A TracFone customer walked into a Best Buy store expecting a simple refill. Instead, he and the employee helping him spent 45 minutes untangling a confusing mess.
Instagram creator and Best Buy worker Dallas (@dallas_ponzo) shared the experience in a video that has now garnered over 19,600 views.
“I feel genuinely sorry for TracFone users who do not have any email address or any form of online account,” he said. “Which you’re probably thinking like that’s ridiculous nowadays, who doesn’t have an email?”
Turns out, a lot of older people don’t. Many just walk into a store, buy a TracFone airtime card, and get a code for minutes.
That’s exactly what happened when a regular customer came in for his usual refill. But when Dallas sold him the card, something went wrong.
What made the Best Buy interaction so confusing?
“It didn’t print anything on the receipt,” he said. “No code.”
The man didn’t have an email. The one on his account was either outdated or nonexistent, so Dallas had no way to retrieve the missing code.
“So then I asked my manager to post-void the transaction,” he said. “Which means it like basically vanishes from the customer’s bank account and from ours.”
Dallas tried selling him a new card and sending it to a different email, hoping that would work. It didn’t. The man never got the email.
“I felt really bad because I always do help him and he’s super nice to me,” Dallas said.
Running out of options
After that didn’t work, Dallas says he went straight to TracFone’s website and bought an airtime card there, linking it directly to the customer’s phone number.
Still, nothing happened. No confirmation, no update. After 15 minutes, the balance hadn’t changed.
Dallas then reached out to TracFone’s virtual chat support.
“I said, ‘Hey, I just bought a code, like I didn’t get anything or any confirmation,’” he explained.
“Yeah, we don’t sell codes,” they allegedly responded.
But the agent said if the purchase went through, the minutes should already be on the phone. They suggested texting “balance” to a specific number.
“I did that and then it, it replied with the minutes that he paid for,” Dallas said.
The whole ordeal took 45 minutes.
“More like Whackfone,” he concluded. “Am I right?”
What is TracFone and is it worth it?
TracFone Wireless started in 1996 as Topp Telecom in Miami, offering prepaid mobile service with no contracts. Their approach hasn’t changed much since then, but now they offer 4G LTE and 5G network compatibility.
When it comes to pricing, TracFone’s plans are generally more affordable than those of major carriers.
For instance, a TracFone plan with unlimited talk, text, and 1GB of data costs $15 per month, while a similar plan from Consumer Cellular starts at $20 per month.
However, as stated above, TracFone does require prepayment for service, which might be a consideration for some users.
Some older customers choose TracFone because it offers specific pricing for seniors. However, some senior service review sites say the plans can be confusing, which backs up Dallas’ claims in his video.
Commenters praise the creator
In the comments, users commended the Best Buy worker for helping the elder customer.
“You always try so hard for these people, big ups,” said one user.
“Thanks for being such a great young man,” wrote another. “He needed you.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Tracfone via email and Dallas for comment.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
