Tech
Some T-Mobile stores repackaged returned phones and sold them off as new
The outlet has relayed stories from employees of two third-party companies about their employers’ shady practices.
Third-party retailers teach their staff shady sales tactics.
Arch Telecom has been called out for having unrealistic sales targets and threatening to put jobs on the line if they are not met. Exposés published on the company in recent times are making it reconsider some of its toxic practices though, with one employee claiming that a weekly call that was used to teach them how to manipulate promotions was canceled.
The second retailer mentioned in the report is GP Mobile, which mostly has operations in the Southeast of the US. What this company is doing is even more scary than pushy sales tactics designed to make you buy things you don’t need.
According to a former employee, GP Mobile kept the devices that were returned to it instead of sending them back to T-Mobile. The company repackaged those devices and sold them again, potentially passing them off as new. Apparently, T-Mobile was aware of this practice and didn’t object to it.
Since this tip came from someone who no longer works for GP Mobile, it’s possible that the company has updated its policy since then. The report has also exposed the company’s lax security practices.
Some T-Mobile stores silently add lines to customer accounts, which are only canceled if they are discovered.
Another common problem at third-party retailers is that there are numerous instances of chargebacks due to stores adding lines of services to customer accounts without being asked.