Forum Discussion

monkey44's avatar
monkey44
Nomad II
Apr 29, 2022

Change Cell companies

I've had the Senior Plan on T-Mobile for awhile, but Genie has had Verizon. She's over that now and we want to add her to my Senior Plan - two lines, same fees - and cancel Verizon.

The T-Mobile folks want her account number, plus a PIN that Verizon gives for keeping the same number. We tried to call and get it, but she can't get past the robot ... T-Mobile said she can also transfer that number if she has the Verizon App on her phone. Can anyone explain how to make this happen without the robot call. It seems no companies want to lose the customer, but will do nothing that allows the number change. She's had the same number for years and years, does not want to go 'new'...

Any assistance? Advice? Thanks M44 ...
  • BB_TX's avatar
    BB_TX
    Nomad
    Apr 30, 2022
    Don’t know about Verizon, but on some bot phone sites you can keep hitting 0 or some invalid response enough times and eventually it will say something like “transferring to an agent”.
  • monkey44's avatar
    monkey44
    Nomad II
    Apr 29, 2022
    Seattle Steve wrote:
    That's really SOP for changing carriers. Giving them the PIN lets Verizon know that you authorized the change and T-Mobile isn't doing it on their own. Nothing nefarious going on here. No carrier can risk taking a hit to their image by doing something wrong when they transfer thousands of phone numbers daily.


    Yes, we know about security ... problem is, ROBOT can't. And Genie could not get to a person. We have no Verizon Corp Store near us, and a Verizon retailer can't do it either. We'll have to find one, and make a trip ... maybe a camping trip. :)
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    Apr 29, 2022
    I believe there is a federal law that all T-mobile needs is the number and current service provider and your (or her) signature. Verizon may be in violation by demanding you do anything at their site. However laws do change from time to time and I've not followed this for a long time.
  • jdc1's avatar
    jdc1
    Explorer II
    Apr 29, 2022
    It took my wife 6 days to get Verizon to release her number. Mine was released in under an hour. Go figure. Calling them was fruitless, as you know.
  • Seattle_Steve's avatar
    Seattle_Steve
    Explorer
    Apr 29, 2022
    That's really SOP for changing carriers. Giving them the PIN lets Verizon know that you authorized the change and T-Mobile isn't doing it on their own. Nothing nefarious going on here. No carrier can risk taking a hit to their image by doing something wrong when they transfer thousands of phone numbers daily.
  • p220sigman's avatar
    p220sigman
    Explorer
    Apr 29, 2022
    We are fortunate that we have a Verizon store near our house (true Verizon store, not an authorized reseller store) and that is where we have had the best luck. We did the phone and app thing for a change we were doing for a while and finally stopped in the store. They took care of it in about five minutes. I would recommend in person if it is an option for you.

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