Closing the account is a time consuming nuisance.

[DaveTicked]

I think that I have finally submitted a ticket to get my account closed.  If it is an option somewhere, it was not visible to me.  Since PM forced me to set up a PM Community Account as well as my PM Account, just to contact them, as well as making me sign in a number of times during the process, I am using this opportunity to post about what a waste of my time this process has been.

PM should make closing the account a selectable option within a person's online account.  This and the "Bot" were ridiculous.

Thank you for wasting my time PM.    

[DaveTicked]

No issue with the agents.  They were both helpful.

[Korth]

Remember that you're dealing with a call-center. Different people take the ticket off the top of the pile. Different people work on different shifts. The halcyon days of a few highly-active, highly-capable, highly-invested, on-the-ball agents (like Mary_M and Shazia_K) are lost. And Telus loves high automation, that stupid chatbot probably intercepts and "solves" countless customer issues.

I wouldn't personally care much who responds to my ticket if my issue was resolved in the same session. It's frustrating these days because they're all following the script, ticking the boxes, and passing the ticket from agent to agent along the tier. It seems like no single agent actually has agency anymore.

[DaveTicked]

More correctly, I should have written: "I never saw the notification".

[HALIMACS]

Whoa @DaveTicked 

When you write, "despite checking my Inbox, Spam, and Trash (emphasis added by me)  I never saw that message", do you possibly mean you are trying to reply to the message via your email account and not the private message service within your community account?

If you have all notifications of community content being sent to your email, it might appear that you can reply via email but that is simply a notification there's something in your community account to either read,  retrieve, or respond to.

[DaveTicked]

Yep.  Some people could have completely legitimate reasons for not following up.

[beabea]

Fed up with Public Mobile too, and cancelling is a fun party: Public Mobile does not recognize my saved password, does not send code to either email or phone, so I cannot open account in order to cancel service. I pay in advance so Public Mobile can just take out funds every month and I don't have to worry about it. I guess I could 'disable' but no direction on how to get refund.  

[LitlLdy]

@DaveTicked , I don’t know if you will see this messages but thank you for taking the time to come back on to update us. Unfortunately many people wouldn’t! 😕

I know it’s a frustrating process but I am happy for you that it finally got resolved!

Yes, many of us agree that the self serve platform is not how it should be & even the frustration of trying to get signed in without issues! I personally don’t like that we need 3 sign ins for 1 account (Community Account, My Account & Rewards Account)! They should all be combined.

 I hope all goes well for you in life from here on out.

[Patchio]

@DaveTicked 

Yes, there are often times when users make posts about their problems, or go to the Community forum looking for help, and then they don’t let other Community members know how things turned out with their issue(s).

Some of them may mark one of the responses on their post as a solution, while others may go radio silent and never post again until they experience yet another problem. But like you pointed out, people are busy and have lives to live and things to do. It’s hard to fault another PM user for not “providing an update” if they already spent a ton of time trying to resolve their issue OR they are still awaiting a satisfactory outcome on their issue.

There have also been instances where a user did update the Community on how things turned out with their issue, and it hasn’t always been sunshine and lollipops either.

When things turn out well and the issue gets resolved, the Community is happy to hear about the outcome, but when the issue is unresolved and the user posts critical statements regarding the lack of support and contradictory statements they received from the CS_Agents, some Community members have shown a hostile inclination to discredit the user’s side of the story and blame them for their ongoing issues.

Given the polarizing nature of the Community forum, I wouldn’t blame a user for not providing an update on how things turned out with their issue.

[DaveTicked]

I hate it when people make posts about problems, or look for help, and then do not let the readers know how things turned out.  First of all, both "Mario" and "Luis" are helpful people not unhelpful Bots.
Today I got an email that my ticket had been closed because I had not replied in 24 hours .  "Do not reply to this message.  Please open a new ticket if you need something."  Yeah right.  I would just love to spend another hour dealing with "Simon Bot".

 It turned out that I had succeeded in opening a ticket and that Mario had sent me a message early yesterday afternoon.  Alas, despite checking my Inbox, Spam, and Trash regularly I never saw that message.

I tried replying to Mario's message from yesterday, despite the ticket being closed, and "Luis" replied.  After confirming who I am, yet again, Luis confirmed that my credit card had been removed from my account (by Mario, I think), that the account will be closed in 90 days, and that I will not be billed anymore.
So: once I was able to get in contact the request was resolved quite quickly.

I would also like to make it clear that I had no complaints with the actual phone service.  I was closing the account because the service was not needed anymore.

PM still does not get forgiveness for it's horrible contact process or for denying self service in it's "self service" platform.  It says something about PM's attitude towards its customers that it will not close the account for 90 days, but it will close a person's ticket if there is not a response in 24 hours.  People are busy and in rural areas a person could be easily be away from internet service for a few days.

Anyhow, that's the story. 

[dabr]

---

@LitlLdy wrote:

---

@dabr wrote:

@Korth   Unfortunately, PM did away with allowing us to remove our payment card from the account and now we need support to do that since the self serve account was updated last summer.  We can disable autopay but there have been instances of customers still having charges go through after doing this, so I would definitely contact support to remove any payment card just in case.  

Also PM has, unfortunately, chosen to ignore requests to give us back control of removing our payment cards ourselves so far.

---

@dabr , I find it really frustrating & it makes 0 sense to me that they took the option away from us to manually remove our own payment cards from our own accounts that we pay for! It just causes many more support tickets to be created & in turn costing them more money!

---

@LitlLdy    This particular change is very frustrating for most customers and I'd like to know if it's even totally legal, although I suspect Telus would have had their legal dept. ensure they're operating within the spirit of any legal parameters even if it's a morally suspect move.

[DaveTicked]

Good info, good point.

[HALIMACS]

Indeed.    One could engage the Office of Privacy Commissioner to have them involved in ensuring a Company deletes and purges such personal information from their records.

However, that's going a bit far, IMHO.

In these days, nothing is really private anymore ... people just are led to believe it is.

[LitlLdy]

@Korth , I’ve seen to many reports from angry previous Customers (no longer Customers) posting that even though their Credit Cards were removed from their accounts before leaving Public Mobile their Credit Cards were still randomly charged months later after accounts were closed! No one has a clue yet how it happened but the proof was on their credit card statements!
Also, the same info with Credit Cards being charged from closed accounts where the phone numbers were ported out yet charged again on their Credit Cards months later! That doesn’t seem right at all!

[Korth]

@HALIMACS 

Databrokers and dataminers will never, ever delete any scrap of data they've collected from any known subscriber. The Big Three each make a lot of money from "your" data and telemetry. Telus in particular is far more than a phone company and internet provider, they're big into machine learning analytics and DPI monitoring and all that other evil internet corporation stuff.

But you can get compliance with your request/demand to "delete" your credit card number, with verbal or written proof if you're careful/paranoid about it. I suppose such documentation is basically the first piece of paper you'd wave around in a courtroom if/when the merchant applies additional charge(s) to your credit card. Such is the thinking process, anyhow.

[HALIMACS]

I completely agree, @Korth 

Thing is, one's credit card information and personal information is never truly 'wiped' when it's 'cleared' from a field.   There's always a record of what once existed and it's retrievable by the company if they truly wished to get it.

Also, I would routinely recommend to users here to always use a pseudonym and provide no personal or identifiable information on their profile.  The ONLY information which is really needed is a valid e-mail address to activate here. 

All other fields can be purely fictional.  (which of course you know...)

[HALIMACS]

There's no such thing as "nonpayment" with a prepaid provider.

Either you prepay for another cycle, or you don't.

Zero implications on one's credit with prepaid services.

[DaveTicked]

This is a good idea, but I should not have to post in a forum to find out how to do that.  Also and could there be credit history  implications for "nonpayment".

[Korth]

I can understand dissatisfied customers wanting to ensure that their payment/credit card information and perhaps their personal information is all deleted in all the records of a company they no longer trust. You wouldn't want someone you don't trust to have access to your bank account and home address.

[HALIMACS]

@DaveTicked 

Interesting thread - still don't get the need to 'close' an account.

Stop paying by removing the little checkmark by the "Pre-Authorized Payments" box in the Payment ➡️ Manage Payment Method tab on self serve, then the account will close.

Move the number to another provider (they do it for you when activating elsewhere), then the account will close.

Either way works.

Pick one.

No need to call anyone, no need to message anyone, no need to submit a ticket.

[LitlLdy]

---

@Korth wrote:

---

@DaveTicked wrote:

I looked for a phone number but could not find one.  That is very helpful.  Again, something that should be obvious and easy to find!

---

... yes, you would think a phone company would have a support phone number ... and that they'd put it somewhere obvious, like, say, maybe on their main homepage or in their support chatbot greeting text ...

---

@Korth , except I wouldn’t call it a support phone # due to theres no human to talk to! It’s the same as dialling 611 from your phone to do the same thing “a system that lets you basic things on your account “!

[Korth]

---

@DaveTicked wrote:

I looked for a phone number but could not find one.  That is very helpful.  Again, something that should be obvious and easy to find!

---

... yes, you would think a phone company would have a support phone number ... and that they'd put it somewhere obvious, like, say, maybe on their main homepage or in their support chatbot greeting text ...

[DaveTicked]

Thanks for that.  I looked for a phone number but could not find one.  That is very helpful.  Again, something that should be obvious and easy to find!

[dust2dust]

Mario would be real as long as the username is CS_Agent. It sounds like you did the private message method and not the formal ticket process.

Another path into the dial-in system is 1-855-4pu-blic as long as you know the phone number. You can do a few things if you have the 4 digit account pin and a few that don't need the pin.

[LitlLdy]

---

@Korth wrote:

---

@dust2dust wrote:

On principle I agree with Korth. Wouldn't it be nice if Public promptly made changes to their system as suggestions happen ...

---

Wouldn't it be nice indeed. But I never said anything about promptly. Most problems are not addressed or even openly acknowledged until a significant number of customers have complained and are threatening to leave or have even already left. Sometimes the loudest, angriest, rudest voices are heard more clearly than any others. I could also list a few changes which have been oft-discussed, oft-requested, oft-demanded yet which have never been implemented and have even conspicuously failed to ever be mentioned by Public Mobile. Things directed at them and unanswered, unnoticed, ignored so many times that their lack of response can only be seen as deliberate.

Still, problems have been addressed, issues have been fixed, improvements have been made. Sometimes a step down instead of a step up. the Public Mobile I'm with today is not the Public Mobile I signed up with years ago. Yet many individual and overall improvements have gradually taken hold. Because Public Mobile chose to respond to negative customer feedback. It's not perfect but it's gotten better before so I still hope it'll get better again.

And all other commentary about Public Mobile aside ... it's still (in my opinion) a better deal than I'd find anywhere else. The other carriers all cost more, are almost as bad in some details, and are even worse in others.

“Sometimes the loudest, angriest, rudest voices are heard more clearly than any others.”

---

@Korth  , Unfortunately though sometimes they’re also banned from the Community or their posts are removed! Censorship!

 I personally have a long wish list here that needs fixed/addressed!

[DaveTicked]

Thanks for all the replies.  I think that I did eventually get a ticket opened, although so far the only communication was from a "Mario" who required me to verify my account again; for about the 8th time so far.  I am not sure if "Mario" is actually a person or another bot.  I was not aware of *611.  However I had set this phone up for an elderly person's emergency use and I do not have access to the actual phone.

[Korth]

---

@dust2dust wrote:

On principle I agree with Korth. Wouldn't it be nice if Public promptly made changes to their system as suggestions happen ...

---

Wouldn't it be nice indeed. But I never said anything about promptly. Most problems are not addressed or even openly acknowledged until a significant number of customers have complained and are threatening to leave or have even already left. Sometimes the loudest, angriest, rudest voices are heard more clearly than any others. I could also list a few changes which have been oft-discussed, oft-requested, oft-demanded yet which have never been implemented and have even conspicuously failed to ever be mentioned by Public Mobile. Things directed at them and unanswered, unnoticed, ignored so many times that their lack of response can only be seen as deliberate. A tacit outline of topics they don't want to discuss, of problems they don't care to fix, of features they already decided to not implement.

Still, problems have been addressed, issues have been fixed, improvements have been made. Sometimes a step down instead of a step up. the Public Mobile I'm with today is not the Public Mobile I signed up with years ago. Our feedback and suggestions are not really wanted, needed, or heeded anymore, the old "Idea Lab" is long gone. Yet many individual and overall improvements have gradually taken hold because failing to implement them would've lost subscribers, lose revenue, damage the brand. Because Public Mobile chose to respond to negative customer feedback. It's not perfect but it's gotten better before so I still hope it'll get better again.

And all other commentary about Public Mobile aside ... it's still (in my opinion) a better deal than I'd find anywhere else. The other carriers all cost more, are almost as bad in some details, and are even worse in others.

[LitlLdy]

---

@DaveTicked wrote:

Sincere thanks LitlLdy.  The main purpose of this post was to (hopefully) get Public Mobile's attention.

---

@DaveTicked , I understand. Thank you for sharing your feedback about the experiences you’ve had with Public Mobile.
It is unlikely that any of Public Mobile’s Employees will see these posts but we as Customers do & will along with potential Customers looking to sign up with Public Mobile! So, it’s important to share our experiences with each other so we can make decisions on whether or not we want to stay / sign up with Public Mobile!

[dust2dust]

On principle I agree with Korth. Wouldn't it be nice if Public promptly made changes to their system as suggestions happen. Not anything resembling a reality here though. Far from it.

So another option for others that might/may/would read this is to know when ones renewal date is and then pause the credit card at the credit card side. The payment will fail and then that's that. 90 days later, history.

Adding - oh and another option is to use a zero balance visa gift card. We can still change the card. Change to the gift card and payment fails and again that's that.

I also don't really see a need for a specific close account function when it's a pre-pay service. You don't pay, you don't get service. For many places, if you're not active and doing anything with their service then they close the account out anyway. adding - as we see with post-90 days.

[DaveTicked]

Sincere thanks LitlLdy.  The main purpose of this post was to (hopefully) get Public Mobile's attention.

[LitlLdy]

---

@dabr wrote:

@Korth   Unfortunately, PM did away with allowing us to remove our payment card from the account and now we need support to do that since the self serve account was updated last summer.  We can disable autopay but there have been instances of customers still having charges go through after doing this, so I would definitely contact support to remove any payment card just in case.  

Also PM has, unfortunately, chosen to ignore requests to give us back control of removing our payment cards ourselves so far.

---

@dabr , I find it really frustrating & it makes 0 sense to me that they took the option away from us to manually remove our own payment cards from our own accounts that we pay for! It just causes many more support tickets to be created & in turn costing them more money!