MCI says my number CAN'T be switched?

Posts: 1 · New Forum Member Joined: Mar 18, 2005 Posts: 1

I'm so confused...after moving house in November, we started the number transfer process. After finally getting the paperwork right on 11/15 they said it would be transferred. Right. I'm just so sick of this (since people can't reach me half the time) that I spent half the day today talking to vonage then to MCI (where I finally got someone in the United States!).
The final verdict from Vonage was that the process had been "escalated" and that the transfer was imminent...it was MCI's problem. I got my "ticket number" on a subsequent call to them and called MCI back.
The word from MCI was that their systems were incompatible and that it would simply not be possible for my number to be transferred.
Yeah, great.
So, knowing what I know now, I'm wondering if ANYONE has ever been able to get a number transferred from MCI (we had the neighborhood, and it looks like our number is being held by Qwest), or if there's just a black hole that I've been sucked into.
Oh, and I asked MCI for a credit for one month's service and they gave me one. Finally. I just hope I don't have occasion to use it!
Thanks!

Posts: 8 · New Forum Member Joined: Mar 07, 2005 Posts: 8

I just ported out of MCI myself 3 days ago. It was done in record speed and with no problems, so it looks like MCI is blowing smoke.

Get on the phone and speak to someone else., or threaten MCI by telling them that they WILL port you, or you'll just switch to another carrier who can port you out!!

Good luck!

Locas

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: Jul 25, 2005 Posts: 2

I'm with MCI. Submitted the port request in May. It's now 7/25 and I'm still waiting! Vonage tell me the request was rejected yesterday, but can't tell me why. They also recommend I do not call MCI about this, as it "may incur further delay". Who are they kidding?
If anyone can suggest who I should call, I'm open to suggestions...!

Posts: 12 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Jul 24, 2005 Posts: 12

I posted this message in another thread, but may be applicable to you:

"I started in April with the old LOA and then in May with the eLOA. After three emails from Vonage saying my LNP process was being terminated and three subsequent appologies AND my local phone service being terminated four days ago, my number finally was ported today.

I have come to find out that, despite their organizational chaos, Vonage managed to do some big things. Vonage was able to port my number. While Vonage, and many others' web sites said they could, this is not the case. One site said they could port my number, but when talking with their sales people, it turned out that they could give me a local number, but could not port my old one.

Second, while my local phone carrier terminated my service, they did not know how to transfer service to Vonage. I emailed Qwest and they replied with the statement "I apologize for the confusion and delay in responding to your e-mail". It is likely that Qwest was part of the problem in the whole process. It appears that Qwest has gone so long without competition, that they do not know what to do when they lose business. Therefore, kudos to Vonage for making it happen despite Qwest's confusion."

Also, when Vonage rejected me, I got onto the phone and emailed them to death. They really do seem to be experiencing growing pains.

Posts: 1 · New Forum Member Joined: Jul 27, 2005 Posts: 1

I'm in Texas, and my number was originally from SBC. I switched to MCI a long time ago. I told them that MCI was the carrier for the phone number, and it took them a total of 12 business days to get it switched. The switch finished yesterday, and it works fine now.

Remember that unless your existing carrier was the local Bell company, there are three parties involved in any switch - the existing carrier, the local Bell company (who owns the switching equipment that makes your number ring your phone), and Vonage. I would guess that there is some problem with the local Bell company - they are only doing this because they are forced to by the gov't, so if there is any problem at all, they will not help you. Best advice I heard - call your local Bell company, and if they don't help, call your state's public utility commission.

Posts: 8 · New Forum Member Joined: Jul 31, 2005 Posts: 8

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/complaints.html

Posts: 37 · Vonage Forum Junior Joined: Jul 12, 2006 Posts: 37

wow, talking about digging up an old thread.

I am on MCI. Just called MCI and they said they have not received a request from Vonage to transfer my number. Ugh! Evil or Very Mad

Posts: 1 · New Forum Member Joined: Oct 31, 2006 Posts: 1

Now in my third month of transfer hell, there is no end in sight. MCI neighborhood has been a total nightmare with errors and mismatches and Vonage just as bad with transfer service. Errors in authorization that nobody could see for 2 months in transfer dept and then finally somebody else finds it. Nobody seems to know anything and vonage just keeps saying we are creating another "ticket" and "escalating" it. Right! One more ticket. Today I threatened to cancel my account unless somebody who knows how to think can deal with my issue. I am also convinced MCI is at fault for a lot of this, and they are totally useless having made so many mistakes with my account in the past year that I cannot even attempt to write about it or I will get angina and my blood pressure goes sky high. MCI among other things canceled by MISTAKE my main phone number -- and then said they cannot do anything about it. Finally, after screaming at them, they got somebody to fix it, but would not issue a credit, even after I lost over a week of phone calls (business and personal) and suffered total embarrasment. This is only the last of a long list of screwups, for which they refuse to offer a reasonable credit. I hope Vonage is better, but so far not seeing it.

PS, Today, I actually got to a department called "account management" at Vonage and they were definitely capable of thinking and did give me a credit for one month. They said MCI and some carriers will do anything they can to delay transfers (within legal limits I suspect), for what it is worth. I've now gotten two free months from Vonage for my problems, so if you complain enought and threaten to cancel immediately, they may issue you a credit -- after all they are charging you for a number they don't actually have yet so that makes it somewhat dubious to begin with.

Posts: 37 · Vonage Forum Junior Joined: Jul 12, 2006 Posts: 37

A couple of things...

- Vonage is great, now that I cut over

- MCI actually didn't own my phone number, McLeod did. Therefore I sat around for 4 months with my thumb up my butt getting pissed by the second until someone from Vonage finally called <someone> and found out that McLeod owned my phone number instead of MCI.

- Be sure when your Vonage service does go through that you call MCI and verify that your account has been cancelled. MCI had cancelled my local service with the neighborhood, but had not cancelled my long distance service.

- If you call and talk to a supervisor (the regular customer service reps are useless -- although beware that a supervisor sounds as if they are a normal customer service rep) and if you ****/complain enough, they will credit your account for the monthly Vonage bill/fee. That was my biggest gripe... how can Vonage charge me for some "virtual" number when MCI still owned my regular phone number. It's not like I am going to call everyone I know and give them my virtual number to use until the phone number transfer went through. It's stupid.

Good luck!