Cell Phone Stolen.. Screwed?

[Coldkilla]

Alright so I'm using a Family Plan phone, or was anyway. I disabled my account, however since I'm under contract the phone cannot be canceled. They suggested I go to the nearest Retail store, buy a new phone and smart card (or w/e it's called).

So I took the long 45 minute drive to the nearest store that carries cell phones (Best Buy). I walk in, look at the Cingular Phones, and say "aha! There's one I like, $49.99 -- perfect" - Ask the guy about this phone and tell him my situation. He says.. "sorry sir but this isn't going to cost 49.99 for you. It's going to cost $399.99.. " at this point im like WTF?!?! My phone gets stolen and now I have to fork over 400 dollars to get a new one?

I was wondering if there was a way around this. Buying online? Idk... I don't want to spend this INSANE amount of money to get another cell phone... any ideas?

 

[isekii]

what service ?

if gsm just pick up a gsm phone on ebay or some online store

 

[daveymark]

ebay all the way, unless you want to sign another contract

 

[xanis]

I believe it's in your service contract that if your phone is damaged, lost or stolen, and you don't have a warranty on it, you either have to extend your contract or pay full MSRP. It happened to me, and it really blows. I suggest just buying an unlocked GSM phone off of eBay or something.

 

[Heisenberg]

Buy an unlocked phone online somewhere.

 

[HyTekJosh]

Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

 

[mb]

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

 

[Corporate Thug]

ebay

 

[tbike06]

Originally posted by: Corporate Thug
ebay

 

[Xyclone]

ebay!

nuff said

 

[MikeMike]

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

 

[mb]

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

Even then I still wouldn't get insurance on it... but that's just me. I guess I've just been lucky.

 

[b0mbrman]

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

 

[mugs]

I'm amazed that you expected them to sell you a $400 phone for $50 without a new activation.

 

[altonb1]

I had this happen with Cellular One somewhere around '99. I had the option of replacing my Motorola Startac for something like $450 (retail price) or paying an early termination fee of $175. My decision? I paid the early termination fee. My reasoning was this: For $175, I would end my contract with Cell one. For $229 or something like that, I could buy the exact phone I lost for the Sprint Network. At the time, Sprint did not require a contract. End result: I saved money over paying full retail to replace the phone AND I got service w/o a contract.

Obviously, these options are not the same for you, but you should compare early termination fee + new service through new carrier to buying a new phone on your existing contract.

 

[potato28]

ebay

 

[Imdmn04]

Ummm, why the hell would they give you another phone for a mere $50?

You do know that for every phone they sell with a service contract, they are losing money on the phone right?

They already sold you the contract and the phone, but you lost the phone, what makes you think they should foot 90 percent of the cost of a new phone?

 

[SLCentral]

Originally posted by: b0mbrman

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

So that's why healthcare is a waste, right? :disgust: Just because it's an insurance doesn't mean it's worthless. Chances are you won't need it, which is how they make money, but when you do, it pays off.

 

[mb]

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: b0mbrman

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

So that's why healthcare is a waste, right? :disgust: Just because it's an insurance doesn't mean it's worthless. Chances are you won't need it, which is how they make money, but when you do, it pays off.

I knew someone was gonna mention another type of insurance or something along those lines.

Insurance for electrionics is vastly different compared to health/life etc insurance.

 

[SLCentral]

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: b0mbrman

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

So that's why healthcare is a waste, right? :disgust: Just because it's an insurance doesn't mean it's worthless. Chances are you won't need it, which is how they make money, but when you do, it pays off.

I knew someone was gonna mention another type of insurance or something along those lines.

Insurance for electrionics is vastly different compared to health/life etc insurance.

That doesn't make electronics insurance a waste. At Best Buy, for a $2000 plasma set, you can get a 4 year service plan for $300. $75 a year isn't that bad for peace of mind that if anything goes wrong, you won't have to pay. The same thing applies; most likely you won't need it, so Best Buy still makes their money, but if it does break, you can use it and it'll be worth it.

 

[slag]

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

I'll disagree. Last 2 phones i have owned have cost over $500.00 (windows mobile phones). I was at the gym one day and the phone was in my pocket of my pants. I took my pants off, hung them in the locker, and then locked it up with my other clothes. I came back from working out, unlocked the locker, got my stuff out, and my phone screen was all jacked up and would not turn on. It worked fine when I put it in the locker and am 100% sure i did not bang it into anything. Took it to the sprint store and they said it suffered trauma to the screen (which it did not). I ended up using lockline (insurance) to get another phone minus my $50.00 deductible. It saved my bacon.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: Imdmn04
Ummm, why the hell would they give you another phone for a mere $50?

You do know that for every phone they sell with a service contract, they are losing money on the phone right?

They already sold you the contract and the phone, but you lost the phone, what makes you think they should foot 90 percent of the cost of a new phone?

I believe it works more like this: You're financing the phone; they call it monthly fees, not a finance charge. Compare prices online (ebay, etc.) - MSRP is *not* even near what it costs them. In fact, just a wild guess - their cost is something slightly less than your early termination fee. If this wasn't true, then anyone with half a brain would simply buy phones for $50, pay an early termination fee, sell the phone, and profit - while the cell phone company takes a hit.

 

[mb]

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: b0mbrman

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

So that's why healthcare is a waste, right? :disgust: Just because it's an insurance doesn't mean it's worthless. Chances are you won't need it, which is how they make money, but when you do, it pays off.

I knew someone was gonna mention another type of insurance or something along those lines.

Insurance for electrionics is vastly different compared to health/life etc insurance.

That doesn't make electronics insurance a waste. At Best Buy, for a $2000 plasma set, you can get a 4 year service plan for $300. $75 a year isn't that bad for peace of mind that if anything goes wrong, you won't have to pay. The same thing applies; most likely you won't need it, so Best Buy still makes their money, but if it does break, you can use it and it'll be worth it.

Still, cell phone insurance is a waste for most people. You can spend your money however you want, but I will never insure any of my cell phones.

And no, I don't go for the cheap phones... although I'd say my aging E815 isn't worth much today

 

[KK]

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: SLCentral

Originally posted by: b0mbrman

Originally posted by: MIKEMIKE

Originally posted by: supafly

Originally posted by: HyTekJosh
Insurance is a good idea if you have an expensive phone.

Phone insurance is always a bad idea unless you're prone to losing/breaking your phones.

I've never once lost/damaged any of my cell phones over the last 8 years.

phone insurance is GOOD idea when you have a $300 touch screen, i dunno bout you, but im worried bout breakin the screen, dropped it twice today somehow.

If it was a good idea for the consumer (e.g. On average, you come out ahead), then the provider wouldn't offer it...

...or would raise the premium

So that's why healthcare is a waste, right? :disgust: Just because it's an insurance doesn't mean it's worthless. Chances are you won't need it, which is how they make money, but when you do, it pays off.

I knew someone was gonna mention another type of insurance or something along those lines.

Insurance for electrionics is vastly different compared to health/life etc insurance.

That doesn't make electronics insurance a waste. At Best Buy, for a $2000 plasma set, you can get a 4 year service plan for $300. $75 a year isn't that bad for peace of mind that if anything goes wrong, you won't have to pay. The same thing applies; most likely you won't need it, so Best Buy still makes their money, but if it does break, you can use it and it'll be worth it.

Still, cell phone insurance is a waste for most people. You can spend your money however you want, but I will never insure any of my cell phones.

And no, I don't go for the cheap phones... although I'd say my aging E815 isn't worth much today

How much you want for your e815?

 

[Garet Jax]

Originally posted by: Coldkilla
Alright so I'm using a Family Plan phone, or was anyway. I disabled my account, however since I'm under contract the phone cannot be canceled. They suggested I go to the nearest Retail store, buy a new phone and smart card (or w/e it's called).

So I took the long 45 minute drive to the nearest store that carries cell phones (Best Buy). I walk in, look at the Cingular Phones, and say "aha! There's one I like, $49.99 -- perfect" - Ask the guy about this phone and tell him my situation. He says.. "sorry sir but this isn't going to cost 49.99 for you. It's going to cost $399.99.. " at this point im like WTF?!?! My phone gets stolen and now I have to fork over 400 dollars to get a new one?

I was wondering if there was a way around this. Buying online? Idk... I don't want to spend this INSANE amount of money to get another cell phone... any ideas?

Buy online and make sure the phone is compatible with Cingular.

Also phone Cingular to see if they have a way of knowing that a phone has been reported stolen. If so find out what what they do and ask the potential seller for this information before buying. Make sure to check it out with Cingular.