TLDR: As a worker please don't take off a screen protector off a phone to be traded in that cannot be put back on if you don't actually have the requested new device isn't actually in stock and not check beforehand.
So this happened Thursday January 25th 2024 at around 6:30pm give or take, now this store, on Irving Park Road, closes at 8pm as well as the one on Pulaski Rd. As a bit of exposition, the day already been stressful and my significant other's mother was asking to trade in her phone for a new one since it's under their mothers account. We are both exhausted from walking around for most of the day getting things done as well as it was raining.
We walked in and were asked to come near a work station near the back. It wasn't especially busy this time of night, but it appeared there were only two workers and another was busy with another customer. Unfortunately I didn't get this woman's name but she wore a face mask, had long dark hair, tall, and a darker skin complexion. I'm not sure what kind of day this woman had, working in customer service can absolutely be draining from experience, however she acted quite aloof and disinterested. Not really much to help, but rather just to get this interaction done so the time ticked closer to closing.
For the most part it was cordial, going through the motions respectfully making sure all the info was right both on our end and the companies system. The phone we were requesting was an iPhone 15, as of right now the new Apple phone on the market. We had discussed this with the employee and were under the impression everything was going smooth and on track to get this new device. We get to the part where she needs to inspect the current phone of my partner to ensure it can be traded in. My partner had an Otter-box case and a screen protector.
Before I go on, lets play: "What we should've asked"
1. "Do you have the 15's in stock"
2. "Can you do this without removing the screen protector"
3. "Can you tell us where we can find the device if it's not in this location"
So why did I do that? Because what happened next devolved fast. The woman would go onto removing the case, the screen protector, the sim card, etc to check. Once that screen protector is taken off, you can't put it back on. After she double checked with her other coworker she then asked once more what phone we were requesting to which they looked it up. Only then telling us they don't have any 15's in stock. So she FULLY REMOVED the screen protector to not even have the phone in the first place. Could we have asked what I put above? Yes, however not only were we exhausted from the day, but we trusted this person as someone working in the store who has been trained by the company to be able to help the client without potentially endangering the device if the request can't be fulfilled. If it's the company, then why is it policy to check the device BEFORE EVEN KNOWING IF A REQUESTED DEVICE IS IN STOCK.
I understand what I have said will come across as selfish, petty, and "Karen-y", however my partner's phone is very important for her job and day-to-day so if it drops and cracks then she's liable and won't even be able to trade in the phone cause of a choice/mistake the company made. While the argument can be made of "why not buy a new screen protector?" and "Why get the newest phone?", every dollar we have we have to be careful with, which means it's harder to justify paying for a replacement that can range between 5 and 20 dollars for something WE DID NOT REMOVE. We only came to trade in due to a good offer we were given that would be worth our time and funds.
After telling us there was no 15's, the worker suddenly got a lot nicer to us and empathetic, which she wasn't before, telling us to try another store if they had any in stock. Let's keep in mind, T-Mobile stores close at 8pm and at this point it's quite close to 7pm after all this. She recommended the closest store, the one on Pulaski since it would be 10 mins away by car, 40 walking (we don't have a car). We left and the rain was falling harder, both of us were too frustrated, hungry, and exhausted to even ask for a new screen protector at this point.
We popped into a local Marshalls to get out of the pouring rain and figure out what to do next. I suggested we call the T-Mobile on Pulaski to make sure we can be helped before we walked all the way there for potentially nothing again. So we did so, went through the automated options, and got to "Check Inventory". Here's where things went from worse to infuriating. The gentleman that picked up, when asked if they had any 15's in stock, had her hold to then tell her they can't tell us because it was a security concern. She explained the what happened and asked "After everything, you can't tell me if its worth my time to walk over there if you're not going to help?" He said "no" then "Have a blessed day" before he hung up us. Still not resolved, do better T-Mobile. read more
