Refurbished Phones from TracFone

Did you get a refurbished phone from TracFone that doesn’t work? Were you sold a refurbished phone as new? Here’s what you can do. 

Refurbished phone deals and promises from TracFone

TracFone offers deals on refurbished phones for new and existing customers. When you shop in the TracFone store they will list deals for reconditioned phones like Samsung Galaxy versions. Many of these reconditioned phones are incredibly inexpensive, some as low as $10 per phone. 

The company offers prepaid smartphones that are available for 4G connection, some for 5G connection and they include things like activation cards, batteries, and chargers. The caveat is you have to purchase a plan from the company but otherwise they state that the prepaid phones are in great condition and they list all of the dimensions and specifications.

What to do if your refurbished phone doesn’t work or was sold as new

If your refurbished phone from TracFone doesn’t work or you were sold a refurbished phone as new, you should first report it to the company. Assuming you bought it from a physical store, report it to that store. If you purchased it online, report it at the customer service level.

If the phone was actually blacklisted or stolen, you have to not only report it to TracFone but report it to your local police.

After that you can file official, formal complaints and post informal complaints.

File Formal Complaints against TracFone

The first place to start is at the federal level with the Federal Communications Commission or FCC. The FCC encourages you to report acts of fraud or scam like refurbished phone scams. If enough customers submit official, formal complaints, it will give the FCC leverage to investigate the issue at large and potentially enforce changes. If your phone problem had to do with a blacklisted or stolen phone, you can report that to the FTC or Federal Trade Commission.

• You can file a complaint with the FCC online here or report FTC fraud here.

You can search for your State’s Attorney General’s office and submit an official complaint. Most of these can be done online but you can also send them by mail if you prefer a hard copy for your formal complaint. State offices may be limited in terms of the regulatory power for telecom companies, but the more official complaints they have, the more likely it is they can take action.

• You can find your state Attorney General office here.

Tip: To learn more about what is currently going on or under review between the FTC and TracFone, you can explore data in your state or area online at ftc.gov/exploredata.

Post Informal Complaints against TracFone

The Better Business Bureau is a good place to submit a complaint especially if your problem is with a specific branch and not the company as a whole. Sometimes they can advocate on your behalf and other times the company will respond directly to your issue and try to publicize the resolution process and the resolution you reach, but there’s no guarantee.

• You can file a complaint with the BBB here. 

Consumer Affairs is a popular review website where people like yourself can check out the behaviors of big companies before they invest in cell phones. It is unlikely that this will generate any type of response from the company or rectify the issue of your refurbished phone not working, but it can help other buyers be made aware of refurbished phone scams.

• You can file a complaint with ConsumerAffairs.com online.

The last thing you can do is share your complaint on social media and tag the company. Some companies respond to social media because of how public it is.

• You can try to contact TracFone via Twitter, though they may not be as active as bigger companies. 

Tip: Unsure whether your “new” phone is actually new? You can use some quick tests at home. 

What to Do After Submitting Your TracFone Complaint

Keep copies of any complaints you submit as well as digital receipts for informal submissions. This information might be useful down the line if you have to follow up with TracFone or seek another method for resolution.

Get a Resolution using Consumer Arbitration

If these methods don’t give you personal resolution or compensation for your troubles, we can help. Through consumer arbitration we can reach out to these companies on your behalf and get you a solution.