You’ll probably get a better experience visiting a corporate owned wireless store

Just because the store you enter has a sign like this: Verizon, AT&Tor T-Mobile It does not mean you are located in a company-owned location. You may be browsing the store of a third-party retailer or an authorized retailer. Based on my discussions and emails with current and former sales reps, authorized retailers have a higher chance of being scammed. There’s a way to know what type of store you’re going to before you get in your car and start your engine.

Major carriers often provide store locators on their websites and distinguish between company stores and third-party stores. if you have a Verizon account, click this linkenter your zip code and nearby Verizon The store will appear. At the top of each result you can see if the store is Verizon Company store or authorized retailer. For your sanity and safety, stick with the former no matter what price you see from an authorized retailer.

if you are a T-Mobile subscriber, click this link and enter your postal code in the field on the left side of the screen. On the right side of the page, you’ll see a map with “T” pins representing different stores. Gray pins indicate third-party authorized retailers. All other pins represent company locations, including experience and signature stores.

AT&T Subscribers can find out whether a store is a corporate location or an authorized retailer by click this link. If you allow the website to obtain your location, it will use your postal code to find nearby stores. Alternatively, enter your postal code in the line above the “Use my location” link. A list of stores will appear on the left side of the screen. Click the black box that displays store information and opening hours. Scroll down and you’ll see the name of the store as well as a picture showing what the store looks like inside. If the store is not a corporate location, you will see the words “Authorized Retailer” directly below the store location.

current AT&T Representatives working at authorized retailers recently posted an article about a manager he called “totally incompetent.” Apparently, this manager sends victims of his mistakes to this representative to fix the mistakes he made. For example, one night the manager planned to close the store himself, but an elderly customer came in seeking to have her phone number transferred, and he accidentally locked her out of her phone. Instead of changing her iCloud account, the manager changed her password, which meant she couldn’t access her phone.