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Clear up on grandfathered accounts

james391

james391

Well-Known Member
I was really worried that I would not be able to keep my 25/mo plan because on VM's FAQ on their website it says the that elite will change plan to 35/mo.
I emailed Vm and this is what they said
"Hello James,



If you buy the Elite and put it on your account before the 27th of May you will stay on the $25 plan.



Regards

Stacey Y.

Social Media Team"
 
clear as mud, if you read this fine print, the elite doesn't count and after the 27th if they wish to enforce a price hick, you are SOL as its not on the list of phones in bold.

"Starting May 27, 2012, if you are using the $25, $40, or $60 Beyond Talk plan and you upgrade to a Beyond Talk Smartphone launched after May 1, 2012*, you will need to switch to the $35, $45, or $55 Beyond Talk plan. When you switch plans, you will need to pay for your new plan and you will lose any minutes, messages, and money in your balance. This will also change your monthly payment date. So if you are considering upgrading to a new smartphone, we recommend that you wait until right before your next monthly payment date to activate.

*The following smartphones launched before May 1, 2012 and are therefore not subject to the new device upgrade rules at this time: VentureTM, LG
 
Betting money, Virgin is playing games with people, hoping as many as possiable quicky jump to the elite, to find out after the 27th that your gonna get milked another $10 a month.

As your email is only correct till the new TOS goes into effect the 27th, and the elite is not on the list of phones that won't be forced to upgrade.
 
350X said:
Betting money, Virgin is playing games with people, hoping as many as possiable quicky jump to the elite, to find out after the 27th that your gonna get milked another $10 a month.

As your email is only correct till the new TOS goes into effect the 27th, and the elite is not on the list of phones that won't be forced to upgrade.
Click to expand...

It more offers them a last chance at a decent phone. This is more for the grandfathered in customer stumbling upon it while waiting for the evo. They definitely will enforce the mandatory switch over soon but then theyd see a massive drop solution. Im guessing this phone has some long term flaw that will make people switch again. Just like they all do
 
350X said:
clear as mud, if you read this fine print, the elite doesn't count and after the 27th if they wish to enforce a price hick, you are SOL as its not on the list of phones in bold.

"Starting May 27, 2012, if you are using the $25, $40, or $60 Beyond Talk plan and you upgrade to a Beyond Talk Smartphone launched after May 1, 2012*, you will need to switch to the $35, $45, or $55 Beyond Talk plan. When you switch plans, you will need to pay for your new plan and you will lose any minutes, messages, and money in your balance. This will also change your monthly payment date. So if you are considering upgrading to a new smartphone, we recommend that you wait until right before your next monthly payment date to activate.

*The following smartphones launched before May 1, 2012 and are therefore not subject to the new device upgrade rules at this time: VentureTM, LG
Click to expand...
 
"*The following smartphones launched before May 1, 2012 and are therefore not subject to the new device upgrade rules at this time: VentureTM, LG
 
@350x I respectfully disagree.

Unless they are really and absolutely STUPID I believe VM is going to keep grandfathered accounts on eiltes activated for as long as they deem profitable, which imo is at least a year. Also from the way you phrase your disdain against VM, if you DID get screwed over in the past, my condolences. I've had that treatment from Dell and their mobile phones and I don't trust them at all.

That said why I don't believe they'll screw everyone over is therefore not based off of graciousness or generosity but simply because it's not profitable. if you want to judge based on profit margin I can guarantee you that VM will make MUCH more off of people who are happily keeping their grandfathered accounts perma-activated rather than FORCING these people who called in, preordered and solicited the attention of an official spokesperson, to join a $35 plan they can LET GO WHENEVER THEY WANT.

So you basically have two types of customers: one who VOLUNTEERS to commit $300 annually to virgin mobile and the other who who pays without contract $35 a month. They already crunched the numbers and probably realize that those who don't always stay active monthly will have around 4-5 months or so where they will not use the phone. Plus minus profits and usage this should amount to around the same for those on a grandfathered account, especially since people travel and may not use this phone 24-7.

I DO believe that the grandfathered accounts will SOMEDAY go away, but that someday is not May 27th nor the month after. To force a customer who's committed HAPPILY in what is all intents and purposes an annual contract into a more expensive NO COMMITMENT plan they can just drop like a bad habit is bad business practice no matter how you spin it. And it gives them much more reason to say "screw VM and their phone, tethering, etc. etc. limitations. I'm going with someone else".

Value is VM's strong suit and if they just let it go, then they're basically letting go a big chunk of the market sector. Which again is DUMB.
 
I asked Customer Care if I have an Elite on a $25/month plan and am required to replace it after the 27th of May for another Elite via warranty if I'd keep the same plan and this was the reply.

VMUSA Customer Care said:
Hello Erin,

Thanks for contacting Virgin Mobile Customer Care.

Due to an unusual high volume of emails recently, it has taken us longer
than expected to respond to your email. We are very sorry for the delay
in responding and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.

As long as you do the phone swap before May 27th, you will be able to
keep the same plan, even if a replacement order is processed after the
swap.

Hope this helps, if you need additional assistance, feel free to let us
know how we can assist further or contact us at 1-888-322-1122 (or *VM
from your handset). You can reach us 4am - 9pm PST 7 days a week. As a
reminder, please include your Virgin Mobile phone number and PIN on all
replies.

Thanks,

Dionisio P.
Virgin Mobile At Your Service
Prepaid Unlimited Cell Phone Plans | Android | Smartphone | Broadband | Virgin Mobile
Click to expand...
 
Thank you for sharing that email with us. Even tho I called VM on this concern I love the feedback we are getting. And good to know if my Elite breaks I can keep my plan with no problems.

MacFett said:
I asked Customer Care if I have an Elite on a $25/month plan and am required to replace it after the 27th of May for another Elite via warranty if I'd keep the same plan and this was the reply.
Click to expand...
 
axelxbc said:
Thank you for sharing that email with us. Even tho I called VM on this concern I love the feedback we are getting. And good to know if my Elite breaks I can keep my plan with no problems.
Click to expand...

I don't think this is correct. From everything I have read if the phone breaks after 5/27 and you need it replaced you will have to switch to the $35 plan even if the phone is replaced with the same phone. That being said as long as you keep the same phone you bought before 5/27- you can keep the $25 plan. VM knows eventually everyone will have to switch to the new $35 plan as they will want a newer/hotter phone. As stated above they can afford to leave the few on these $25 plans until this happens.
 
chickdr said:
I don't think this is correct. From everything I have read if the phone breaks after 5/27 and you need it replaced you will have to switch to the $35 plan even if the phone is replaced with the same phone. That being said as long as you keep the same phone you bought before 5/27- you can keep the $25 plan. VM knows eventually everyone will have to switch to the new $35 plan as they will want a newer/hotter phone. As stated above they can afford to leave the few on these $25 plans until this happens.
Click to expand...

Damn I hope this isn't the case, but I did switch to the Elite already expecting this.
 
axelxbc said:
Damn I hope this isn't the case, but I did switch to the Elite already expecting this.
Click to expand...

It seems it is debatable as the older smartphones are still on a list which says they won't be affected so possibly if the Elite broke you could go to the Wildfire S or Optimus V and still keep the $25 plan(for now anyway). I did like you did and figure the OE should last a year or more. I am selling my Wildfire S tomorrow(maybe I should be keeping it just in case?)
 
straykat said:
So has anyone with a Optimus Elite been billed after the 27th? Are we grandfathered or not?
Click to expand...

I have been having loopback problems on my Elite on 3g. I finally got
escalated to higher tech support at corporate. They tried to reset my
phone and kept getting an error. Now they are telling me the error
message states that the Elite is not compatible with the $25 plan.

The only way to fix it is to switch to the new plan and they would give
me a $35 credit for one month for free service, however, my next bill
would be at the new rate of $35.

I've asked them to talk to a higher up since all the due diligence I put into
this issue before buying the phone. They said call back tomorrow for an
update.

I told them I bought the phone at Wallmart and they have a 14 day
return policy on prepaid phones so would VM refund the money since
I was still within 30 days. They told me NO since I did not buy it from
them.

I'm glad I saved my Optimus V. Looks like it's the only way to keep
my $25 plan. I'll know for sure tomorrow.

I had a feeling that VM might pull this. I even explained that their
Public Relations stated that the Elite would be grandfathered in if
switched before the 27th. And that it was stated on the facebook wall.
That didn't have any effect since the new policy is in effect in the
database at VM and so far, no one will override the issue.

Heads up!
 
I contacted customer support both via email and over the phone. Both representatives told me that if I switched before the 27th, I would be able to keep my $25 plan. I switched and my next bill date is still listed as $25. If you switch now, the website says it will force you to upgrade immediately. So I think anyone who switched before and wasn't forced to upgrade immediately should be fine.
 
Robertdol said:
I have been having loopback problems on my Elite on 3g. I finally got
escalated to higher tech support at corporate. They tried to reset my
phone and kept getting an error. Now they are telling me the error
message states that the Elite is not compatible with the $25 plan.

The only way to fix it is to switch to the new plan and they would give
me a $35 credit for one month for free service, however, my next bill
would be at the new rate of $35.

I've asked them to talk to a higher up since all the due diligence I put into
this issue before buying the phone. They said call back tomorrow for an
update.

I told them I bought the phone at Wallmart and they have a 14 day
return policy on prepaid phones so would VM refund the money since
I was still within 30 days. They told me NO since I did not buy it from
them.

I'm glad I saved my Optimus V. Looks like it's the only way to keep
my $25 plan. I'll know for sure tomorrow.

I had a feeling that VM might pull this. I even explained that their
Public Relations stated that the Elite would be grandfathered in if
switched before the 27th. And that it was stated on the facebook wall.
That didn't have any effect since the new policy is in effect in the
database at VM and so far, no one will override the issue.

Heads up!
Click to expand...
Im thinking its your phone. Mine is working perfectly(3g, calling, etc) and im on the 25/mo plan
 
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