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SPRINT PHONE SERVICE STEPS UP TO HELP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS.
Sprint has updated its policies for domestic violence victims attempting to cancel or change their services in order to stay safe from their abusers, becoming the second national provider, alongside Verizon, to update policies after public outcry sparked by Change.org petition. Sprint’s campaign and updated policies come after 174,000 people joined the popular campaign on Change.org.
“Jane Doe” -- a domestic violence victim who remained anonymous in order to protect herself from her abuser -- launched the campaign after Cindy Butterworth, whose sister survived domestic violence, convinced Verizon to change their policies concerning fees for domestic violence victims.
Even though “Jane” had a court-mandated restraining order, she said Sprint refused to waive the original $200 fee they charged her to separate her account from her abuser’s. “Jane” recalls that she had no money at the time and knew her abuser could track her using Sprint cell phone records.
“I thought I was alone, but after seeing Cindy’s campaign successfully change Verizon’s policies, I realized this was a much bigger problem. I never imagined this many people would support my fight. I am thrilled that Sprint has not only done the right thing but that the company has gone above and beyond to ensure that they support victims like me. It’s truly remarkable,” said “Jane Doe” of her petition’s success.
Sprint has committed to improving and strengthening customer service policies for domestic violence survivors. The company will be implementing updated training for customer service representatives and will be making updates to the customer service manual. Sprint representatives will be prepared to offer all of the following to domestic violence victims free of charge:
• Separating the line of the victim from the line of the abuser
• Transitioning to a prepaid account
• Changing a phone number
• Setting up blocked text or call options
• Removing locator service options from the phone number on the account
• Changing PIN and passwords
Customer service representatives for Sprint will also direct victims to resources such as the National Domestic Violence Hotline and will be working directly with the National Network to End Domestic Violence as they implement these updated policies. These new policies will apply to all victims of domestic violence, regardless of gender or relationship status.
“Sprint has long supported facilities that help victims of domestic abuse, and we were disappointed to hear from some of our customers that they were inappropriately being charged fees when they were attempting to separate their service from their abusers. We are thankful that the issue has been raised and appreciate being given the opportunity to improve our approach to handle these victims and increase awareness for all of our employees on this important social issue,” said Ralph Reid, Sprint’s Vice President of Corporate Responsibility and Executive Director of the Sprint Foundation.
“After gathering 174,000 petition signatures and tenaciously pushing Sprint to do more, ‘Jane’ has made the world a safer place for victims of domestic violence,” said Change.org Deputy Campaign Director Rachel LaBruyere. “And she’s done all of this while working full-time as a single mom and fighting to maintain custody of her son. It’s been incredible to see survivors like ‘Jane’ using Change.org petitions to hold companies accountable for the safety and security of their customers.”
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