Process Improvement for Shopping Cart

[AmyATX]

I would like to have the availability to contact customer service regarding a recommended process improvement for Verizon customers.  I have been a loyal Verizon since 2003, but my most recent experience is enough to drive me straight into the arms of T-Mobile and take them up on their offer to buy me out of all 6 contract agreements on my Verizon account.

I recently attempted to upgrade my device online.  It was a relatively seamless process until I reached the end and got to the shopping cart.  I elected to pick my phone up in the nearest store but to do so you have to pay online with a credit or debit card.  You do not have the option to bill your account or pay in the store.  As it turns out, the billing zip code that is associated with your credit card MUST match the service address zip code on your Verizon account.  I am an identity theft victim and because of this all of my mail goes to a Post Office Box for security reasons.  I obviously do not live in a Post Office Box, so my service address will never match the zip code on my billing address.

I am keenly aware that this is probably done for security reasons.  Verizon doesn't want people obtaining a compromised account and sending a phone just anywhere.  However, I was not opting to have anything shipped to me.  I was picking up in the store so it should not matter what my billing zip code is.

The part that was most frustrating was the customer service individuals that I spoke with suggested things like (1) I should contact my bank and all of my bank statements and credit/debit card statements come to my house or (2) update my Verizon service address to the physical address of the Post Office even though I don't live there.  When I was told to do option 2 listed above, I was told I had to log out of my account for the change to take effect and then re-log back in only to lose my entire order.  All of this just to place an order and pick it up in a store.  All I needed to do was just pay for my phone.

I next gave up and went in to the store.  After an hour of waiting and trying to figure out where the problem was, the Verizon store couldn't take the coupon code that the customer service person had given me online.  Translation - after all of this frustration with a dead-end result, I learned I was going to have to pay about $100 more for my phone.  I walked away.

I went back online and the only option I had was to go back to square one and re-order online and this time, elect to have the phone shipped and billed to my account.  I chose overnight shipping and just learned that the phone was shipped UPS ground and will be delivered after 5 days.

Needless to say, this has all been extremely disappointing and the most frustrating part is that it is all avoidable with a simple programming change.  All of this was totally unnecessary.  As an identity theft victim, I will NEVER have my mail delivered to the mailbox in my neighborhood.  Does Verizon really want to offer that as a suggestion for people who want to buy a phone?  Do they want to be responsible for the results?  With identity theft being the fastest growing crime in America, somehow I just don't see that as a viable solution.  There are many, many people just like me who don't have the same physical and billing addresses.

Finally, I will leave you with this question... Have you ever had this much trouble placing an order and paying for that order online?  If I went to a store and purchased a phone in the store, would Verizon's payment processor care that the billing address on my credit card was different from the physical address where I live?  NO!  Companies are typically ready to take your money!  It shouldn't be this hard to just pay someone for a phone.

If anyone can point me in the direction of how to make sure someone from Verizon Corporate is aware of this problem and that this is taken under consideration for future enhancements/changes to their eCommerce system it would be much appreciated.