when they receive it. Therefore, if you don't want to be late you have to send the bill 10-12 days in advance. The only reason I was using regular mail is that they offer no online electronic payment service. This company is way behind the times.

I went back in and they reset my towers and told me that should take care of it. It did not. My boyfriend and I could be sitting on the couch next to each other and his phone was fine but mine did not work. I went back in to US Cellular and explained that I didn't think that it was the phone. I thought that something was possibly wrong in the way the account was set up or it was my phone number. The told me that was impossible it could not be the phone number. I then called customer service and told them my problem and they also insisted that it had to be the phone it could not be anything else. I explained that I did not want to continue paying for a service that I was not getting, they said that I was using my phone, even though I had to stand outside to talk on it that I was using my minutes therefore taking advantage of the service.

My boyfriend and I then decided to switch phones and see if it was just my phone. We took both of our phones in, he activated my phone under his phone number and I activated his under my phone number. I now was on my third phone (motorola #3) and when I had it set up under my phone number I had no reception. When he had my phone it worked perfect for him. Which then comfirmed to us that it was my phone number. I contacted customer service then again and they once again told me that that was impossible. It had to be the phone. So I then went into US Cellular in Ames and bought a phone outright. When that phone was activated under my phone number it also did not work. I had no reception. So I called again to customer service for US Cellular customers. They once again told me that it was just the phone.

I paid $85 more than what I owed US Cellular for cancelations, and the time of service from 3-05 to 8-06, I want some refunded for payment of a service I did not fully recieve and suffering from all the arguing I had to do to try and get someone at US Cellular to believe my story and then to they and correct the problem. (Lots of migraines, lots of Advil)

When I called U.S. Cellular the customer service person advised me of 1000 nationwide anytime minutes with no roaming or long distance charges for $35 a month. So I asked her if it was possible to switch to that plan and then switch back to my plan when I come back home, she informed me that would be no problem to go back to an all you can call plan, they are still offered. So I left on vacation and I had problems with my phone the entire time I was there. She neglected to tell me that U.S. Cellular has no towers in L.A. and I could not get any of my messages.

When I was back home and received my bill , I had gone way over my minutes so I ended up paying hundreds of dollars extra. I called to change my plan back over to my one, but when I did that I was informed that I can change it back to an all you can call plan, but it would now cost me $69 a month. The original person I spoke with never mentioned anything about the price going up $20 a month. So after talking to supervisors, there is nothing that can be done, I can switch my plan to 1300 mins for $49.99 or pay the $69 for an all you can call plan. I believe that when you call a company and ask for advice about their products or services, they should give you advice that will save you money, not cost you money. This has been dragging out for months and costing me hundreds of dollar, all because the customer sevice person gave me bad advice. I would have had a 50/50 chance of picking a better plan by myself, but I decided to take the time to call the company and find out what the best choice would be to do. Instead, I have wasted my time, money, and energy trying to resolve this problem.

I had cell phone bills that were a couple hundred dollars higher than usual and my plan is now $20 more a month.

What I think is happening is that either they are having technical problems, or they have just promised service to too many people and can't fulfill it. It is very important to me that when my teenage daughter tries to get in touch with me (or vice versa), we be directly connected, not routed to voice mail. The impression I have gotten is that U.S. Cellular isn't too concerned with the problem. But I am. It seems about 50% of my calls never go through, but get routed to voice mail instead!!!!!