<p>As you wish Lawfer.</p>
<p>1. Its 14 days for any return through any major carrier. After the 14th day and you return a phone you are charged the full Early Termination Fee. Normally $350.</p>
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<p>2. All contracts are prorated for the amount of time the phone was used. If you return a phone on day 15, you are only charged the 15 days you used the phone.</p>
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<p>3. There is never a restock fee of $35.00. That is the activation fee that all carriers charge. This can sometimes be waived if you have been with a carrier for more then 5yrs.</p>
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<p>4. With some VERY rare exceptions most customers have no idea what phone they want. They just want a "free" phone. We have to spend a lot of time explaining the benifits of the different handsets to the customer till they decide which they want.</p>
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<p>5. As I pointed out in my first post, more often then not after returning a device, and let preface this again, the major carriers COMPUTERIZED system dings you for the full ETF.</p>
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<p>Does that help? Does that clear it up for you?</p>
Ok:
1. Point for AT&T I guess. I did a little digging, and it seems AT&T is the only carrier that offers 30 days for customers to return their device. Sprint offers 14 days only; Verizon 14 days; and T-Mobile 20 days (but 30 in California). Like I said, I based my information almost entirely on AT&T, as not only I got this info from someone who works for them, but I also assumed that, out of all carriers, they would be the ones to offer the shadiest deal. It seems I set the bar too low for AT&T, and I've been nicely surprised.
2. I am sorry, but I think you didn't really read what I wrote. Cancelling service is NOT the same as returning or exchanging your device. You can return your device, and as long as the new device stays within the same device tier (e.g. smartphone), your plan and features will NOT change. In other words, if you return an iPhone 4S for a 3GS, since to the system sees both as smartphones, you will not have to make any feature changes (such as changing texting or data plans); all that will need to be done is pay/receive the difference (including the restock fee), and change the IMEI that shows up on your account, which is what you go to a retail store for. The system will not tell the difference.
Changing the type of device on your account in no way negatively impacts your plan feature-set, so long that new device is within the same tier (again: if you exchange an smartphone for another smartphone or if you exchange a basic phone for a basic phone). The prorated charges you suggest will only happen if you exchange your smartphone for a basic phone--or vice-versa--in which case you'll then have to change the features on your plan (you will no longer require a data plan if you switch to a basic phone, for instance).
As for prorated charges, to make it even easier for you:
Let's say you choose an "unlimited" $79.99 plan. This, divided by 31 days, amounts to about $2.58 a day. The carrier's bill cycle starts the 1st of May, but you got into a contract on May 20. That's 19 days after the bill cycle started and only 11 days before it ends. The way prorated charges work is that the billing system automatically bills you those 11 days left of its cycle on top of your actual bill cycle. Your bill cycle would be, of course, every 20th of every month. But you will have prorated charges from the previous bill cycle, which we get by multiplying 2.58 x 11 = 28.38.
When you get your bill next month, you are going to be charged your regular $79.99 for the month, PLUS the $28.38 of prorated charges for the last 11 days of the system's bill cycle. This, needless to say, is not counting any additional fees, such as activation fee or upgrade fee (which are usually $35+) as that's not relevant. The point is, prorated charges can be avoided if choosing service activation carefully, and consulting with the store rep as to when it is the best time to activate service. Obviously, in this (and virtually every) scenario, the person would not have waited 11 days for the bill cycle to start so they could save $28; most people need their phones now!
Even then, however, that would still not save you from carrier-specific fees, taxes and other rarities.
3. Every major carrier has a restocking fee. I'm actually appalled you say there's not such a thing. I truly hope you work for MetroPCS or Boost Mobile or something (where rules can be different), because if you work for any of these major carriers, then someone clearly wasted their money on "training" you:
Sprint has a restocking fee of $35. Verizon is
the same. AT&T is
the same. While T-Mobile's is
even higher: $50.
4. I don't know who you are referring to, but in the context in which we were talking, we were clearly referring to those who went to a retail stores specifically looking for the iPhone 4S. Either way, what you say still doesn't mean anything, as what I said holds true anyway: whether you go to a store knowing you want to get the 4S "with Siri", or have no clue what kind of phone you want, you should most definitely walk out of the store with a device that fits your needs. Period. Whether it's free or not is irrelevant.
5. And for the love of god, returning a DEVICE is NOT the same as CANCELLING your service. Early Termination Fee, only applies to when you want to, wait for it... terminate your contract early. That is it. As long as you are within each carrier's respective grace period, you will not be charged more than the restocking fee to exchange/return the device.
