Jeez, it’s no wonder people are leaving AT&T Wireless in droves now that number portability is in play.(Assuming they can actually get out with all the problems AT & T has had releasing numbers.) The customer service aspect of their company is so fundamentally flawed it is ridiculous.

A couple of months ago, I switched from their old school TDMA service to GPRS, complete with shiny new smartphone. I have had an account with them for six years. In the switchover, they lost all of the billing settings that I had set up with them, but never mentioned that this would be the case. A month ago, I got a call from them saying that my account was overdue. I immediately paid the balance, but was confused as to why they didn't automatically bill me, like they had been doing for six years. I was informed that I had to log into their customer service Web site to set this up, and that they could not do the set up(re-setup from my perspective) over the phone. So I went to the site, and attempted to log into the system with the username and password I had been using all along. No dice. I was informed that I had to re-register for the customer service Web site. What? I have had an account for six years, you have all of my information. So I attempted to re-register. I was then informed that an account for my phone number already existed. Well, duh, I've had an account for six years. I was then informed that I should call a customer service number if I received this message. Ok, I'll call customer service and clear this up. I called and navigated through their voice activated menu system to the correct option. "We're sorry, we cannot answer your call right now. Please call us back at a later time."

What? Oh, I wonder why the number could possibly be so busy? I am currently printing a number portability checklist. Goodbye AT & T, and thanks for nothing.