Foundation for California Community Colleges

Dear Mr*** I am emailing you in response to the complaint submitted by [redacted] to the Revdex.com In reading the customer’s complaint and conferring with [redacted] (the [redacted] she is referring to in her complaint), I can tell you that this issue occurred because of the customer Here are the facts we gathered: (1) The customer was already an existing Clear Wireless consumer – she was being billed by Clear Wireless, and according to her complaint, she had been billed through April (2) Clear Wireless also powers the Mobile Citizen (low-cost, wireless, broadband internet), which is being distributed through CollegeBuys (mine and ***’s Program)(3) There are no records of the conversation between Ms [redacted] and any CollegeBuys staff that would imply that we can schedule her transition of service without interruption For that matter, it is not our practice to allow thisAlso, the notes that were pulled reflect that the customer is requesting a refund of the outstanding, prorated, subscription she had already paid to Clear Wireless, from CollegeBuys – which we informed her would be something she would have to communicate with Clear Wireless, since the funds did not go to us(4) For the matter regarding disruption of service that allegedly “lasted days” –our terms of service state that Mobile Citizen wireless service may begin up to 3-business days after activation, and the customer clicked on the button that stated she understood these terms and conditions To further clarify, according to our records and our system, she was only without service for business day(5) Ms [redacted] indicates that she signed up for Mobile Citizen service onMarch (knowing that she had paid for her Clear Wireless service through April 8) Our automated billing system will bill registered credit cards every ~days, which is why she was charged again in April – which was declined, and which is also the reason service stopped in May She basically received nearly days of additional service for freeOn top of that, CollegeBuys has provided service through June – nearly days of free service due to her expressed dissatisfaction My program is a program that delivers low cost, internet service to underserved and underrepresented communitiesOur track record of providing exemplary customer service is known statewide within the California Community Colleges system (that’s 2.5million students at California Community Colleges), and this is the first such complaint we have ever received It is really unfortunate that the customer is dissatisfied with our service, and we did (and are still doing our best to assist her)It is also really unfortunate that the customer cannot grasp the (1) Clear Wireless billing is independent of Mobile Citizen/CollegeBuys billing, (2) Service interruptions occur, as stated in our terms of service, and this could occur 3-business days and in her instance only occurred business day, (3) her request for refund is unreasonable, in that we did not ask her to obtain internet elsewhere, for that matter she is availing of nearly days of free internet service for her dissatisfaction Please let me know if this message suffices in addressing the customer’s issuesThank you, and I look forward to a positive outcome in this matter Regards, [redacted] ***Director, Collaborative ServicesFoundation for California Community Colleges

Dear Mr. [redacted]-
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I am emailing you in response to the complaint submitted by [redacted] to the Revdex.com.  In reading the customer’s complaint and conferring with [redacted] (the [redacted] she is referring to in her complaint), I can tell you that this issue occurred because of the customer.  Here are the facts we gathered:
 
(1)    The customer was already an existing Clear Wireless consumer – she was being billed by Clear Wireless, and according to her complaint, she had been billed through April 8. 
(2)    Clear Wireless also powers the Mobile Citizen (low-cost, wireless, broadband internet), which is being distributed through CollegeBuys (mine and [redacted]’s Program).
(3)    There are no records of the conversation between Ms. [redacted] and any CollegeBuys staff that would imply that we can schedule her transition of service without interruption.  For that matter, it is not our practice to allow this. Also, the notes that were pulled reflect that the customer is requesting a refund of the outstanding, prorated, subscription she had already paid to Clear Wireless, from CollegeBuys – which we informed her would be something she would have to communicate with Clear Wireless, since the funds did not go to us.
(4)    For the matter regarding disruption of service that allegedly “lasted 5 days” –our terms of service state that Mobile Citizen wireless service may begin up to 3-5 business days after activation, and the customer clicked on the button that stated she understood these terms and conditions.  To further clarify, according to our records and our system, she was only without service for 1 business day.
(5)    Ms. [redacted] indicates that she signed up for Mobile Citizen service onMarch 17 (knowing that she had paid for her Clear Wireless service through April 8).  Our automated billing system will bill registered credit cards every ~30 days, which is why she was charged again in April 15 – which was declined, and which is also the reason service stopped in May 12. She basically received nearly 30 days of additional service for free. On top of that, CollegeBuys has provided service through June 18 – nearly 60 days of free service due to her expressed dissatisfaction.
 
My program is a program that delivers low cost, internet service to underserved and underrepresented communities. Our track record of providing exemplary customer service is known statewide within the California Community Colleges system (that’s 2.5million students at 112 California Community Colleges), and this is the first such complaint we have ever received.  It is really unfortunate that the customer is dissatisfied with our service, and we did (and are still doing our best to assist her). It is also really unfortunate that the customer cannot grasp the (1) Clear Wireless billing is independent of Mobile Citizen/CollegeBuys billing, (2) Service interruptions occur, as stated in our terms of service, and this could occur 3-5 business days and in her instance only occurred 1 business day, (3) her request for refund is unreasonable, in that we did not ask her to obtain internet elsewhere, for that matter she is availing of nearly 60 days of free internet service for her dissatisfaction.
 
Please let me know if this message suffices in addressing the customer’s issues. Thank you, and I look forward to a positive outcome in this matter.
 
Regards,**
[redacted]Director, Collaborative ServicesFoundation for California Community Colleges

Review: CollegeBuys offers low-cost student internet subscriptions with Mobile Citizen for $15 a month. Mobile Citizen uses the Clear WiMax network. In March, I was an existing Clear.com subscriber. A Clear subscriber must cancel the account in order to activate Mobile Citizen service. My Clear account was paid through April 8. But on March 17, I was told by CollegeBuys chat support to go ahead then with the purchase. I later spoke on the phone with Ryan of CollegeBuys who would coordinate timing so Mobile Citizen would start on April 9, & I'd be without internet for "no more than a day." That didn't happen. The new service didn't start until April 15, & I had to spend $35.85 for 7 days of WiFi because no free WiFi exists near my home. I asked 3 times for at least a partial acct credit to help defray the unexpected expense but was never contacted. On April 16, after 1 day of service, CollegeBuys attempted to put through another $15 charge on my card, which was declined. I contacted CollegeBuys & was told the problem would be taken care of. Then on May 12, my internet suddenly stopped working. I was told by Mobile Citizen that my account had been suspended for nonpayment & would take a few days to reactivate. I had to spend another $19.95 on more WiFi. On May 18, CollegeBuys charged another $15 to my card. I emailed them again about getting acct credit for at least part of the unplanned WiFi expenses. Their reply stated there would be no refund because they "issued a month of service free of charge." Ridiculous since I'd already paid a total of $30 to CollegeBuys but received only 31 days of service.Ultimately I spoke again with Ryan, who also claimed my subscription had been extended by a month. I explained how that was impossible. He finally offered a week of free service which works out to $3.50. I do realize $15 for 30 days of internet service is a fantastic deal but a $3.50 credit for $55.80 extra out-of-pocket expenses does not seem reasonable to me. I took Ryan's offer as an insult.Desired Settlement: I would like 60 days of free internet service, worth $30. That covers 54% of what I paid for temporary WiFi. I would take the hit for the remaining amount, even though I was in no way at fault. I did everything I was instructed to do in the purchase and preparation for activation of the Mobile Citizen subscription.

Business

Response:

Dear Mr. [redacted]- I am emailing you in response to the complaint submitted by [redacted] to the Revdex.com. In reading the customer’s complaint and conferring with [redacted] (the [redacted] she is referring to in her complaint), I can tell you that this issue occurred because of the customer. Here are the facts we gathered: (1) The customer was already an existing Clear Wireless consumer – she was being billed by Clear Wireless, and according to her complaint, she had been billed through April 8. (2) Clear Wireless also powers the Mobile Citizen (low-cost, wireless, broadband internet), which is being distributed through CollegeBuys (mine and [redacted]’s Program).(3) There are no records of the conversation between Ms. [redacted] and any CollegeBuys staff that would imply that we can schedule her transition of service without interruption. For that matter, it is not our practice to allow this. Also, the notes that were pulled reflect that the customer is requesting a refund of the outstanding, prorated, subscription she had already paid to Clear Wireless, from CollegeBuys – which we informed her would be something she would have to communicate with Clear Wireless, since the funds did not go to us.(4) For the matter regarding disruption of service that allegedly “lasted 5 days” –our terms of service state that Mobile Citizen wireless service may begin up to 3-5 business days after activation, and the customer clicked on the button that stated she understood these terms and conditions. To further clarify, according to our records and our system, she was only without service for 1 business day.(5) Ms. [redacted] indicates that she signed up for Mobile Citizen service onMarch 17 (knowing that she had paid for her Clear Wireless service through April 8). Our automated billing system will bill registered credit cards every ~30 days, which is why she was charged again in April 15 – which was declined, and which is also the reason service stopped in May 12. She basically received nearly 30 days of additional service for free. On top of that, CollegeBuys has provided service through June 18 – nearly 60 days of free service due to her expressed dissatisfaction. My program is a program that delivers low cost, internet service to underserved and underrepresented communities. Our track record of providing exemplary customer service is known statewide within the California Community Colleges system (that’s 2.5million students at 112 California Community Colleges), and this is the first such complaint we have ever received. It is really unfortunate that the customer is dissatisfied with our service, and we did (and are still doing our best to assist her). It is also really unfortunate that the customer cannot grasp the (1) Clear Wireless billing is independent of Mobile Citizen/CollegeBuys billing, (2) Service interruptions occur, as stated in our terms of service, and this could occur 3-5 business days and in her instance only occurred 1 business day, (3) her request for refund is unreasonable, in that we did not ask her to obtain internet elsewhere, for that matter she is availing of nearly 60 days of free internet service for her dissatisfaction. Please let me know if this message suffices in addressing the customer’s issues. Thank you, and I look forward to a positive outcome in this matter. Regards,[redacted]Director, Collaborative ServicesFoundation for California Community Colleges

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because the "facts" that Mr. [redacted] "gathered" are mostly fiction.Here are the true facts: Fact: Mobile Citizen uses the Clear Wireless WiMax NetworkFact: I was indeed a Clear Wireless customer in March 2015 and my account was paid up until April 8.Fact: Existing Clear Wireless customers were instructed in writing to cancel their Clear accounts and send the cancellation confirmation number and date of cancellation to CollegeBuys before purchasing a Mobile Citizen subscription.Fact: I arranged with Clear to cancel my account effective April 8 but their confirmation email did not include a confirmation number. I started a CollegeBuys Customer Service Chat session on March 17 to get clarification on that issue.Fact: I was told by the chat agent to disregard the written instructions and go ahead with the purchase. What follows is an excerpt from the chat transcript:-------------------------------------------------------------------- 4:29 PM ThinkEDU Support TeamHi To order, just go to: http://shop.collegebuys.org/mobile-citizen-subscription-p1449.aspx 4:32 PM [redacted]I've been there already. It says I need to cancel my current Clear account and send you the confirmation # from Clear BEFORE I purchase. Clear didn't include a confirmation # in the email, 4:34 PM ThinkEDU Support TeamThat's OK. It should be fine. Just fill out the order and make sure your MacID is correct. 4:35 PM [redacted]So just ignore the instructions about emailing confirmation & cancellation date before buying? 4:36 PM ThinkEDU Support TeamCorrect. As long as you know your device is no longer attached to any other Mobile Citizen service. 4:38 PM [redacted]Um, I don't have a Mobile Citizen account. I've had a Clear account for a few years and the device will be attached to my Clear account until April 8th. 4:39 PM ThinkEDU Support TeamWhat's your MacID? 4:39 PM [redacted]00:1D:88:81:19:0D 4:41 PM ThinkEDU Support Team[redacted], I'm not sure if they need to wait until April 8th. Here's what I would do. Go ahead and order. At best, you will have service from this account next Wednesday. At worst, next Friday. If any issues crop up, our Mobile Team will reach out to you.----------------------------------------------------Fact: I ordered a 30-day subscription and paid $15 on March 17. I included a note on the order explaining that my Clear Wireless account would be cancelled effective April 8.Fact: Not long after ordering, I received a voicemail from Ryan at CollegeBuys and returned the call. He explained that he'd arrange the timing with Mobile Citizen so service should start on April 9 and I'd be without internet for "no more than a day." I remember that quote clearly because paying extra for temporary internet service would be a financial hardship for me.Fact: Although I ordered and paid for a Mobile Citizen subscription on March 17, SERVICE DIDN'T START UP UNTIL THE NEXT MONTH ON APRIL 15, a full 7 days after my Clear service ended. Where Mr. [redacted] came up with a quote about "5 days" I don't know.Fact: I have received nothing for free. I paid a total of $30 to CollegeBuys for 60 days of service and have received 58 days of service thus far, less the time when service was suspended after CollegeBuys attempted to bill my card early. In addition to that $30, I paid $55.80 for temporary wifi. I want Mr. [redacted] to explain, in detail, how and when I allegedly received "nearly 60 days of free service."Fact: At no time did I want a refund of fees for the final month of Clear Wireless service, so - obviously - I never requested one, either from Clear or from CollegeBuys. It goes without saying that no one ever informed me I would have to communicate with Clear Wireless about a refund I never asked for.Fact: I requested credit for unexpected wifi expenses due to screw ups by CollegeBuys staff/agents. It is really unfortunate that Mr. [redacted] cannot grasp that (1) Clear Wireless billing is independent of unexpected temporary wifi fees, (2) a service activation delay lasting from April 9 to April 15 does not equal 1 business day, (3) his contention that I received nearly 2 months of free internet service is utterly preposterous.Additionally, I received notice that CollegeBuys is discontinuing Mobile Citizen internet subscriptions. Therefore, I need to amend my original request for reimbursement in the form of an account credit to a reimbursement by check. Also, in light of the insulting correspondence from Mr. [redacted], I'm no longer willing to accept a partial reimbursement. I want the full amount of $55.80 that I deserve.Sincerely,[redacted]