Verizon — Local services in Fairview Heights

I tried the Verizon internet service for several months before moving to the west coast. On 8/4/25 I attempted to return the modem box to the store I originally received it from, only to be told that I had to get a shipping label or return it to a Verizon company store. I called customer service and they gave me the address of this store as one that could receive it. I drove 20 minutes to this store only to be told that they did not take these and that UPS had a contract to take these. I took the box to a UPS store and they said that they needed a shipping label or QR code to take these boxes. I returned to the original store (Russell Cellular) and had the employee call customer service with me there. Customer service was unable to send me the QR code at the email I've been using with Verizon for 18 years. They then promised to send me a shipping label at my home address within 24-48 hours. At this point I had been trying to return a piece of equipment with VERIZON boldly printed on it for three hours. On 8/7/25 I called Verizon customer service to follow up since I had not received a shipping label. After about an hour on the phone the customer service representative was able to send me an email with the following instructions (4 hours total)

"Simply follow these instructions to return:

Gather the equipment, including any power cord(s) and bring it to one of the Verizon Company Stores listed below. Do not include any other equipment or accessories that you purchased as part of your Verizon Home Internet order.

Show the equipment to the Verizon Company Store representative and they’ll scan the serial number to begin the return.

The Verizon Company Store will process your return.

Don’t forget to ask for a return receipt for your reference."

On 8/8/25 I once again drove to this location to return Verizon's equipment. The store personnel argued with me about the return despite telling them that I had emailed instructions from their larger corporate entity to return the equipment at that location. Only after we were 30 minutes into the process, on speaker phone with corporate customer service, and I begin to read the return instructions (above) from the email did the store employee attempt to scan the serial number from the device and realize that they could indeed accept the modem for return. From that point to walking out with a receipt in hand took about two minutes.

Bottom line, this company wasted about five hours of my life trying to return their equipment. I will not be using Verizon for internet again. Personnel at this store were either ignorant of return procedures or, judging by the fact that the representative would not look at the email corporate had sent me, deliberately resistant to accepting this equipment and only willing to do their job when forced by a public spectacle. Either case demonstrates an unacceptable level of...

Horrible service at the Verizon store in Fairview Heights, IL. After an online order mix-up, I had to address it at this particular location. While they exchanged my phone, they mistakenly placed both the new and incorrect phones in my Verizon box that I brought in. I realized this only when I reached home, and with no direct store phone line, communication was difficult. I did attempt to call, but I was connected to a 3rd party call center that wouldn't relay the message or direct connect me to the store. Once the store realized what they had done, their immediate reaction made me feel as if I had done wrong, even though it was their oversight. Via text messages, they were expecting me to drop my weekend plans to resolve their issue. They even threatened to charge me for their error unless I returned it promptly (they did put a balance on my account!). Despite my attempts to request a call with a manager, there was no response. Per their request, I took time out of my schedule and arrived promptly at 10am on Monday, only to be kept waiting for over an hour without meeting the manager and watching other customers walk in, get support and walk out. After speaking up to a front end staff worker about what the issue was and why I was waiting so long, they went to the back (to talk to manager) and walked back with the new phone and stated the manager would not meet with me. I had to request for a receipt showing that my charge was cleared, otherwise they did not offer to provide that. It's concerning to see such a lack of leadership especially when you've boarderline harassed a customer for their own mistake. This store responded to this review with "we are going to look in to this and work on improving these issues" is really unnecessary and honestly a typical "blow off" response to your customers. Owners of this Verizon store, I would encourage you to take a deeper dive into your management, as they set the climate for the rest of the employees which trickle down to poor customer service. Possibly, this might not be a priority for you as you know this is the store all the surrounding satellite stores have to refer customers to when it is outside of their scope, so what does customer service matter, right? POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS, be cautious; this experience made me question their commitment to loyal clients and overall...

Extremely Disappointing In-Store Experience at Fairview Heights Location

After spending over seven hours being transferred between agents via the My Verizon app and on the phone, I finally scheduled an appointment at the nearest corporate store—an hour away—to return and exchange a phone I purchased last week.

During my call, an agent explained I could trade in my previous phone to make an upgrade more affordable, which made me genuinely excited. They assured me everything was noted in my account to avoid confusion at the store.

Unfortunately, the in-store experience at Fairview Heights couldn’t have been more disappointing.

From the moment I arrived, the associate was dismissive. When I mentioned the account notes, I was cut off with, “Yeah, well they aren’t me.” He seemed annoyed I was even there. Though he clearly knew what he was doing, his condescending tone and cold demeanor made the entire visit uncomfortable.

When I asked about the trade-in process while waiting, he simply stared at me and said, “I do it,” with no further explanation. I tried to make the most of the wait by browsing phone cases, only to be corrected in a similarly condescending tone. I picked a case I liked, but he later realized it was the wrong one and acted frustrated with me—despite the cases being disorganized and mislabeled.

He processed the return without saying a word. I had to ask for clarification, and even then, he only shook his head. When the phone transfer was done, he walked away without any kind of confirmation—no thank you, no goodbye, not even a simple “you’re all set.” My father and I were left standing there, unsure if we could leave.

This experience was incredibly frustrating, especially after the time I had already invested trying to handle things properly. Verizon, I hope you take this feedback seriously—no customer should be made to feel like a burden for simply trying to follow...