Help on Alltel Plan Change, Please!?

[AnswerGuru]

I purchased a Samsung Delve through Alltel on Jan. 5 of this year. We also have a BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) on the account, so my phone was an additional $40 for data or $20 for standard each month. After only a couple weeks, I started getting messages on my phone saying that I was being charged for data minutes, but my plan was supposed to have unlimited data minutes. So, I called Alltel and they informed me that the Delve can be either a data phone or a standard phone. My plan had actually been setup as a standard phone rather than a data phone. I had them switch it to a data phone on Jan. 21.

Now, I have decided that I use the data part of the plan so seldom that it is not worth the extra $20. When I called in to take advantage of their anytime plan change for this phone, I was informed that they can't make it a standard phone when it is under contract. I argued that my plan was originally set up that way, but they won't switch it back. They claimed that it had been that way since Jan. 21 when I upgraded the phone and wouldn't listen when I said that it had actually been upgraded on the 5th! I should mention that this is after I called last month and they claimed to have changed it without argument, but I noticed on my bill this month that it had not been changed.

Am I mistaken about what their anytime plan change refers to? Any suggestions on how to get some cooperation would be greatly appreciated. I have no problem spending the weekend tying up their phone assistance line! Anyone else have this type of trouble with them?

Thanks!

[JW the Wise]

Are you still Alltel or have you been switched to Verizon? Technically the data plan is required on every line that has a smartphone. If you are Verizon (NYSE: VZ) now then you can't do anything at all because the system determines what plan a phone can be on based on the ESN or MEID so it detects your phone as a smartphone so its only available on a smartchoice plan. Sorry for the bad news.