I've never used Tracfone before last fall and am encountering some very strange billing issues on the two lines I have currently:
Line #1 is my main line. I signed up in November on the $20 Amazon gift card BYOD offer (which I never got). When I originally signed up I forgot to enter in auto-renew informtion. When I finally did that 2 weeks into my first month, Tracfone immediately pulled $15+ tax from my credit card and added another month's worth of service/data. I forgot to turn that off, so there was another $15 charge just before XMas forth another month's worth of service. And then, I got another month's worth of service/data added on New Year's eve. I also saw an unexplained charge on my credit card for $20 to Amazon wireless which may or may not be related to Tracfone. I disputed the $20 charge and Citi ruled in my favor today, but I also see that another month's worth of service/data has been added to my account without a corresonding charge pending. Today also happens to be the anniversary of my originally signing up for that line. So now, my line is showing as active through May 5, 2021, even though I've only paid for 3 of 6 months.
Line #2 is the remaining active line I started on the $100 venmo card offer for buying an unlocked phone via Amazon. .I signed up with autopay on this one to get $1 off on the first month and intended to pay to keep active for a second month. However, I used a Citi card that got deactivated in the meantime - it was a Citi AMEX card which has been transitioned to Mastercard, my old CC # in Tracfone's system was defunct when my month was up. My Tracfone acct shows that the charge was declined, but the line is still active with minutes/text/data carried over from my first month.
My original plan on this line was to port out to Xfinity after one of my current slots opens up after porting out to Visible. Now, I'm debating whether or not to just sit on it until the end of my cycle to see what happens. I don't want to lose the number though, because it is very easy to remember (lots of 7's and 0's in my favorite area code).
Line 1: I believe the Amazon pre-loaded SIM/Plan automatically authorizes your Amazon card (EDIT: should say 'account', not 'card') to renew the plan monthly, through Amazon.
So it shouldn't have been necessary to also set up auto-pay directly with Tracfone. I'm guessing some kind of conflict/dual billing (with extra month's credit stacked.)
If you didn't get the promo egift card, it's probably related to disputing the 2nd-month Amazon Wireless charge, since the gift card wouldn't have been issued until after the 2nd Amazon payment.
Line 2: Odd. I would have expected the line to go dormant when payment was declined. You mention that carryover minutes/texts/data is there, but have you actually tried using it, or confirmed that the dashboard shows remaining service days? (Units remain for 60 (?) days after service days expire, but aren't normally available for use until you refill.)
Or possibly was your first month's plan one of the Unlimited Talk/Text plans? Those are newish, and there have been multiple reports of unusual behavior, although I haven't seen a report of the plan remaining functional past the included service days.
If the number is important, I would make a payment on this line. No telling when Tracfone might correct the unexpected service time. If the dashboard doesn't show remaining service days, I don't remember what Tracfone's policy is about porting out dormant lines.
Line #2, was set up on the $9.99 plan for 30/30/90 talk/text/data although what I actually got initially was 180/180/180. I used up a few minutes and text and about 25 gb the first month, with the plan to carry over the balance to the next month with an additional 180/180/180. When my payment was declined, I didn't get the extra allotments but my balance stayed in my account. And yes, the line works, I've made a few calls here and there and exchanged texts with someone who texted the wrong number. Further, I used about 40gb yesterday on Spotify and another 20gb today on Pandora.
bingyee, I think you won the "Tracfone lottery" on Line 2. My guess is it will remain functional at this point until either the next renewal date, or until Tracfone realizes the charge was declined. Tracfone does have a grace period to restore an account by adding a refill card, so you're most likely OK if you watch it, and port out before the next auto-refill date. Check the line status before putting in a port request.
Like KentE said, you've won the Tracfone lottery alright, if you were able to use those huge gigabytes of data (instead of mb)!
Sorry, couldn't resist!
I’d like to avoid any “billing issues” good or bad with Tracfone! Am I able to activate a locked Tracfone with it’s included sim using say the $20 smartphone plan purchased from Target? And then pay for continuing service using Tracfone’s rewards?
Yes, that works, with caveats.
You can't use rewards points for the initial activation, but you're good anytime after that. You can also 'purchase' a refill with rewards points for another line, even if it's not in your account.
There's a 60-day wait before points from referral bonuses become available to use, though-- so take that into account for your planning.
Points earned for other things (games, polls, etc.) are available quicker. (Sometimes immediately, sometimes next day, sometimes 10 days, depending on Tracfone's whim.)
