AT&T Store — Local services in Kirkland

I was a customer of AT&T Wireless (variously post-paid and pre-paid) for 21 consecutive years, giving them in this time at least $15k in total fees. This despite the often poor service coverage, as they clumsily sought to integrate various networks they had bought up in the 2000s. And despite innumerable awful customer service experiences, where I might need to invest hours on the phone with them trying to fix a problem (where I could have to endure repeated call drops, waiting on hold endlessly, being put on hold by an agent and then abruptly finding myself speaking to a new agent that I would have to start over with, etc., etc., etc.), and where too often the "solution" (such as changing some aspect of my plan) would be done incorrectly, so I'd have to call back AGAIN to fix that new problem too.

I finally gave up and switched to T-Mobile in the fall of 2021. Switching was absolutely painless - took just a few minutes. While T-Mobile did not have as good of service coverage, they at least had a much more adequate (though inconsistent and often ridiculously cheery) customer service.

Because I could qualify for the ACP government subsidy, which T-Mobile wasn't accepting, and also because I expected to soon be in a place for an extended period that has very little T-Mobile service but does have AT&T service, I risked switching back.

What a disaster! Collectively 6 hours on the phone with AT&T trying to set up service with ACP and transfer my number, which still failed!

So I finally resorted to going to an AT&T store (the Totem Lake one) to get help. The staff was friendly and helpful - this was a pleasant surprise. And THREE hours later (with one of their own staff on the phone with AT&T much of this time), and with some charges to my credit card that they assured me they would refund after the fact, I finally walked out with the service mostly in place, though I STILL had to call AT&T the next day to get the ACP applied to my ported number. Another 1.5-hour investment for me.

I returned today to request the promised refund. Lo and behold, they refused to refund me. Henry, a manager, claimed they never promised this, even though Ali, a staff member I worked with who did all the calling, had added up on his page of notes the amount I had paid in 3 separate transactions, to document how much I would be refunded later.

So literally, after giving the amount of money I have to AT&T over 21 years, they actually had the audacity to simply say "no" to a comparatively trivial amount of money. To offer no kind of acknowledgement of my truth - basically saying I was sorely mistaken.

What horrible customer service.

So beware: don't be fooled by initial friendliness, because they don't take prisoners. Get any agreements or promises in writing that you take with you. Don't trust Henry. Ali has no power, so don't trust him either. And Vanya, also a manager, may likewise not be trustworthy either - we'll see how she responds when I may try to call the store in the coming days to briefly discuss my experience. Or not.

Not that I would expect any other AT&T store to be any better, based upon my 21 years of experience with the company. While their service coverage is pretty good, and there are certainly well-intentioned and hard-working people within the company, these don't overcome cultural and technological challenges that create one disappointment after another after...

Deceived, Overcharged, and Dismissed – AT&T Customers Be Cautious

About three months ago, I stopped into what I believed was an AT&T store at 228 Park Ln, Kirkland, WA. I was told by a sales associate that if I upgraded my iPhone, I’d receive a $250 credit toward any accessory. I wasn’t planning to upgrade — my iPhone 11 was working fine — but the deal sounded great. I went ahead and upgraded to an iPhone 16, traded in my old phone, and picked an accessory under the impression the credit would apply.

Recently, I noticed my phone bill was significantly higher than usual, so I visited the Totem Lake Village AT&T store to ask about it. The associate I spoke with, Brad, gave off a dismissive attitude right from the start. He barely looked into my account before brushing me off and telling me that no such $250 accessory promotion had ever existed. He also informed me that I was paying monthly installments on the “free” accessory and had been enrolled in the “Next Up” program — without my consent.

Brad showed zero empathy and zero accountability. Rather than help resolve the issue, he pushed the responsibility off and told me to call AT&T’s customer service (611) — like it was someone else’s problem.

I called 611 and spent over an hour being transferred between departments and put on hold. Eventually, I was told there was nothing they could do, and then the call was dropped while I was waiting for an escalation specialist.

Still frustrated, I drove to the original store at Park Ln — only to find it closed at 5 PM, even though posted hours said they were open until 7. I then called the Totem Lake store back and asked to speak with a manager. That’s when I got David.

David explained that the Park Ln location was not a corporate AT&T store, but an authorized retailer, and admitted they’ve been hearing reports of these stores scamming customers with fake promotions to drive upgrades or line additions. Despite confirming this, he said there was nothing he could do to correct the situation.

When I asked how customers are supposed to know whether a store is corporate or authorized, his response was dismissive and borderline insulting:

“I can give you a vindictive answer if you’d like… You should have Googled it. The average customer wouldn’t know, but smart customers ask or Google which stores are corporate.”

AT&T — this is unacceptable.

Your name is being used by authorized retailers to deceive customers, and your corporate locations offer no solutions when those customers come looking for help. I acted in good faith and have been left with unauthorized charges, a more expensive plan, and a complete lack of accountability — all while being spoken down to by both Brad, who couldn’t be bothered to try, and David, who blamed me for not doing more research.

Do better — your customers deserve transparency, support, and a company that stands behind the name...

This AT&T store is a complete joke. I went in to order new iPhone 17 Pros with trade-in credits and clearly told the employee we’d be out of town on certain dates. He assured us the phones would arrive sooner — but of course, they shipped exactly when we weren’t home. To make it worse, we found out that he never even submitted the trade-in credits. When I called AT&T customer service, they said there were no trade-ins on file, so they were never going to mail us the trade-in kits - good thing I called. We even lost one of the trade-in values because the phone delivery was missed (see above WHY). We went back and forth to this store for nothing. The reps were useless and didn’t solve a single issue themselves, they relied on us calling corporate. Then another employee placed a new order and added a monthly ADD-ON feature that I never asked for OR approved (he never mentioned it, just did on his own accord). I caught it myself on the AT&T app and canceled it right away. Bottom line: this store is unprofessional, careless, and completely unhelpful. Save yourself the headache and just order online or call...