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Net10 Wireless review: net10 will not reactivate phone 15

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11:19 pm EDT
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Net10 is the worst pre-paid cellular service provider out there. Every instance I've dealt with their customer service has been an absolute nightmare. Even simple phone activation is a overdrawn, confusing process.

My latest incident is another example of Net10's disregard for its customers:

I recently had my Net10 phone stolen. It still had approximately two and a half hours of minutes on it. Fortunately, I had another Net10 phone I bought a year ago -- which I used for a few weeks before upgrading to the phone which was recently stolen. After a hour on the phone explaining the situation (the agents are terrible at comprehending customer situations that don't fit exactly into a narrow, pre-defined flowchart), the agent said he would transfer all the minutes from my stolen phone to my old, inactive phone. When we got to the step to verify the sim card on my inactive phone, it was "invalid". So, the agent had to send a new sim card.

A week later, I received the new sim card and called up customer service to complete the process. After twenty minutes of verifying serial/sim numbers repeatedly (the agents ask the exact same questions multiple times during the same phone call), he finally said I needed to purchase more minutes to activate my phone. Then, I needed to call back at least a week later to "verify" the minutes on my stolen phone, so they could be transferred (Why wait a week? Their "tech" department was having issues...). It made absolutely no sense. I asked why he couldn't activate the phone now with 0 minutes, then transfer my minutes from my stolen phone whenever their "tech" department wasn't having "issues". He said that was "impossible". His screen said I needed to purchase air time to activate my old phone first. There was no way to get my minutes transferred without purchasing more minutes. He couldn't transfer me to anyone or any department who could resolve this issue -- it was "impossible". I'm done with this ridiculous company.

Other pre-paid services, like Boost, have matched their rates with Net10's, so there is no reason not to go with another provider. In addition to Net10's terrible -- and often condescending and hard to understand (very bad english) -- customer service their website is awful. Purchasing minutes on their website is a roll of the dice. Don't do it.

Stay away from Net10.

Sep 17, 2018 10:28 am EDT
Net10 Wireless customer support contacts
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9700 N.W. 112th Ave, Miami, FL, 33178, US

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Hi, Bn34. This is Mia from NET10 Wireless. We apologize for the trouble and inconvenience that you may have encountered with our service. Should you need help with your phone again, please chat with us using this link http://bit.ly/2lHoBuo. For your convenience, our representatives are available Monday-Sunday from 8:00 AM to 11:45 PM EST. You may also text the key word HELP to 611611 to view our self-service menu with a list of help key words with valuable information. Thank you.
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15 comments
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Regrets a plenty
Copperas Cove, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Unfortunately, it seems net10 is a case where wer'e getting what we pay for...cheap phone + cheap monthly service = poor product & the worst customer service you'll ever encounter. I would give them the worst customer service award for rude techs, waiting time, unsolved repeative issues and a crap product. I have the LG900 G and suddenly 3 messages means your mailbox is full so they must have cut down our mailbox space also. Do yourself a favor: spend a few extra bucks for reliable service and for god's sake research the company on the internet before you fall into a Net10 nightmare like the rest of us did. Buying cheap will get you unreliability from a company that obviously could care less about serving customers once they have the money.

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Ellva
South Beach, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I activate my phone and added airtime. Within seconds I received a message on my phone from Net10 which said, "Welcome Back!" The home screen on my phone said I had 750 minutes with 30 days of service. However, when I tried to make a phone call I received a voice message that said, "This phone is not activated..." I turned off the phone three times, and took out the sim card and replaced it again; nothing fixed the problem.

Finally, I called Net10 with a friend of mine's cell phone. I had to walk up the hill to get reception with his phone, which is obviously not Net10's problem, but just to give you an idea of the building frustration, I need to paint a clear picture. I stood there on the side of the road (I live in the country) and waited for over 10 minutes to speak to a customer service representative. I spoke with the representative for an additional 22 minutes, and he couldn't figure out the problem. He asked if he could have someone get back to me within the next couple hours. I explained to him that I was standing on the side of the road with a friend's phone, and that I could not wait 2 hours for a response. He said he would put me through to someone who can help. He puts me on hold for an addition 4 minutes, and then puts me through to the SAME department, just a different customer service representative.

This new customer service representative gets on and begins the same rap all over again;
I said to myself, under my breath, "Aw, you gotta be f@#cking kidding me..."
The woman says, "Ma'am, this is your first warning."
I said, "Excuse me?"
She says, "You can't cuss on the phone."
I said, "I'm sorry, Lady, but you don't know the crap I've been through already."
She says, "This is your second warning."
And then she hung up on me. Yes, she hung up on me. Because I said, "crap".

This is MY money I'm paying for services I'm not receiving, and when I try to get help, I get hung up on. This is ABSOLUTELY unacceptable to me. I've never had an experience like this before, and I don't plan on having it again. I'm done with Net10. It seems like every other month I'm on the phone with technical support for one reason or another, and now I get to deal with unprofessional customer service representatives? It's like adding insult to injury.

To finish the story, I went to call Net10 back, and was told by the automated man that my waiting time would be 19 to 30 minutes. My friend was in the process of leaving, in fact, he was waiting for me to be done with his phone so he COULD leave. He couldn't wait for an additional half hour, so he left. I get online, go to Net10, try to contact them, and I get an Error message when I try to send the message. I went to the Net10 forum, tried to make an account, and Net10 never sent a confirmation email so I can access my Net10 forum account. I try to log in hoping it will give me the option to resend the confirmation; it doesn't. It says to call a 1-888 number and talk to an administrator. I'll honestly be really surprised if all of this goes through. It seems Net10 has blocked every resource for filing complaints.

The only thing I can think of to do at this point is call my bank and have them cancel the payment I made to Net10 for services I'm not receiving and apparently never will.

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indndreamctcher
Goldsboro, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT

A conversation with the person who runs Net10 Facebook Page:

If you are looking at lowering your cell phone bill and are thinking about a pre-paid service take my advice and stay as far away from Net10 as possible. They are the WORST company I have EVER dealt with. We'll be switch to AT&T Prepaid unlimited talk, text and web for $50 next month. It took a week for these incompetent ###s to tell us exactly what we needed to get the service started and an hour yesterday to port and activate 2 cell phones and today Net10 called me AFTER everything is working and telling me I need to give them all the info AGAIN b/c my ALREADY PAID FOR service could be disconnected! WORST COMPANY EVER!
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Net David Hi Marie. So we can resolve your issue promptly, please click on the link to submit a support ticket. http://www.facebook.com/NET10Wireless/app_124192170958476. If you are unable to submit a support ticket using this link, please click on the Support t...See More
33 minutes ago · Like
Marie Ambrosio I don't need to create a ticket...according to your company they created one with NO EXPLANATION and claimed my PREPAID service could be interrupted. So, perhaps I should contact the Better Business Bureau and the FCC instead.
15 minutes ago · Edited · Like
Cory Simpson You worked in cellular customer service and still needed somebody else to tell you what you needed to activate service? This isn't exactly a hand holding company. If you don't have an inkling of how the system operates then you are in big trouble here.
11 minutes ago via mobile · Like
Marie Ambrosio And, THAT attitude is EXACTLY what I'm reporting. Thank you for creating a record of it online for the world to see.
10 minutes ago · Like
Cory Simpson The BBB has this company listed with an A + rating. They don't really cave in to empty fcc threats either.
9 minutes ago via mobile · Like
Marie Ambrosio THANK YOU!
9 minutes ago · Like

Cory Simpson Reporting? I'm offering good advice that if a person is in constant need of customer service that they should probably look elsewhere because they don't provide all that for such a low price.
7 minutes ago via mobile · Like
Marie Ambrosio http://www.consumeraffairs.com/cell_phones/net_10.html
207 Complaints and Reviews about Net10
www.consumeraffairs.com
No Refund Policy Despite Flaw on Product Promise - This complaint has reached al...See More
7 minutes ago · Like · Remove Preview
Cory Simpson A link to a nag and bash page doesn't mean anything to me. I can post a million links to good and bad reviews.

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baycitybrat
Bay City, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I paid $14.95 for the overnite FedEx shipping only to be disappointed when here it is 3 days later and I stii have no phone. I am already out my money with this company and all I'm being told is "We're waiting on FedEx to pick up the package"... Wow..wish they would've put that lie on the website from the beginning before I paid for the expedited shipping !

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joemyers
, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

my phone broke and i wanted to switch because of past crappy service, mainly being put on hold b4 for 30 minutes and over 50 min so far. i am writing this while on hold now, last time i called i had to have the "service provider" repeat things over and over just could not understand, and in the end there was no service provided. i just want my phone # released so i can get a different provider and i could not remember my pin # and again phone broken so i can not get serial # and after trying my to figure my pin # out while on hold with customer service and calling from my home phone, i evidently got it wrong to many times and now when i call my cell phone # it just disconnects me. now at an hour on hold still waiting... oh got some one. huleo o.k. it was actually 59 min and all the info i needed was imei# on the back of phone. glade i had to wait almost a hour to learn this. my new phone service i just tried to switch to 1 min ago was trac phone and guess what i got a message saying service would be approx 30 min. there used to be costumer service. now companies just take all they can get and give as little as they have to.

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Faith49
Dawsonville, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Net10 needs to changed their $50.00 unlimited web, texts, mms, talk into 90 days.because there is no way people can waste all 50, 000 minutes in 30 days.Not fair to loose all that unused minutes after spending 50 bucks for nothing.Some of us needed this phone for doctors and emergency.I have no problem with Net10 and get good services where ever I am at.But the service days is what's bad because you will loose your minutes and your number.So if they wanna keep me as their customer? then find a way for me to keep all my minutes and my number and chane it to 90 days.

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ireneee
evansville, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT

I ran out of net10 minutes.and i didn't know it was low enough to run out of minutes.I've been a customer of net10 for 8 years with the same phone number.so i went to the net10 website to add minutes.i wanted to malso get the double minutes for life and it wouldn't let me.i have never got a discount, a coupon, or apromotional anything.i don't think that is fair at all to me. i paid so we could have our net10 phone, but that is'nt fair at all.i sure hope that you can fix this.i was gonig to buy another phone today, but bafter that happened i didn't.if you give me the double minutes for life i'll buy that other phone.we also nhave 4 more net10 that we use.I was in customer service for 30years, and you have to treat your customers satisfied because that's how you keep them.Sincerly, frances carter

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J Union
, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT

My credit card was hijacked from a net10 ringtone site. In order to continue service on my phone (30 day unlimited); I called customer service to change cc #'s ( my original cc was cancelled due to unathorized use and new card is being mailed). I have made 7 calls over two days, speaking with people I can barely understand due to background noise and poor English ability, and have spent over two hours on the phone and the other phone was still cut off! I have spoken to supervisors and their supervisors and they cannot tell me what the problem was/is and that phone should be working... but it Ain't. My online account info says it's paid and the number is pending - a number I've owned for years. Poorest sevice I've seen in years and I'm 64 yrs old! Reminds me of Congress!

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John Niemela
, US
Sep 03, 2015 1:02 pm EDT

I have an Android phone I bought upstate New York, a Year later, I want to activate my phone, I get a pin card $50 and I call up their customer service, I m told the Sim card is old, How can this be, I never used it before, so I tell the customer service person my Pin card number, he says He will enter the pin card towards the phone, and all there is to do is wait for the sim card, call up and .it s automatically entered, No such luck, I throw out the pin card, but kept all the the numbers, so upon receiving the new sim card, I call up, and it s what are those numbers ? this is an unauthorized number, then after that I receive 2 more sim cards for the same phone, have received e mails from an Elizabeth and Karina, after a month they finally activated my phone, but it appears I am out $50

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Joseparra
Montebello, US
Mar 27, 2013 9:56 pm EDT

I purchased a $50 unlimited plan and in 5 days my data got suspended! Not truly unlimited after all, never received any warning. Worst thing about it there is no way of reactivating my data! I should of stuck to boost mobile never had that problem with them.

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baycitybrat
Bay City, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I actually was told by the Net10 Customer Service Representative on Sunday and 2 seperate Supervisors on 2 seperate calls that I was guaranteed FedEx overnite Delivery ! Thanks for your input though...

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Frosal
Calgary, CA
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT

My situation is worse. I purchased a NET10 phone from Target and the sales rep as well as the packaging clearly stated that this was a Double Air Minutes for Life phone. Yesterday I called Net10 to add minutes (first time) and they told me that I was wrong. I was told that Net10 doesn't have DAML. After talking to a supervisor, she informed me that NET10 did indeed have some phones with DAML. After being put on hold for 1/2 hour, she came back to me and said my phone was not one of the DAML phones. I asked why the packaging stated that it was and was told I need to send the packaging to them to get the DAML knowing that I didn't keep the packaging. What a SCAM!

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jcqtn
Southport, US
Jul 18, 2016 1:53 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

The last I knew, double minutes for life is a bonus offered with Tracfone, not Net10. My sister was with them for years, up until just a few months ago. Tracfone (in some cases) charges more than 10¢/minute, even with the double mins., so it probably evens out. Did you mean to post your review to Tracfone?

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Spookish
NY, US
Sep 28, 2009 5:11 pm EDT

Have a look at the net10 international rates. 15cents perminute to 100 countries and there is the international neighbor deal for low rates for family calling from Canada or Mexico.
Great!

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Tony44
Brooklyn, US
Sep 17, 2009 5:25 pm EDT

I have to disagree with some of that. It does sound like the experience was unlucky, however, Net10 like any company has certain policies. It is a known fact that you buy a phone and 300 minutes for $30. This runs for the period of 60 days where you need to recharge to keep the phone activated. This is only fair as Net10 is providing a service and do need to cover their costs. Perhaps the misunderstanding is with the stolen phone. while it is horrible to have thing stolen, the price of a new phone is the same as your next air time refill, for that exact reason you can see it doesn't make sense to transfer minutes when you get 300 minutes for $30.
The sim cards are phone specific but that is note already from your phone ungrade.
In general my experience with the Net10 customer service has been good, and perhaps this will help to enlighten that Net10 is offering a great service at low prices with many bonuses.