GREENSBORO, N.C. — Kelly and Kim Templeton were considering upgrading their cell phones. There was nothing wrong with the old phones, but they were a bit old and outdated.
“We saw an ad on tv saying trade in any phone new or existing customers,” Kelly Templeton said.
The next day the two ladies drove down to the store to take advantage of the promotional offer. The sales representative assisted them, and they purchased two new cell phones. The promotion was $1,000 off each new phone.
“It was a great deal, we were excited,” Kelly said.
The phones arrived in the mail a couple of weeks later, but they were the wrong phones. She went to the store and was told to send them back and the company would send out the proper phones. It only took about a week until the new phones arrived.
“We like them, a lot,” Kelly said.
A short time later the first cell phone bill arrived in the mail and Kelly realized they were being charged the full amount for the phones and there was no promotional credit or discount as promised.
“When you do a promotion like this it takes two to three billing cycles to work out,” Kelly said. “The problem is never worked out.”
The cell phone carrier continued to charge the total amount even after she went to the store and called the main number.
“I wasn’t giving up,” Kelly said.
By now it had been almost nine months and every month a bill would come charging them for the full amount with no promotional discount. Finally, she decided to reach out to News 2 for help.
“I wanted my $1,000 credit (on both phones) and wasn’t getting anywhere,” Kelly said.
News 2 contacted the cell phone provider and explained the situation. A representative promised someone from the corporate office would investigate.
It was then WFMY News 2 spoke with someone in the “President’s office” who said it would be handled immediately. The issue was dealt with that day and showed up on the bill the next day.
“I probably wish I didn’t wait so long because you did what I couldn’t do in nine months in a couple of days,” Kelly said.
The phones work great and maybe even seem to work better after getting the $2,000 in credit.