T-Mobile

The day I decided to upgrade my phone, I called the store first to confirm if they had the iPhone 16 Pro Max in stock. They said yes, but told me the upgrade had to be done through the app, as they were not processing upgrades in-store (calls are recorded and monitored, so this information can be verified). I said that was fine since I had access to the app, and I headed to the store to complete the process. Once there, a very kind employee helped me complete the upgrade using the app. I also offered my old phone for a trade-in, and I was offered $450, spread over 24 months—the same duration as the financing period for the new phone. I accepted, happy that my monthly payment would go down from $50 to $31.25. So far, so good. The next day, I went to make my usual monthly payment and noticed that the $450 credit had been applied toward the account balance instead of my specific device. I thought it was a mistake, so I went back to the store. The employees there seemed surprised and unsure how this happened. They advised me to call back later and speak with the store manager, OMAR, who would be in around noon. Before going to the store, I had already called customer service and was told that, since I physically went to the store, the upgrade should have been processed through the store’s system, not the app on my personal device. I was informed that employees may have instructed me to use the app because it wasn’t a new line(avoiding upgrades/transactions) but still, I was misinformed from the beginning. When I finally spoke to OMAR, I was shocked by his lack of empathy and professionalism. He refused to acknowledge that this was a mistake made by one of his employees (which I don’t entirely blame the employee for—it’s the manager’s job to make sure their team is trained on updated procedures). OMAR’s only response was that the $450 credit had already been applied to the account and that nothing could be done. When I explained that this meant I would now have to pay the original $50 monthly instead of the $31.25 I was promised, he responded: “Like I said, sweetheart, I don’t control how the credit is applied.” At one point, a phone representative offered me what they called a “remorse buyout” (please excuse me if I’m not using the exact term), which would allow me to return the device and restart the process properly through the store, with the trade-in handled the right way. I found this to be a great solution. The only requirement was that the original trade-in device had to be physically present at the store to begin the process again. However, when I called back the next day to move forward, OMAR once again told me no—that nothing could be done. He insisted that the order had already been completed and that once a trade-in is processed, it cannot be undone or reapplied. In other words, OMAR claims there is no solution, and I just have to settle for the $450 being spread across the account balance instead of applied to my device’s monthly payments. What’s worse, multiple customer service reps (including supervisors) have told me the exact opposite: that the information OMAR gave me is simply not true. I’ve spent hours on the phone with customer service—each call lasting over an hour—explaining my situation again and again. Several representatives have apologized on behalf of the store, acknowledging the poor handling and lack of professionalism on the part of the store manager, OMAR. A formal complaint has even been filed against the store and the manager. While I’m not hopeful the company will take serious action, I do hope this experience helps prevent other customers—especially older individuals who may not know how to defend themselves—from being misled the way I was. To be clear, I do not blame the store employees. The issue here is poor leadership. Mistakes happen—it’s human—but refusing to acknowledge them or even offer a sincere apology shows a lack of professionalism and customer care that should never be acceptable in a managerial position.