Purchasing a Plan
While misleading advertising and misrepresentation can occur throughout the life of your cell phone plan, you are most at risk at the point of sale. Sales tactics and sales incentives vary depending on where you purchase your phone.
Vendors and Kiosks. Vendors, kiosks, and “authorized dealers” can be a hotbed for false claims and promises. The cell phone stands at malls fall under this category. An authorized dealer means only that they are authorized to sell a company’s product, not that they are experts or spokesmen for that company. Most employees at kiosks are paid on commission and have a high incentive to make a sale. Too often, these employees are willing to say and do anything it takes to sell a phone and service plan. This includes misrepresenting: the length of the contract, the total cost of the plan, the quality of the phone, the quality of service coverage, and the penalties for termination amongst others. We recommend staying away from these dealers. If it’s the only way for you to purchase your cell phone, then take our Mobile Fact Checker with you for tips on dealing with kiosks and vendors.
Online Vendors. Some online vendors are like Internet versions of mall kiosks. They regularly promise more than they deliver. UCAN sees many complaints for Wirefly.com, a large online vendor. Wirefly offers some great deals on cell phones, but the advertised deals are not always honored, especially when it comes to rebates. One online vendor that we recommend is Amazon.com. If possible, try to buy from online retailers you know and trust. Avoid websites you have never heard of offering deals that look too good to be true, because they usually are.
Company Stores. Company stores, such as Verizon stores or Cingular stores, are more reliable than vendors or authorized dealers. Employees generally have more training with the companies’ policies and equipment and are under more supervision. This, however, does not ensure you will be safe from misrepresentation. Most company store employees have incentives to make sales. They may not promise the world like vendors, but they will sometimes leave out pertinent information and hidden fees. To ensure you know all the right questions to ask, please see our Mobile Phone Buyer's Guide.
Company Websites. Company websites can be a good place to find deals on cell phone plans. The promotions are more reliable than those offered by mall kiosks and online vendors because you are dealing with the actual company. With that being said, there is still a good deal of fine print to every offer. The benefit to dealing with fine print on the Internet is that you can usually follow a link that allows you to view the restrictions and limitations without having to search through a stack of documents. You can learn more about reading the fine print at our Fine Print page.
