at&t trade in process.

 Hello @Requiem11, we are here to help you with your trade-in inquiry. 

Sounds like your phone was sent to the right place, please be advised:

• The entire process generally takes 4 weeks from the day AT&T receives the device.
• You'll receive an email when the warehouse receives the device. For promotional credits, once you've met all of the promotion requirements, you'll receive the credits within 1-3 billing cycles.

You'll need to continue to track the status of your trade in using our online portal, as this tool is very important and will keep you updated.

If it has been past the time provided above please let us know, thanks for reaching out to the AT&T Community!

Mellira, AT&T Community Specialist

@Requiem11

If the phone has been received in Tennessee don't worry about it. Once they check the phone in, it gets processed, and your credits will start.

You should still expect the credits to start 2 to 3 months after your purchase

Last night I was on the phone with at&t trade in support (888-445-6005). According to him, even though it went to Tennessee, does not mean it went to "proper" warehouse. From what I understood (I could be mistaken), there are two warehouses. One for trade ins and one for returns. What he explained to me was, if trade in phone went to returns warehouse, they have to start investigation. If they can trace the phone, they can forward it to proper department and the trade in credits will be issued. If they can not locate the phone, they might still issue credits but there is no guarantee of that. He opened an "investigation" ticket and told me to wait for an email with results. 

@Ruddy64

According to him, even though it went to Tennessee, does not mean it went to "proper" warehouse. From what I understood (I could be mistaken), there are two warehouses. One for trade ins and one for returns.

😂

Whoever you spoke with is clueless. 

Returns, RMA to AT&T in Texas. 

Stop calling AT&T. You're not speaking to anyone who knows anything. They may not even be in the United States.

Classic. 🤣

Update:

I haven’t received any email confirmation from AT&T but when I checked trade in status, it says

01/19 
Device Received and Processed  

I guess all is well that ends well and I worried for nothing. 

Thank you @formerlyknownas for info.  

I recently traded in my iphone 13 for the 14 pro.  The return process has proven to be horrific!  Here is what you should know.

1. The return shipping label and box are sent via USPS.  This is significant information because I live in a very rural area of Oklahoma and do NOT receive mail or packages via USPS.  The delivery method MUST be UPS or FedEx.  I made this clear at the time of the transaction and was told the packet would not be delivered by the USPS.  After almost 3 weeks of waiting, I was informed that the packet was returned undeliverable by "USPS".

2. The return shipping label and box are only delivered to physical addresses.  But - the AT&T rep accepted my PO Box as an alternative mailing address.  Again, I waited for more than 2 weeks for the packet only to be informed that the packet was never sent out because they do not mail them to PO Boxes.  I wonder WHEN they intended to tell me this.

3. If anyone in the customer service department, NOT associated with the trade-in team, sends you a shipping label via email - DO NOT use it to return your phone.  Yesterday, the AT&T rep I spoke to informed me that I only had 4 days remaining to return my phone.  She said it was imperative that I go directly to any certified AT&T rep and ask for assistance in returning the phone ASAP, otherwise I would lose the $1,000 credit.  She also said that no more extensions would be granted. I did as instructed and my efforts were fruitless.  I went to two AT&T locations for help.  The 2nd one simply called customer service (I can do that) and asked for a shipping label to be sent via email.  I received the label within minutes - wonder why, after 3 phone calls, no one offered to send it to me via email before??? At this point, I had such little faith and trust in the customer service department, I decided it would be a good idea to call the trade-in team to make sure the label I received was accurate.  Would it surprise you to know that the label was not correct and had I returned the phone using that label it would have gotten lost somewhere at Pitney Bowes - well you can conclude what the outcome of this would be. 

So - I received another 30 day extension and a new return package will be mailed out.  ETA is 10-14 days from today.

I wish you luck with your process!!!

I feel the AT&T trade in program can be a "bait and switch". 

I processed a trade-in online, they received and accepted my phone, then let me know that I did not qualify because I had an ineligible plan.  Perhaps I should have understood my plan better (can be quite confusing); however, my point is that AT&T should not have allowed me to process the trade-in in the first place.  They knew my plan was ineligible, yet they allowed me to mail in my old phone and then told me my plan was ineligible.  They should have either told me that up front or simply mailed the old phone back to me.  Now I have to buy an $800 phone.  This is no way to treat a loyal customer for over 30 years.

I called Customer Service and was given an address to voice my complaint in writing. The letter below was sent Jun18, 2023 by fax and certified mail.  I have receipts that both documents were received.  I have had no response 30 days later.

Office of The President of AT&T

PO Box 5074

Carol Stream, IL  60197

Fax: (314) 242-0792

My wife and I have been AT&T customers for a long time, somewhere around 30 years I believe.  I recently “took advantage” of your trade-in program to upgrade my Samsung phone.  In the end I feel AT&T “took advantage” of me.  I am very disappointed.

While I can’t remember all the specifics, I know that my wife and I together have purchased at least three or four phones on AT&T installment plans.  My Samsung s10e was in good condition but I wanted a better phone.  I didn’t need the latest and greatest, so the Samsung S23 seemed to be a good choice.  When I saw the promotional advertisements from AT&T, I decided to have a look.

“Any Year, Any Condition – New and Existing Customers”, that’s what the ads told me.  I’ll bet I viewed these AT&T commercials dozens of times, e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0py0qgX3eA

I am generally very skeptical of promotions that sound “too good to be true”, but in this case it seemed straightforward.  Heck, “Any Year, Any Condition” sounds like I could trade in my old Blackberry from work.  Of course, I first made sure my old phone (s10e) was eligible for the trade-in.  It was, but my old Blackberry wasn’t… (Any Year, Any Condition?)

I executed the trade-in from your on-line information in early April.  I answered a few questions and received the mailing instructions.  I kept track of the package to be sure AT&T received it.  I understood that I had to pay taxes on the new phone and a $35 transfer fee and that it would take a couple of billing cycles to receive the credit.

My recent bill showed a trade-in credit of $35 – I was expecting $800 (the cost of a new S23).  I called your customer service line and was connected to a very pleasant fellow named Josh in Kentucky.  By the way, I highly recommend you treat him well as he was very cordial to me while we discussed my disappointment.  After checking my account and doing a fair bit of research on this matter, he explained the reason I did not receive the expected refund was because our current plan did not qualify.  Understanding mobile phone bills these days is complicated to say the least - all I knew was that we were paying for unlimited data.  He also pointed out that I should have received a text message to this effect on June 7 stating that I did not meet “all” the requirements to qualify for the full promotional offer.  While he told me that he could not find this text message in the system, I looked on my phone and was able to find it among the hundreds of other messages I received from AT&T.  I am certain I did not read it at the time.  It stated:

AT&T Free Msg:  Thank you for trading in your device.  A one-time credit for the market value of your trade in has been applied to your account, as you did not meet all the eligibility requirements to qualify for one of our current trade-in promotional offers.  For details call 1-800-331-0500.

AT&T should have fully vetted my information when I applied for the trade-in program.  You (AT&T) knew full well what my existing plan was at the time.  I expect that had I gone to a store to effectuate the trade-in, the representative there would have made this issue clear (maybe).  Instead, I simply answered a few questions on-line and directly received mailing instructions, which implied to me that unless my phone was in unacceptable condition that my trade-in would be successful.  Can you say, “bait and switch”? 

Josh was kind enough to pass the information along needed to contact you directly.  So, here I am, a 70-year-old retired professional engineer, feeling like an (Edited per community guidelines) being taken advantage of by AT&T.  I wonder how many other of your loyal customers are feeling the same way.  I’ll bet I am not alone, and I’ll also bet many of your customers don’t realize this has happened to them because the bill is so lengthy and arduous to read.  AT&T should stop deceptive advertising. 

I am asking for the full refund of $800 which I had expected from your promotion.

No matter how you made your purchase information on the trade-in deal would have been provided at the time of sale. Either emailed to you or physically presented to you in a store. If you signed it without reading it, that might be why you didn't know you had to change your plan to a qualified unlimited plan and trade in your old phone within 30 days of purchase.

@ArthurY 

Since AT&T never saw your phone because you mailed it through the USPS, and either newgistics or Pitney Bowes courier, to a third-party called Assurant Mobile in Tennessee... Exactly how is AT&T complicit?

Not.

And since it went through the postal service and the courier and then Assurant exactly who is it you're going to pin to the proverbial wall?    

Did you check your phone in at the post office and get a counter receipt?   

That is proof you mailed a phone.  Or tracked the number online?  Without that... No proof

Those of us who have experienced problems with trade-ins ( I did with Verizon, which sends phones to the exact same place) and those who have the experience of successfully doing trade-ins highly recommend that you do your trade-in at a store and get a receipt.   When you trade in in a store and get a receipt then you are dealing directly with AT&T, rather than multiple middlemen.