[pct-l] Keeping your Cell Phone Number Without Paying for It (T-Mobile)

[Bethany.Axtman at mercer.com (Axtman, Bethany)]

I moved to Ireland in 2003 and had endless conversations with T-Mobile
customer service on similar issues (I still had a contract to fulfill).
In a nutshell, here's what my options were:

* You can pay a small monthly fee (I remember it being $10/month) to
"extend" your contract if you haven't satisfied the initial time period.
These months don't count towards your contract time, but basically put
your number and your contract on hold so that you can resume it at a
later date (and thus avoid the cancellation penalty).

* If you're moving somewhere that they can't provide you service, they
are required to release you from the contract.  Not sure if a general
delivery address along the trail would qualify, but I just gave them my
office address in Ireland and they unlocked my phone and terminated my
contract early with no penalties (and gave away my number 60 days
later...).

I also wonder if you could convert your service to pre-paid.  Keep your
number, have someone make a 1-min call from it every month or two.  I
don't know, but it might be worth a shot.

Bethany

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces@mailman.backcountry.net
[mailto:pct-l-bounces@mailman.backcountry.net] On Behalf Of Michael
Lissner
Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2005 12:14 PM
To: PCT List
Subject: [pct-l] Keeping your Cell Phone Number Without Paying for
It(Cingular/ATT)


I just got off the phone with Cingular/ATT Wireless. I've been thinking 
about a way to keep my cell phone number for after I get back from the 
trip without paying a bucketload of cash to keep the phone active during

the trip, and I've figured it out. This only works if you are no longer 
on contract, but I have a manager's word that it will work: When you get
your last bill before the trip, pay it, but cancel your 
service, being sure to put your number on hold. They will hold it for 59

days after the end of that payment. No more, no less. At the end of the 
58th day, call them, and tell them you want to start the service again. 
Start it, and then cancel it again. This will put your number on hold 
for another 59 days. Do this one more time in another couple of months, 
and bingo, you've kept your number without paying for it.

The alternative is to send them a check for $200 before the trip, and 
let that pay for five months of the cheapest plan (the $29.99 plan that 
actually costs $40). These are the musings. The question is, how much 
effort will you go through to keep that number. Is it worth $200? Is it 
worth making phone calls two times during the trip? These are the 
questions I don't know the answer to.

-mike

-- 

www.aidshike.org
 -510.547.4299-


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