Cell phone post-bk

[bkbkbk]

My 2-year cell phone plan will end in a few months, and I want to cancel it. I will probably file bk in a couple of months. Is it hard to get a new cell phone plan soon after bk? What about getting a prepaid plan--is that easier?

[rrockinggramma]

I have found that after BK many require security deposits. Prepaid is ok if you don't use it much.

[Granny]

I had been with my cell phone company for 10 years. I had a personal account and then when my husband went back into business, I moved my personal phone to the company account. After he closed the business (post-bk), I wanted to put the phones back in my name. The stupid company, a reseller for Cingular, wanted to charge me a deposit because they pulled a credit report. The store clerk understood what I was trying to do and sympathized with me and worked with the billing department until they could finally see that the only change was in the billing name and I didn't have to pay the deposit after all, but it was a nightmare and could have been costly if the clerk hadn't intervened. So if you have the opportunity, made the change before you file. Even if you have to pay a cancellation fee, it may be less expensive than a deposit.

[FreshLikeADaisy]

I have found that after BK many require security deposits. Prepaid is ok if you don't use it much.

I like the prepaid; I don't use it all that much. I ended up getting a Net10 because no matter where you call, U.S. is always 10 cents a minute, ever. That actually beat most of the other prepays that I saw, and I'm happy with it. I also have a Tracphone (someone in my family wanted an excuse to get a new phone, so I ended up with this thing) and ugh, can't wait to get rid of it. But I used that number for the bk filing so I have to keep it for a while. (I wanted a number I hadn't used anywhere else to see who and what is groping through bk filings for debtor info, either for credit apps or collections. If a creditor called it claiming they were not informed of the bk... )

[magyar123]

My 2-year cell phone plan will end in a few months, and I want to cancel it. I will probably file bk in a couple of months. Is it hard to get a new cell phone plan soon after bk? What about getting a prepaid plan--is that easier?

Since you intend to file "in a couple of months", get the new cell phone now.
I assume that as of right now you still have a good payment history with your current cell phone outfit.

[HRx]

Keep in mind that not only BK can make getting a subscriber cell phone difficult/expensive, delinquent credit accounts will affect you too.

[BassBoy]

We went with T-Mobile about 2 months after our discharge and there was no security deposit required. We got the lowest plan possible (700 shared whenever, unlimited mobile-to-mobile and free nights and weekends) because we don't talk that much.......$56/month.

[chieffan123]

I was surprised to get a notice from Alltel demanding a $300 deposit on an account that is current and not listed in my bankruptcy. I guess they really don't want my money any more.

My point is no matter if you change now or later they may very well demand a deposit at some point after you file.

[jp2861]

I use prepaid, but only use it for incoming calls. All of my outbound calls are made from the computer. Neither require a deposit.

[PaKettle]

I like the prepaid; I don't use it all that much. I ended up getting a Net10 because no matter where you call, U.S. is always 10 cents a minute, ever. That actually beat most of the other prepays that I saw, and I'm happy with it. I also have a Tracphone (someone in my family wanted an excuse to get a new phone, so I ended up with this thing) and ugh, can't wait to get rid of it. But I used that number for the bk filing so I have to keep it for a while. (I wanted a number I hadn't used anywhere else to see who and what is groping through bk filings for debtor info, either for credit apps or collections. If a creditor called it claiming they were not informed of the bk... )

Why do you hate your Tracfone? We have one and it seems to work just fine! (Is it a reception problem? Maybe depends on the actual phone and/or the area you are in?) We had an old style brick-like Tracfone and it did suck. Then we got a Motorola very small one and it works fine with Tracfone service. Admittedly we only use it occassionally, not for major conversations and not often.

I can also recommend another cell phone pre-paid service which is http://www.pagepluscellular.com/ . If you only use it for "emergencies" - that is, not every day all day - just when you need to call when you're out and about - it is a very good deal. It's actually cheaper for us than tracfone. The one catch is you have to remember to renew the minutes every 120 days or else you lose your minutes. If you do renew then your minutes rollover. I just set my electronic calendar to remind myself. And twice they have compromised with me when I forgot to renew, and given me back at least most of my minutes. You can get a phone for $40 then the minutes are 83 minutes for $10 or 300 minutes for $25 or 700 minutes for $50. (includes service for 120 days.) The per minute price is not that cheap but we only use 30-40 min. a month so it's a great deal if you do'nt talk much. Comes out to about $30-50/year for service! And I've never had any coverage problems with it.