Cell Phones After Bankruptcy

[nioka]

I have been reading several posts at other sites about people being refused by Verizon and others because they have had a bankruptcy. One post stated that Verizon wanted a $1200 deposit.
I was thinking about getting a new cell phone with Verizon because where I am at I can only get 3G and service is not too good. I am with Straight Talk which worked OK at my last location but at my new location it is not working too good at all. I am told that they use Verizon towers but are restricted on how many and which ones causing the service to be lacking.
Anyone have a experience with cell phones after bk?

[avengers]

Are you absolutely sure that no other carriers work in your area? From T-Mobile, I got a relatively inexpensive Android phone on the latest release for $130 and a monthly cost of $45 for unlimited talk and text and 2 GB/month. T-Mobile is definitely cheaper than Verizon in most cases.

[nioka]

The point I was trying to make was that Verizon and others are refusing to provide service, or charging huge deposits, to those who have filed bankruptcy.

[AngelinaCat]

Get a pay as you go plan. 'Hub and I have that with Verizon, and so far we are pleased. We just do the phone calls. We do not do chat, text, or anything else. We don't need all that *krap*. We just like to have the phones in case of emergency.

[avengers]

The point I was trying to make was that Verizon and others are refusing to provide service, or charging huge deposits, to those who have filed bankruptcy.

And the point I was trying to make was to avoid providers that do so. I filed chapter 7 last week and got a new Pay as you go phone from T-Mobile this week. No deposit. No credit check. Just pay $130 (plus tax) and $45/month. And it's not some crappy 2 year old Android phone. It's an LG L90 that is capable of 4G (though not LTE). It's not a top of the line phone, but I was very surprised at how advanced it is (4.7" screen, good responsiveness.) The last pay as you go phone I got was so ancient, I couldn't even run any apps. This phone is nearly as good as top of the line phones like the LG G3 or Galaxy S4.

Pay as you go is probably the best way to do so for you.

[nioka]

Thanks to all.

I recently moved just before my house was foreclosed. I had good service with Comcast and Straight Talk.
In my new location I am stuck with Charter. Internet running at .5Mbps and tv picture degraded. I am now using an antenna and getting all network stations with a great picture. The only phone service that is decent here is from Verizon.
Walmart has a Galaxy S3 which is suppose to run on Verizon towers. I suppose that is my only option.

[PANSYFACE]

We had no problem at all getting new service from Verizon - 6 months after discharge. We even got a $ 100 rebate on a new smartphone L2G2. 2 year contract - no problem.

[justbroke]

The point I was trying to make was that Verizon and others are refusing to provide service, or charging huge deposits, to those who have filed bankruptcy.

I have never had this problem. I have had post-bankruptcy accounts with AT&T, Verizon and Sprint. What they really like to look for is your experience with utility accounts. If you have charge-offs and/or late pays for other telephone, cellular or utility service on your credit report, expect them to demand a deposit.

[mavric]

You could go to e-bay and buy a Verizon phone. Cheap less than $100 and some very nice phones too. then use Verizon pay-as-go OR

Check out Page-plus, they use Verizon service.

[MIGirl]

I use Virgin Mobile, all prepaid with good plans.

[nioka]

Justbroke,

I believe you explained it correctly.

After reading several posts at other forums about service refusal from Verizon I went in to see what would happen. (My chapter 7 bk was in July 2014). I explained my situation to a Verizon rep who ran my info and said, "you're approved." I expected to sign a two year contract and pay $299 for the phone I wanted. Instead I was offered the Edge program, (no contract), and they let me have the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 with one payment. After reading all the negative posts about getting Verizon I was surprised with my experience.

I had Straight Talk before I moved to my new location and it worked well before but not so good at my new location. Verizon is pretty much the only carrier that provides service throughout this new location.

I also had Charter installed. The internet is horrible running at .5Mbps and the cable video is degraded. Now that I have the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 I will be dropping Charter saving $115 and month. I will also be saving $45 on Straight Talk. I estimate that with my data usage my Verizon phone will cost me $90 a month and replace both Charter and Straight Talk. I will also use a laptop with no pertinent info on it at wifi locations for extensive web surfing.
I forgot to mention I installed an antenna for my tv and am receiving all network stations in HD.

I should be able to save about $50-70 a month depending on my data usage plus build my credit with Verizon.

[brokehmowner]

I am wondering if it depends on the chapter? This is truly unrelated, but may shed some light. I was chapter 7 last Oct and somewhere around May, I believe, I tried for a Cap One credit card just so I could get a free credit report when they turned me down. I was shocked that it went through (not a secured card either), so I told a friend who is in year 3 of a chapter 13. She had been trying to get a CC just for car rental purposes only. She was turned down and the reason was recent bk, even though she actually filed about 3 years ago.

I could be wrong though; this may have no bearing on cell phone approval at all.

[switch625]

Almost a year to the day, I switched from Sprint to Verizon two-year contract, but this was a few weeks before filing the petition. Long story short, my Sprint smartphone was all busted up and wanted a new one before I filed. I also had a Verizon account my wife and son are on and I always wanted to go to Verizon anyway and wanted to join them to make one family plan. I didn't pay Sprint and had a past due that wasn't included in my petition..Sprint learned of my BK a couple months later and filed a proof of claim.

[Sammie]

We switched from Cellular to AT&T this past Summer and we were still in our Chapter 13 without a problem. Now discharged 2 wks. we are going to AT&T this afternoon to get a new phone since my husbands phone was "stolen" over the weekend.

[tissa]

For those who want Verizon without the Hassle try PAGEPLUS they are a third party cellular company that works on Verizon's network. You pay a little extra for roaming. And if you are happy with a low data plan it can be a lot cheaper then Verizon we pay $24 a month for two phones. We only get 250 minutes, 250 texts and 10Mgs of data each but its enough for us.