'I owe $150 to cancel cell service that doesn't work'
Question: I signed a two-year contract with Sprint for my cell phone. A year and a half later, I moved to a new home a few miles away in the same city. I can't seem to get a signal inside my house, which is a problem since I don't have a landline. Sprint told me to upgrade the software on my phone, but that didn't help. So I switched to Verizon – and now get perfect service in my home. But am I stuck with Sprint's $150 cancellation fee? – Dan B. Lindeman III, Fort Thomas, Ky.
Answer: It's not impossible to get out of a cell-phone contract without paying an early-termination fee – it's just that historically, carriers have made it incredibly difficult. Ever since cell phones were invented, wireless providers have tried to lock in customers by wooing them into long-term contracts and levying fees as steep as $250 if they cancel before that contract is up.
Among the few viable excuses to get out of a contract penalty-free are death, active military duty and…relocation, if you can prove that your new area doesn't get adequate coverage. To make that case, call the carrier and have the rep look up the number of cell towers in your neighborhood; if the carrier determines it isn't enough, you may get a dispensation. You can also ask to have someone test the signal up to your driveway.
But carriers won't guarantee service inside your home. "There are too many factors out of our control," says Sprint spokesperson Roni Singleton. (For example, a construction material like granite can block a signal even with multiple towers nearby.) Singleton says Sprint has five towers in your area. Bummer – no free pass this way.
But these days even if you can't get out for free, you may at least be able to shave some money off that exit fee. In 2006, Verizon announced that it would prorate its penalty. AT&T followed, and late last year Sprint joined the pack. The company is still working out the details but plans to enact its policy later this year. (With AT&T, which clips $5 off $175 for every month served, your final charge would've been $75 since you stayed 15 of 24 months.)
We asked Sprint to make an early exception for you. Since the terms of the policy aren't defined yet, Singleton went one better and offered to waive the whole $150 instead. Good call.
Tip: Most carriers allow you to test-drive their service. Even if you sign a contract, you can cancel without penalty if you have a service problem within 30 days.
So far Money Helps has save readers $190,914.03.
Having a financial nightmare? E-mail Donna Rosato at money_helps@moneymail.com.
We have had service for several years, but for the last two weeks there has been none. We believe a storm or something else knocked out a tower, and it is our only phone service at ou home. Sprint has merely apologized and denied that there is an outage in that area (despite my repeated calls reporting the outage). They said they will charge us $200 per phone (four phones) if we cancel service. I'm going to have to try to pursue a breach of contract claim.
Our Sprint phones suddenly stopped working after serveral months of decent coverage. I worked with the Sprint technicians for several weeks, always being professional, but firm. The high level techs finally figured out that someone was interferring with the sprint frequencies. A call to the FCC from Sprint resolved the problem in just a few days. The BLM was the interferring party.
When you talk to the representative, make sure you tell them you kept trying to call but you haven't been able to get service 
I had this problem with Sprint. I spent hours on the phone to Sprint reps that basically said they determined there was no problem. I asked who I could appeal their decision, they responded no one!
I then reported the problem to the California Utilities Commission (CUP) and basically complained that Sprint was in breach of contract because they could no longer uphold their end of the contract … to provide service. My problem was compounded because I changed jobs (still in same City) and my phone no longer worked at home or at work. I think that the complaint neds to be expanded to the lack of 911 service from primary place of residence.
Sprint backed down and canceled the contract at no cost to me.
Its 2008, I'm 30 years old and still don't have a "leash" or "electronic anchor". Ok, I don't have the slaves call a "cell phone". Viva la freedom!
Exact same thing happened to me. I had Sprint but they only seem to cover along the interstates and when I moved to a new apt and the service was awful at best. I switched to Verizon and it is 1000 times better especially here in the southern rural areas. It seems to be the norm here in the south as Alltel and Verizon(uses Alltel towers) offer the best service.
Sprint’s customer service is absolutely horrible. I tried several times to return a data modem to Sprint within the first 30 days because I was not able to get the 3G speeds that were advertised in my area. Long story short, it took a complaint to the better business burrow to get a refund.
If you don’t have a national reporter to help persuade Sprint to do the right thing, the BBB sure gets their attention.
Sprint overcharged my credit card 4 months in a row. DOUBLE what I actually owed. I had to contact a consumer reporter before they would fix this.
I will NEVER sign a contract with any cell phone provider again.
Check out the TOS. Find out how FEW rights you have when dealing with these corporate crooks.
i had the same problem with sprint. if you are military you just have to tell them you will send your orders and you will turn my phone off now. and just keep telling them that. but i would do the same thing if i was a civilian just without the orders and make them look up your area code and tell them you dont get service and just argue with them. it worked for me