My current situation in getting the Tour

[rousea24]

My early annual upgrade date is July 15 but I wanted to pre-order now so I called customer service and see if they would let me pre-order now since we were only talking about 12 days.

The VZW rep said they could waive up to 60 days for my "new every 2" date, but not for the early annual upgrade date.

I received a mailing/brochure from Verizon a few weeks ago that said "as a reward for your loyalty, every line on your account is eligible for a phone upgrade. check for the last four digits of your wireless numbers below to see which special offers you qualify for (unless upgrade has occurred within the last 180 days):

Early 2-Year Promotional Pricing - 4698"

So I told the rep I received this in the mail, which would indicate to me that I could get the 2-year promotional price now, and he said this must have been an error in the system, that I shouldn't have got this until after my early annual upgrade date.

I told him that it said "special offer" two different places on the brochure and he acted like it didn't exist.

It lists a different phone number, 1-866-312-7540, than the usual VZW number, so I called it and they are closed today (7/3) but open tomorrow (7/4) in observance of the holiday. That doesn't make a lot of sense, but whatever. The recording that picked up that told me this said this was the marketing department.

Not that I'm surprised but it sounds like one hand doesn't know what the other is doing. I'll give them a try in the morning and see what happens. If they don't budge, I guess I'll have to wait until the 15th to get my Tour.

[rousea24]

Anyone else in the same situation with their early upgrade not until after 7/12? Any solutions?

[gotblackberry]

Call that number its because its from verizons cmo department... They do mail out special offers to random customers.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Chris2183]

Originally Posted by rousea24

Anyone else in the same situation with their early upgrade not until after 7/12? Any solutions?

My NE2 was July 30th I called CS and told them I would like to pick up the Tour when it was released and if they could please (keyword there) help me out and move my date to the 11th. They said they would have to get a supervisors approval and that it should be done by the end of the day. Later on I checked my account and my NE2 had been moved to July 1st.

[rousea24]

When you pre-order online, do you have the option of putting the $199 (price of the phone) on your monthly bill? Or would I have to talk to a CS rep to do that? I know that option is there if your account is current, which mine is.

This is all of course if they work with me. I'm calling that number above in the morning.

[jorGeorge]

Originally Posted by rousea24

When you pre-order online, do you have the option of putting the $199 (price of the phone) on your monthly bill? Or would I have to talk to a CS rep to do that? I know that option is there if your account is current, which mine is.

This is all of course if they work with me. I'm calling that number above in the morning.

Yes you can do that. It puts the full charge on your upcoming bill. You will see the option on the payment methods tab during the ordering process.

[addicted2tech]

Originally Posted by rousea24

My early annual upgrade date is July 15 but I wanted to pre-order now so I called customer service and see if they would let me pre-order now since we were only talking about 12 days.

The VZW rep said they could waive up to 60 days for my "new every 2" date, but not for the early annual upgrade date.

I received a mailing/brochure from Verizon a few weeks ago that said "as a reward for your loyalty, every line on your account is eligible for a phone upgrade. check for the last four digits of your wireless numbers below to see which special offers you qualify for (unless upgrade has occurred within the last 180 days):

Early 2-Year Promotional Pricing - 4698"


So I told the rep I received this in the mail, which would indicate to me that I could get the 2-year promotional price now, and he said this must have been an error in the system, that I shouldn't have got this until after my early annual upgrade date.

I told him that it said "special offer" two different places on the brochure and he acted like it didn't exist.

It lists a different phone number, 1-866-312-7540, than the usual VZW number, so I called it and they are closed today (7/3) but open tomorrow (7/4) in observance of the holiday. That doesn't make a lot of sense, but whatever. The recording that picked up that told me this said this was the marketing department.

Not that I'm surprised but it sounds like one hand doesn't know what the other is doing. I'll give them a try in the morning and see what happens. If they don't budge, I guess I'll have to wait until the 15th to get my Tour.

Well that's BS. I spoke with a staff member on 6/30, and explained that I wanted to upgrade 5 months early (the earliest I could was in November). She said "ok that won't be a problem" and noted in my account that they will be calling me back when the phone comes out to upgrade me to the Tour.

Though, I'm noticing now that you already have a blackberry which means you already have the data plan. I'm wondering if they let me upgrade so early because I'll be adding a data plan?

I say try again and try again.

[rousea24]

Originally Posted by addicted2tech

Well that's BS. I spoke with a staff member on 6/30, and explained that I wanted to upgrade 5 months early (the earliest I could was in November). She said "ok that won't be a problem" and noted in my account that they will be calling me back when the phone comes out to upgrade me to the Tour.

Though, I'm noticing now that you already have a blackberry which means you already have the data plan. I'm wondering if they let me upgrade so early because I'll be adding a data plan?

I say try again and try again.

Oh, I'll definitely be trying again. Worst-case scenario is I have to wait until the 15th, but hopefully, I can get it pre-ordered now.

[iloveluxury]

rousea24: I agree! With VZW, I've called and spoken with CLUELESS reps...I hang up, call right back and get someone fantastic who resolves my entire situation (which the 1st rep deemed impossible to change). I've had a myriad of issues fixed by great CS reps. I love VZW for being so willing to work with their customer (AT&T sucked at this) and that's why I'm sticking with them!

Moral of my rambling message: keep trying. Say please and mention how much you love VZW! Good luck!

[jessieats]

vzw is kinda high on there plans but i dont know i have had tmo and sprint and us cell and att but never had vzw i might give them a try for a tour

[rousea24]

So I called the 1-866-312-7540 number and they said the offer I got in the mailing expired on 6/27. However, he tried to tell me that existing customers couldn't pre-order the Tour anyway. But the article on front page of Crackberry says otherwise:

The rumors were flying all week long that existing Verizon customers wouldn't be able to upgrade to the Tour. For some reason, Verizon didn't list the Tour on upgrade pages for current customers, and it seemed only new contracts would be able to snag the device. The net was a buzz, and it seems as if Big Red was listening. Existing customers can now head to the upgrade page on Verizon's site to pre-order the Tour. A $70 online discount is applied, as well as any New Every Two discounts if available. Now everyone can now let out a big sigh of relief.

Nevertheless, the Tour doesn't show up as an option when I log into my account and click on upgrade your phone.

But I also see there's a big thread on here that says that people who receive a discount through their work can't pre-order the phone. So maybe that's the problem. The rep didn't act like he knew what I was talking about with this issue.

Furthermore, the guy said I couldn't order the phone until the 14th, since that is my early annual upgrade date. He said they would call me on that date if I wanted them to.

So it sounds like the bottom line is that I can't order the phone until the 14th. I didn't know I am a VIP customer, so not only will I get the $70 online discount, I will also get another $50 off. It will cost me $150 when it's all said and done.

10 more days to go I guess...I don't know what else to try.

[rousea24]

I emailed VZW and this is what I got back (I edited out some parts that weren't important):

Dear Adam,

Good afternoon to you. My name is Robert, and it will be my pleasure to provide you with information regarding Pre-ordering the new BlackBerry Tour 9630 smartphone.

In response to your inquiry "My early annual upgrade date is July 15 but I wanted to pre-order now so I called Verizon's customer service and see if they would let me pre-order now since we were only talking about 12 days. "

Adam, you may Pre-order the new BlackBerry Tour 9630 smartphone through our website link listed below. Please not that the new BlackBerry Tour 9630 smartphone will be available to purchase online through our website and in our Verizon Wireless corporate stores on July 12, 2009.

In response to your inquiry "The VZW rep said they could waive up to 60 days for my "new every 2" date, but not for the early annual upgrade date."

I apologize to you for any miscommunication that may have transpired, to clarify this matter, I've provided additional information below for your review.

Were you aware wireless number XXX-XXX-0698 is eligible for a VIP equipment upgrade in exchange for a new two-year Customer Agreement?

Your VIP upgrade entitles you to an additional discount of up to $50.00 off the two-year promotional price of a new wireless device.

The prices on our website reflect a discount for a two-year Customer Agreement, and do not include applicable sales tax and/or shipping cost. Please keep in mind that instant rebates are only available for orders processed online via “My Verizon.”

[rousea24]

Robert,
Thank you for your thorough response. Some of the information you provided is different that what 2 other reps have told me.

"Were you aware wireless number XXX-XXX-0698 is eligible for a VIP equipment upgrade in exchange for a new two-year Customer Agreement?"

Yes, the rep I talked to this morning said I would get the $50 VIP discount, but he said I couldn't get it until July 14th. Are you saying I can get it now?

"Mr. Rouse, you may Pre-order the new BlackBerry Tour 9630 smartphone through our website link listed below."

When I log into MyVerizon and click on "upgrade my phone," it doesn't even list the Tour in the selection of phones. Secondly, it only lists retail prices of the phones, not the 2-year promotional prices.

I understand that today is a holiday and you can't call - that's fine - but if you could call me on Monday, July 6th to assist me in pre-ordering the Tour, I would appreciate it.

[eternal76]

My annual upgrade date isn't until August 5th, and unfortunately, it looks like I'll have to wait until then. I've called several times, but everyone I've spoken to says that I can't upgrade any earlier. I'm glad you mentioned the $50 discount off phones though, I'd forgotten all about that. I just spent the last half hour tearing up my bedroom to look for my VIP card, lol. Now, gotta find a way to calm myself until August...

[rousea24]

Yeah, I'm going to have to wait too until my annual upgrade on July 15th.

I got this follow-up email that basically says there's nothing else they can do:

Dear Adam,

Good afternoon, my name is Janice and I am sorry to learn that you will not be eligible to complete and early upgrade until July 15, 2009. It would be my pleasure to assist you today.

I do understand that this will only be one week away and that you would like to process a pre order for your BlackBerry Tour phone. However, since this is an exception that is provided to you via the VIP program, our billing system does not recognize that you will be eligible for the annual upgrade next week. I tried to search for a way to bypass the billing system, and order the phone for you before then, but I was unsuccessful. I certainly apologize for any inconvenience this issue may have caused you.

You are right in the fact that you will be allowed an additional $50.00 off the 2-year promotional price on any device with a new two year agreement. Under the VIP program, you are allowed to complete one device upgrade per year with a 2-year renewal. After you complete your upgrade, we will be more than happy to credit the $50.00 off of your account, unless the credit is included with the order by a customer service representative. Since our billing system is not recognizing your upgrade at this time, please wait until July 15, 2009 to complete your order. At that time you will be able to upgrade your phone and utilize the VIP program.