Calling Boost Mobile was a lot easier than I thought it would be, although I find it odd that they make you pay to get help paying your bill. That part bugged me, and I will explain more in a minute. Besides that, the phone call went pretty well. I needed to talk to someone about a new plan before I signed up my dad for it. My dad needs some type of way to stay in touch with us from the nursing home, but he doesn't need a plan with any bells or whistles, which is why I was investigating Boost Mobile in the first place.
While the nursing home has phones in the rooms, my father is not very mobile, and I wanted a phone that I could slip in his pocket. This way, he can call family anytime that he feels the need. Plus, I heard that Boost Mobile has some subsidized plans, and I also wanted to learn more about that. Therefore, I didn't plan on taking any automated steps; the sole intent of my phone call was to talk to a real-life agent who could answer my questions and talk about plan choices.
When I called, an automated assistant said, "Hi, Thanks for calling Boost Mobile. Calls are recorded to improve your experience. I don’t recognize the number you are calling from. If you are calling to activate your service, say activate. Otherwise, do you have an existing Boost Mobile account?" I don't have an account, so I told it that, and it repeated back to me, "Find out more about Boost Mobile wireless plans." Then it told me that it would get someone who could help me.
This part caught me off-guard because while I was on hold, an automated recording told me that if I chose to make any payment with an agent, I would have to pay a $4 agent fee. I've never heard of an agent fee, and the idea seems odd. You shouldn't have to pay to get service or help, and I didn't like that idea for my dad. I talked to the agent about it when I was connected, and they clarified that it was just to take payments, but there was a fee. The fee could be avoided by going online or choosing the automated payment system. That means if I do choose Boost Mobile, I will have to manage my father's payments because he would not be able to handle that on his own.