"Cell Phone Providers Allow Military To Suspend Service"

[terryjohnson16]

Cell Phone Providers Allow Military To Suspend Service - NewsChannel5 Story - WEWS Cleveland

POSTED: 4:37 pm EDT September 10, 2007
UPDATED: 5:29 pm EDT September 10, 2007

CLEVELAND -- Pat Radva is a proud mother. Her son, Pvt. Rudy Radva, is currently serving in Iraq.

Deployed in January, he obviously didn't need his cell phone for a while, so he signed up for Sprint's military suspend program.

That will turn off the phone without additional charges while he's away. His mom was pleased.

"Great, he'll be able to keep the same phone number when he comes home and he'll be able to keep all the phone numbers of his friends listed," Radva said.

When her son came home for a couple of weeks this summer, the family had no trouble turning the phone on, or off when he returned to Iraq.

But then Radva got a bill for $145, except that wasn't the worst part.

"When I talked to the supervisor, she reiterated, 'We don't do anything for the military.' They don't have anything called military suspend, and there's nothing on my records. It was complete shock to me they were doing this,” said Radva.

In the meantime, the charges were piling up and Radva was getting worried about what this might do to her son's credit.

When NewsChannel5 contacted Sprint, they apologized for the mix-up. In fact, Sprint does have a military suspend program, as do many of the other cell phone companies

For Radva, it's a reminder that sometimes it's worth the fight.

"They made better than good and I know it's not hundreds of thousands of dollars, I know its just a little change; it’s more of the principle," she said.

Many cell phone companies have similar military suspend policies:

AT&T

Overall: AT&T and its employees are deeply grateful for the sacrifices that our military personnel make every day for our nation and we share your desire to ensure that they have an affordable way to call home.

Wireless: U.S. military members deployed to active duty can suspend their wireless service with AT&T for a penny per month, while retaining their wireless phone number, until they return from duty. This service can be used for up to 999 consecutive days. Military personnel interested in this program should call 1-800-331-0500 or visit their local AT&T retail store to enroll.

Wireline: We do not have a parallel program for land line phone customers at this time. However, we do continue to waive reconnection fees for land line phone service for military members returning from duty.

Additional Support: In addition, for AT&T employees, we provide differential pay and continue medical benefits for military members and their families while they are serving active duty. We have built more than 70 calling centers for troops overseas in Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan. And, we have donated nearly $8 million worth of free prepaid calling cards to use with these centers in recent years.

T-MOBILE

* T-Mobile USA is committed to providing the best customer experience in wireless. Therefore, if customers in the military are going to an area that does not have T-Mobile service, they may want to suspend their service until they return.
* For Military Suspension, accounts can be suspended for up to 18 months. The suspension is free and there is no monthly fee. Contract extension is required equal to the suspend period.
* Customers may transfer their phone number to another provider while on military suspend.
* If the customer will not be in a T-Mobile service area or if they will be deployed longer than 18 months, they may want to cancel their service. In this case, the early termination fee would be waived.

Seasonal Suspend: If a customer is going out of the country or they know they will not be able to use their phone for up to 90 days.

* Only one suspend period is permitted per year with a maximum of 90 consecutive days.
* A $10 monthly access fee is applied per subscriber.
* The account must be kept current.
* The customer retains their mobile number, rate plan, any current promotions, and the ability to dial 911 and 611 for Customer Care.
* The customer will not have access to voicemail or the ability to send / receive SMS.
* The customer is required to extend their contract for a period equal to their suspend period.
* Prorated charges will appear if suspended / restored within the same bill cycle or less than a full bill cycle.
* For pooling plans - if all subscribers are suspended, the account is charged one $10 suspend fee per month. If there are any active subscribers, the customer is charged their normal monthly plan fee and will not be charged the $10 seasonal suspend fee.

Lost/Stolen Suspend:

* Maximum suspend period is 30 days.
* There is no fee for setting up the suspension.
* Pooling plan customers will be charged the normal monthly plan fee if there are any active subscribers on the account.
* The customer will retain their mobile number, rate plan, and any current promotions.
* Voicemail will be unavailable while their line is suspended.
* myFaves customers are unable to add or modify any myFaves contacts while the line is suspended.


VERIZON

For Military personnel: The Federal Service Members' Civil Relief Act (formerly known as the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act), and some state laws, provide certain protections to service members who have been posted to active military duty. Accordingly, an account holder who falls within the definition of "service member" may terminate his/her wireless service with Verizon Wireless without paying an early termination fee (ETF) if he/she has been called to active military duty. The service member may also opt not to terminate and elect to continue service with us while on active duty.

The suspension timeframe for active military personnel has been extended to up to 24 months. The service member is not charged a processing fee that is standard for some suspensions (see below under the category "For other customers").

Verbal confirmation is preferred and should include the following:

* Home Base / Personnel Department (i.e. location where the Service member is stationed)
* The Name, Rank, and Telephone Number of the Service member’s Commanding Officer.

For other customers: Verizon Wireless offers eligible customers the option of temporarily suspending their wireless service up to a maximum of 90 days. Phones will remain inoperable during the time of suspension.

A $15 processing fee and $5.95 monthly fee may be required depending on the reason for suspension. The most common reason for customers requesting suspension is for a lost or stolen phone. In these situations, the customer is not charged the processing fee for the first 30 days of the suspension.

ALLTEL

Alltel does have a program that allows for military personnel to suspend their service but keep their phone number while serving. The policy is not applicable to all consumers.

SPRINT

Sprint's Military Suspend Plan has been offered since 2003 and provides assistance to military personnel who are sent overseas into active duty. Instead of having to disconnect their wireless service due to deployment, military personnel are able to temporarily suspend their account for 24 months and keep their phone number. Sprint Customer Service and Sprint Retail Stores can provision the plan and the temporary suspension. A military ID is required or a copy of written orders.

Sprint's Seasonal Standby plan is an option for customers who have a business need to maintain their mobile number and Sprint account for set seasons/months of the year without terminating service. An example is a customer traveling outside the United States (i.e. studying abroad or missionaries) or a customer who has seasonal business (i.e. landscaper). Customers have the option to restrict usage entirely on their phones or to pay by the minute for cell, vision and text messaging services. Customers are allowed to stay on the Seasonal Standby rate plan for a six-month period.

[greenblood]

this is true on T-Mobile
I did once before leaving for Kuwait
I just paid the month of suspension prorated rate and roaming, that's it
T-mobile has international CS, than can re-open the account by the time of returning
however, make sure you paid the any fee applied (as I mentioned above), or you may have problem reopening account
I had no problem because I use autopay
this is one of the best part of T-Mobile towards military personnels, and I even heard T-mobile sponsors MWR (Morale, Welfare, Recreation), that they can build sites in military posts

[j__1]

Originally Posted by greenblood

this is true on T-Mobile
I did once before leaving for Kuwait

This has always been the case... going back to the Western Wireless days. Being in Manhattan “The Little Apple” Kansas, we were split between college students and Ft. Riley soldiers. Besides SIM swaps (legacy issue), we were experts in military suspends… and watching bar fights.