How an AT&T IRU Customer can get an iPhone
Published July 12th, 2008 in 3G, AT&T, Apple, Go Phone, Uses, iPhoneIf you have been following anything from the last 36 hours on this blog, you know it’s been a huge hassle to get my iPhone. Here’s a quick background on the issue.
At my last employer we received a 15% discount for Cingular/AT&T. Having any sort of discount, bundling internet/phone, or U-Verse will label you as an IRU customer, as I understand it. Needless to say, there are a lot of people in my shoes. Even though I have not been with that employer for over 1 year and I signed away my discount with the purchase of the 1st iPhone, my account is still (and probably will always be) an IRU in the system.
Here’s the dilemma. Apple has all the iPhones and shipments and great customer service, but are plagued with activation issues and no power to change anything in AT&T accounts. AT&T has the power and the knowledge, but they don’t have any iPhones. Most stores we went to received 20-50. Apple Keystone had to have 1,000+ yesterday, and another shipment today. (As of 6:40pm Saturday, Apple Keystone is sold out according to @jcfluhr.)
So if you are an IRU customer and you want an iPhone, but don’t want to deal with the hit-and-miss game at an AT&T store, here’s what I did. Your mileage may vary, but it worked for me.
1)I relentlessly tried get the iPhone at an Apple store, as documented on this site. Then I realized I would continue to get the IRU error multiple times.
2) I changed gears and got a new game plan. I bought an iPhone as a ‘new customer’, receiving a 317-xxx-xxxx number and paid my $.
3) I went home, put my old sim card in my new iPhone, and fired it up. Worked like a charm. 3G, GPS, voicemail, calling, everything works.
4) I had already seen the HUGE lack of communication between Apple and AT&T, so I figured I would use it to my advantage. I went to an AT&T store, explained to them that I wanted the 217-xxx-xxxx number for this iPhone but was set up with a new 317-xxx-xxxx number. They grumbled about how Apple employees did not know what they were doing, etc, etc, and said they would take care of me. He tells me to call 611 and they would delete the 317 # and account. Easy enough. So I go home, and call 611, whsays that I have to go back to the Apple store to take care of it.
Let’s stop and think here for a second. If they couldn’t do it the first time, what makes them think I would be taken care of this time? And I wasn’t about to wait in line again, and definitely did not want to pull the VIP card out anymore. I skipped the line twice already that day, which was enough.
So this morning I head back to AT&T so I can call 611 while in the store. I go in, re-explain my situation again, and am told “oh, we just got an email for people like you today.” So… I sneak a peek.
Look at the last line…. If an IRU customer (that’s me) activated a separate consumer line for iPhone 3G (that’s me) at an Apple location (that’s me) and now requests a number transfer to their IRU line (that’s me), please direct those customers to call (that’s me).
The first 2 reps we talk to are clueless and again tell me to go to the Apple Store. How would the Saturday of launch be any better than a Friday 8am launch? Ugh.
Luckily the district manager happened to be at that store today. We tell him the situation (again) and he says that he could just delete the 317 account, but was afraid I would receive a $400 bill in the mail for the price difference of $199 and $599 for a non-commitment iPhone.
He calls his boss who calls his boss who escalates it to the upper levels of corporate, somewhere around the ivory tower area. he tells me to go home and that he’ll call me after it’s completed.
So I go home. And about 4 hours later, I receive a call…
As easy as that, right?!?!?!? Haha, what a process. In the end, all is worked out and I hope it’s easier for one of you since I had to suffer through it.
So in a nutshell, go to Apple, buy an iPhone as a new customer (if I had done this at 8am yesterday, I could have avoided a lot of headache), activate it, switch sim cards, and go to AT&T and tell them to cancel the other #. I also believe I avoided the $18 whatever-fee because of how it was processed. It’ll probably be on the next bill though. 
Alright, get out there and get it done!
53 Comments to “How an AT&T IRU Customer can get an iPhone”
- 1 Trackback on Aug 17th, 2008 at 10:28 am
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I was at the Marlton, NJ store last night. Of course, no new iPhone available, but spoke with “James” while purchasing two iPhone 3G gift cards for clients. Said I needed to actually get a phone soon, when should I come back in. He said, “you were in line (which I wasn’t) - give me your number and I’ll hold a 16gb black one for you”. James, you rock.
Gave my wife the Edge iPhone, switched the numbers and left me with the bobo phone she was using for another day. Building relationship points here, folks. It’s all about points
Struck up a conversation with James. He said everyone believes that Jobs is fuming over the AT&T mess - he’s quiet and that’s how they handle their anger. They’ll come back and make their frustration known in other ways (aka Canada). But he also said AT&T is slowing picking up the ball and learning from Apple’s customer service.
Ideally, when I found out at 8:02am at the Apple store that I had to go to the AT&T store, someone would have picked up the phone and a close store and said “hold an iPhone, I have a guy who’s been waiting nearly 10 hours, and he will be over with the iPhone Transfer Sheet.” or something to that effect. Then I go to that store, get my iPhone, and am done.
There was absolutely no communication between stores. The AT&T rep told me it was possible to transfer inventory and cleared it with a local store. This was around 2pm. I go back to the Apple manager and he says “absolutely not, I won’t even call them. It’s not going to happen.”
Apple built huge relationship points with me all day. I understood it was not their fault. As mentioned before, I was ushered straight into the store twice that day in front of the line and hooked up with a higher-level employee each time. As I was walking throughout the store, nearly every employee recognized me. I was constantly being asked “how’s it going?” “did you get an iPhone yet?” “Can we get you a water or a snack?”. I was told phrases such as “you are high priority to us right now.” “We are going to do everything possible to make sure you walk out of this store with an iPhone today.” “We will hold an iPhone for as many days as it takes to get this sorted out.” “We are very sorry you have had to go through this.” and on and on. It was amazing customer service.
And when I finally got my iPhone, the entire employee team clapped, cheered, whistled, and screamed for me. It was so out of the ordinary and unexpected that I didn’t even have a chance to tape it. And this was after 4pm, when most employees had clocked out for the day and new staffers were coming on. But even THEY knew about me and my situation. It was just a great experience, given the circumstances.
I called ATT and what they told me was that I can transfer the phone, but I will get charge 175 for the cancel of the new number.
I played it off as an Apple store mistake and it got the $175 ETF waived.
I just had the exact same issue today. I was scared to activate a new line for fear I couldn’t get out of it without paying a huge sum of money, but apparently it can be done. I called ATT to get my IRU removed, and they said it would be up 72 hrs. before it was gone. The iPhone they are holding for me at the store will be gone by then. I am going back down to the Apple Store tomorrow with this new knowledge in hand. Thanks a million.
I can’t thank you guys enough for this site. I’m an IRU customer on my 5th day w/o an iPhone, and have been growing gray hairs over AT&T’s ridiculous red tape, including their phantom “Business End-User Care Billing and Ticket” department that doesn’t have a phone number or address and is charged with the task of altering millions of AT&T plans a week.
Never have I been so involved with a transaction this aggravating. The lack of accountability on the behalf of the AT&T CC representatives and the Apple Store staff in this situation is an obvious symptom of the failure of both parties to effectively COMMUNICATE.
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