Two weeks ago I ordered a SIM card for Italy and a SIM card for Great Britain from Telestial.com, recommended at SlowTravel. I quickly received a email response confirming the order and then an email saying the order was shipped on 9/4 via UPS and they included a UPS tracking number. When the order had not arrived after a few days, I used the tracking number and found that it was for a product shipped a month earlier to Tennessee, not to me in California. I sent them a email and asked for the correct tracking number for my order. Their response was:
"There seems to be a little delay with shipping concerning the tracking numbers. Your package was indeed shipped out on September 4, unfortunately it is talking a little longer for UPS to update their system with your tracking number. It will soon be updated and will show you the correct route. Thank you for your patience during this time."
If they had indeed shipped on September 4th via UPS, they should be able to supply a valid UPS tracking number. I emailed them back and mentioned this to them and asked again for the tracking number and when my package should arrive (keep in mind that UPS from San Diego to me should take 2 days via ground). Ignoring my repeated request for a valid tracking number, their response was:
"You should receive it by Wednesday the 12th or Thursday the 13th."
When the package had not arrived by the 13th (which should have arrived on the 6th), I again asked for a valid tracking number and again received the tracking number for that package that went to Tennessee a month earlier.
Well it is now September 17th and the package has not arrived, they have stopped responding to my emails, and I leave for Italy in two days without the needed SIM card.
It is evident to me that they have NOT shipped the package. If they had shipped, they would not hesitate in supplying the tracking number. Business make mistakes, that I can understand, but Telestial has been dishonest.
Sorry to hear of your problems. However, I ordered a phone and SIM card from them at the beginning of the month and it was delivered a day earlier than stated. The UPS number was correct. I did pay an extra $4 to upgrade the delivering service. I've actually had some post purchase questions and the customer service has been terrific.
Every company screws up sometimes, IMO. Thanks for letting us know and I am sorry you did not get your SIM cards in time for your trip. You will be able to purchase SIM cards in Italy and in the UK (but it would have been nice to have them before).
Originally posted by Pauline: Every company screws up sometimes, IMO. Thanks for letting us know and I am sorry you did not get your SIM cards in time for your trip. You will be able to purchase SIM cards in Italy and in the UK (but it would have been nice to have them before).
Yes, of course every company screws up sometimes. As a customer I then expect an apology for the mistake and an honest attempt to make it right. Telestial provided neither.
As a small business owner it is incomprehensible to me why a business would be dishonest and deceptive to a customer, but that's one reason why some companies don't survive.
Anyway...off to Italy! I hope I can easily find a SIM card in the Rome airport when I arrive.
Anyway...off to Italy! I hope I can easily find a SIM card in the Rome airport when I arrive.
Vodafone is the only celluar service provider with a retail location accessible to arriving passengers at FCO. It is in Terminal A on the level above the check-in counters opposite the security screening location. If you look at the virtual maps on the ADR website, you can find its location.
Anyway...off to Italy! I hope I can easily find a SIM card in the Rome airport when I arrive.
Vodafone is the only celluar service provider with a retail location accessible to arriving passengers at FCO. It is in Terminal A on the level above the check-in counters opposite the security screening location. If you look at the virtual maps on the ADR website, you can find its location.
Bill
We tried getting to this store in 2005, and were not allowed access without a boarding pass. Has it changed? We bought our phone from them in 2004--great service.
Posts: 305 | Location: Connecticut | Registered: 02 December 2005
When in Rome this spring, we were told we could only purchase additional time for an existing SIM card at the Vodafone outlet in the airport. To purchase a new SIM card we were told we had to shop at one of the Vodafone stores in the city. We did this at the Vodafone store off the Spanish Steps on Via del Corso. Martha
Sorry to hear of your frustrations, but in a weird way I envy you for having never received your SIM from Telestial: I received mine and it has been one disaster after another. The first one, received over a year ago, never worked reliably. Text messages disappeared and callers complained that their attempts to reach me ended in failure again and again. I tried it in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Singapore, China, Mexico and Peru over the course of several months. It was miserable in all of those places. Then, Telestial admitted the SIM was faulty and recalled it (this, in September 2007). They issued a new one. I just took it to Germany and Italy for a week and it was worse than the first! Now, it is impossible to hang up a call without resetting the phone. You cannot leave a voicemail message. Texts still disappear. Telestial customer service is entirely unsympathetic, claiming compatibility issues with my phone, though it is a triband GSM and I have successfully used prepaid SIM cards in many of the countries I have visited--always a better option. Telestial is run by clowns. Their product is a smart idea that someone will master. But save yourself time and hassle and buy your own prepaid SIMs in country and stay away from these guys. Best of luck and good travels, Peter
This is the response we've received from our contact at Telestial: ---------------------------- Hey Charisse,
UPS for 3-4 days did not update the tracking numbers in their system. We and UPS could not track anything – hence the tracking issue response below. However packages were typically being delivered on time even though we could not actually track them. This happened companies (and customers) – not just ours.
Further this customer believed their package was shipping from San Diego when in fact it was shipping from Boston and was not due to arrive until the 11th or 12th (the rep was not lying about this). Surely this added to their frustration.
That being said the package was still late. Can you provide this customers email address? They are certainly entitled to compensation. Whenever a customer calls we usually open an issue tracker and I can see note on how the problem was handled.
Essentially by the 13th the resolution should have been: refunded shipping and sent out a replacement FedEx overnight.
Peter’s post -- I would need to know more about his experience besides ‘one disaster after another’ to assist. Our old passport products were replaced in May of this year (obviously we missed some folks and compensate them accordingly) and balances transferred at great expense to Telestial in order that our customers WOULD not be inconvenienced. This was in anticipation of a network failure by Callkey, our provider at the time (at the time the network was fine but we suspected the companies finances were a bit dodgy and in fact they went ‘broke’ along with their network in September).
Telestial now manages our own network (we have our own switching gear with offices in the UK and Australia – as well as Boston).
Further if Peter can provide his phone number we can trace his cdr’s. Many customers dial incorrectly when they are abroad which again can lead to a higher level of frustration. We would love an opportunity to win-back any customer and make things rght.
Best, Isaac --------------------------------- Mykoweb and Peter- if you would like more follow up from Telestial, please provide me more information (email charisse@slowtrav.com).
For all of our other community members: if you are having problems with your Telestial product and cannot get a hold of their customer service, please let me know so I can assist in following up. Isaac responded quite quickly to our community members' concerns.
