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How are People Getting AT&T to waive the early upgrade fee?

Why should they waive the upgrade fee? You agreed to the terms of your contract when you signed up, got your last subsidized phone, etc.
 
As far as I know, AT&T only offer to waive your upgrade fee "once", I am pretty sure they mark it in their system under your account.

Is there anyone that has their upgrade fee waived more than once under the same account/same line? If yes, please do share how.
 
I haven't heard that they are on any large scale. Actually I only remember one case where somebody had an ETF that would've made it less expensive to cancel and move elsewhere.
 
OneMike said:
I haven't heard that they are on any large scale. Actually I only remember one case where somebody had an ETF that would've made it less expensive to cancel and move elsewhere.
Click to expand...

I wish AT&T would be smarter about this. It's $81 cheaper for someone who got a 5 on launch day to cancel, pay the ETF and move to another carrier. (Assuming no activation fee on another carrier).
 
ucfgrad93 said:
Why should they waive the upgrade fee? You agreed to the terms of your contract when you signed up, got your last subsidized phone, etc.
Click to expand...

Please indicate where in the current service agreement AT&T makes an express provision for an "upgrade fee," because I've looked and have yet to find it.


AT&T's past rationale for this fee is that it costs them money to pay sales representatives to "educate" customers on what phone suits their needs, as well as sit there and punch in numbers on their point-of-sale terminals to activate the phone and put you on the "correct" plan. There's just two little flaws with this rationale:

1. Assuming that all wireless sales, including upgrades, require a salesperson to complete the transaction, this cost should be built into the rate plan rather than treated as an additional cost burden, since AT&T is basically saying that if there were no sales reps, they couldn't be in business and can't sell you anything. Do computer stores, appliance stores, electronics stores, grocery stores and other retail establishments assess a fee to interact with their salespeople to do conduct necessary transactions that can't otherwise be done? No, they don't.

(An exception is when sometimes, an installer must come to your home to do an installation, or install equipment in a car. But AT&T wireless salespeople don't make house calls, nor do they install equipment in cars.)

Not to mention, most iPhone buyers aren't "educated" at all by AT&T sales staff. they almost always come in knowing exactly what they want, and sometimes even have to resist a sales pitch by a stubborn clerk who would rather sell you an Android device, even if that's not what you want.

2. The situation makes even LESS sense when you buy from an Apple Store, or from Apple's online website, or other third party like Best Buy or Walmart. AT&T then pays no sales staff to sell you a phone, or activate it. The process, from AT&T's standpoint, becomes entirely automated, with their account systems being notified electronically that you have a new phone and possibly a new SIM card.

Some of us prefer it this way. We don't have to deal with some reps who will profess to know more about your needs than you do, and when they finally do sell you what you want, they end up manhandling, dropping and damaging your brand new phone before you ever get to touch it (this actually happened to me once, and it took a whole day of wasted time to get resolved).

Yet, even if you go through a non-AT&T retail channel, AT&T pockets the "upgrade fee" for work they nor their staff never performed.

So while I appreciate their network and the efforts they've made to make it a good one - something I gladly pay them monthly for - I still have little sympathy for a company that made a $3.8 Billion profit last quarter, when they say that selling you something is a "burden" that they have to charge you extra for. Last time I got charged this fee, I made these points and got my fee waived. I intend to do it again this time around.
 
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scaredpoet said:
Please indicate where in the current service agreement AT&T makes an express provision for an "upgrade fee," because I've looked and have yet to find it.


AT&T's past rationale for this fee is that it costs them money to pay sales representatives to "educate" customers on what phone suits their needs, as well as sit there and punch in numbers on their point-of-sale terminals to activate the phone and put you on the "correct" plan. There's just two little flaws with this rationale:

1. Assuming that all wireless sales, including upgrades, require a salesperson to complete the transaction, this cost should be built into the rate plan rather than treated as an additional cost burden, since AT&T is basically saying that if there were no sales reps, they couldn't be in business and can't sell you anything. Do computer stores, appliance stores, electronics stores, grocery stores and other retail establishments assess a fee to interact with their salespeople to do conduct necessary transactions that can't otherwise be done? No, they don't.

(An exception is when sometimes, an installer must come to your home to do an installation, or install equipment in a car. But AT&T wireless salespeople don't make house calls, nor do they install equipment in cars.)

Not to mention, most iPhone buyers aren't "educated" at all by AT&T sales staff. they almost always come in knowing exactly what they want, and sometimes even have to resist a sales pitch by a stubborn clerk who would rather sell you an Android device, even if that's not what you want.

2. The situation makes even LESS sense when you buy from an Apple Store, or from Apple's online website, or other third party like Best Buy or Walmart. AT&T then pays no sales staff to sell you a phone, or activate it. The process, from AT&T's standpoint, becomes entirely automated, with their account systems being notified electronically that you have a new phone and possibly a new SIM card. Yet, AT&T pockets the "upgrade fee" for work they nor their staff never performed.

So I have little sympathy for a company that made a $3.8 Billion profit last quarter, when they say that selling you something is a "burden" that they have to charge you extra for. Last time I got charged this fee, I made these points and got my fee waived. I intend to do it again this time around.
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I think you've confused upgrade fee with activation fee.
 
Activation fees are B.S. but all of the rationale that you've laid out refers to the activation fee.
The upgrade fee is simply a "bribe" for them to give you an other discount on a new phone before the last phone has been fully subsidized.
 
iPhil said:
Change your AT&T plan to NEXT plan = No Activation / upgrade fee etc ..

Pay 12 months then trade-in current phone + difference of upgrade phone + local tax etc = yearly upgrade plan :eek:
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But you still pay more in the long run.
Normally, the price of the plan is supposed to subsidize the discounted cost of the phone.
With NEXT you're paying the full price of the phone but you're still paying the subsidy though the plan cost.
 
We have a family plan and my wife has agreed to do a cross upgrade with me. She'll get the two-year albatross around her neck and I'll get the iPhone 5s, subject to availability, with still a year left on my contract. I have to be in the store for this. Can't do a cross upgrade online.
 
Upgrade fee? You mean the few dollars they charge people when they get a new phone? I think it's like 36 bucks?

Um...

I never get charged it. My company has free upgrades. I just have to buy my phone.

For upgrade price, because I always have at least one line on my plan that is upgrade-eligible.

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CodeSpyder said:
We have a family plan and my wife has agreed to do a cross upgrade with me. She'll get the two-year albatross around her neck and I'll get the iPhone 5s, subject to availability, with still a year left on my contract. I have to be in the store for this. Can't do a cross upgrade online.
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Sure you can.

Upgrade her line, and when the phone comes in, call your carrier and have them switch it to your line.

This applies to AT&T (and probably T-Mobile)... I dunno about Verizon.
 
Gjwilly said:
Activation fees are B.S. but all of the rationale that you've laid out refers to the activation fee.
Click to expand...

No, that's been the rationale for upgrade fees laid out by AT&T as well.

From the above link:

"There are the costs we need to recover," said Mark Siegel, a spokesman for AT&T, in an interview. "There’s time and work involved in upgrading you to a brand-new device. Because those devices are increasingly more complex, the upgrade process is more complex."


The upgrade fee is simply a "bribe" for them to give you an other discount on a new phone before the last phone has been fully subsidized.
Click to expand...


Considering that AT&T has moved to require 24 months before people are upgrade-elligible, this argument is also not valid.
 

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iPhil said:
Change your AT&T plan to NEXT plan = No Activation / upgrade fee etc ..

Pay 12 months then trade-in current phone + difference of upgrade phone + local tax etc = yearly upgrade plan :eek:
Click to expand...

Plus the phone has to be in almost perfect condition. If not then they won't take it back. So add recommended (mandatory) insurance to that.
 
Is OP referring to the discount? Because he says early, I'm thinking it's the early discount vs full discount. He might be wanting a full discount.
 
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