After activating my iPhone 4 and finally figuring out how to transfer contact list, I went into my voicemail only to discover I no longer had my saved voice mail messages. I immediately called Verizon and was told when switching from the Verizon LG to iPhone 4 the voicemail service is different (???) and everything was erased. One of those messages was the last message from my dad before he passed away. I am completely heart broken and wish I never bought this iPhone. The Verizon rep said he would check into it and call me back. It's been almost 2 hours and I haven't heard anything. PLEASE there must be someway to get the message back. If I reactivate the old phone will the message come back? I'm heart broken...
Solved! Go to Correct Answer
Blueiz wrote:Can anyone address my question if Verizon and the new iPhone 4 use two different platforms, why if I re-activated my previous phone wouldn't the messages still be there? Verizon must have an IT department that can go back and retrieve information from the platform. It doesn't make any sense to me.
Because according to the FAQ that old vm box was closed and deleted when you shut the phone off and activated the iPhone. It no longer exists. It is why they suggested subscribing to Visual Voice Mail on your previous device so that you could listen to and save them on an external memory source (SD card) and then transfer them to a PC so that they can be played there. I doubt they will (although they may be able to) have IT try to locate your lost VM's. It's nothing personal...but they gave warning and it's in writing in the FAQ and getting started area.
Received a call from the rep. All he can tell me is for voice mail Verizon and the iPhone 4 use completely different platforms. If it's two completely different platforms, then WHY wouldn't Verizon still have the message? If I reactivated the old phone, why wouldn't my voice mail message still be on the Verizon platform? I do not understand. It makes no sense to me.
This message was the last message from my dad just a few days before he passed away. I am so incredibly bitter with Verizon.
They can send you txt messages about advertisements, or send voice messages telling you to call them. Then why couldn't they have cared enough about their customers to send them a txt message or voice message giving them a heads up this would happen if or when their customers activated the iPhone 4.
Voicemails are automatically erased every time you switch a device. You can sign up for something like Youmail which is free if you want to save your voicemails. I had some voicemails ona phone I forgot to set up with Youmail, so what I did was actually "record" my voicemails using my camera and burned the sound onto a disc. I had 2 voicemails on there from 2 people close to me that died the same year that I really wanted to keep. Once I had them recorded, I erased them. It actually does warn you about the voicemail issue before it erases it.
Sorry you lost your voicemail, but this has been my experience everytime I switch to a new phone. Your existing voicemail box is replaced with a new one and has to be reset. I know it does suck though.
Youmail is free in the app store, you could download it so you can save your voicemails in the future. Its just like visual voicemail but free.
Had I known I would have moved the message. I never got a message the SAVED voice mails would be deleted nor have I ever lost them before when upgrading my phone.
Blueiz wrote:Had I known I would have moved the message. I never got a message the SAVED voice mails would be deleted nor have I ever lost them before when upgrading my phone.
Obviously you didn't read the "Before You Buy iPhone" article Verizon has all over the Internet.
It suck that it happened, but, it was in all the getting started guides that Verizon put up. Apple can't help you with it because they only deal with the device itsself they can't deal with Verizon's service such as voice mail. Sorry it happened, but, it's gone.
im so sorry for your loss and i'm sure you're really really upset right now. but it was in the FAQ for the iphone and in the activation guide that you would lose all your voicemails and there was a way to save them.. i think maybe you had to sign up for visual voicemail before you switched? i don't exactly know. but i think once you switch if you haven't done that they're gone.. i'm sorry 
Can anyone address my question if Verizon and the new iPhone 4 use two different platforms, why if I re-activated my previous phone wouldn't the messages still be there? Verizon must have an IT department that can go back and retrieve information from the platform. It doesn't make any sense to me.
Blueiz wrote:Can anyone address my question if Verizon and the new iPhone 4 use two different platforms, why if I re-activated my previous phone wouldn't the messages still be there? Verizon must have an IT department that can go back and retrieve information from the platform. It doesn't make any sense to me.
Because according to the FAQ that old vm box was closed and deleted when you shut the phone off and activated the iPhone. It no longer exists. It is why they suggested subscribing to Visual Voice Mail on your previous device so that you could listen to and save them on an external memory source (SD card) and then transfer them to a PC so that they can be played there. I doubt they will (although they may be able to) have IT try to locate your lost VM's. It's nothing personal...but they gave warning and it's in writing in the FAQ and getting started area.
I have switched devices atleast 7 times thru Verizon and my saved voice messages have always been transferred to the new device. The only exception was the IPhone4 and that was neglect on the part of the sales person. They are trained to inform the customer of the deletion when transferring to an Iphone 4.
I am truly sorry that you lost your voice messages from your dad. I just went thru the exact problem when switching to an Iphone4. I read your words about being heart broken and that is exactly what I told the sales rep who failed to inform me that I would lose my saved messages. I was heart broken. For all the people stating that somehow we should have found out this information ourselves, they are 100% wrong. I spoke to the store manager and he indicated that all sales people are trained to INFORM all customers, when switching to an Iphone from other phones, that they need to save there messages before the transfer. He told me they would have been able to do that for me right there in the store. Unfortunately for me, I did not have a sales person that folowed his training. I was told by the Verizon Technical staff, it was not my fault I lost the messages. I should have been protected from losing them by information the sales person neglected to pass on to me. Something he had been trained to do! I am still checking into this. I firmly believe that the messages will be available somehow, someway. I have switched from device to device and always had the voice messages still saved after the switch. This is strictly a KNOWN problem that Verizon was aware of and absolutely is responsible for. Verizon should have a warning before any IPhone 4 is activated to ask the customer about saved messages. I am going to continue to work on this and would appreciate hearing any updates from anyone on any resolution of the problem.
So I just got off the phone with Apple. He has no idea what the rep is talking about in regards to a "platform". Said it doesn't make any sense to him. Apple doesn't have anything designed in their iPhone 4 to override or delete Verizon messages. Hmmm. Interesting. Per my last phone call with Verizon rep, yesterday, he said he will call me back this afternoon to tell me if he found a way to retrieve my message. This is so disconcerting.
I agree with you. Someone in the IT department at Verizon should be able to go back into their system and retrieve that message.
A representative from Verizon called me on Friday, Feb. 11 and said he would contact the company that works with them [Verizon] on voicemail recordings. Because the company closed at 4pm EST, he said he would talk with them on Monday and send me a txt message. He even sent a test txt message to my phone to be sure it [his txt message] would come thru. If I wanted to talk to him earlier than Monday, I could txt him. I did on Feb. 14 because I didn't hear ANYTHING from him. Today is Thursday, February 17. I have yet to hear anything more from this representative.
I have been a Verizon customer for several years. Upgraded my phone several times. Never have I lost saved voicemails. In fact, the representative stated to me that this phone, the iPhone 4, is the first phone Verizon has put out that causes customers VM's to be deleted when upgrading/activating it. Did I read the fine print? Did I get on the internet and search out information on the new iPhone 4? Did I read the information that came with the phone? No I didn't. Why? Past phone upgrading history indicated I didn't need to.
Verizon is quick to call or send their customers txt messages or voicemails regarding their account. Why when they knew the iPhone 4 would cause SAVED VM'S to be deleted with their customers couldn't they have sent their current customers, who bought the iPhone 4, a curtesy txt message about this "surprise" revelation? I had 3 saved messages on my phone. One from over 2 yrs old and the last one just a few short months ago. I saved my messages exactly how Verizon instructed to do so. I never dreamed I would lose these messages.
I'm not sure who marked my question "Solved" because it surely hasn't been.
I hope they find your voicemails, but you are still passing the blame to someone else. Clearly the iPhone had very detailed and special instructions for people to follow, and you neglected to do that. Just because the old phones had the same protocol for voicemails, does not mean this is always the case.
It would be nice to see people admit they were wrong.
Good luck!
chrisstu wrote:I hope they find your voicemails, but you are still passing the blame to someone else. Clearly the iPhone had very detailed and special instructions for people to follow, and you neglected to do that. Just because the old phones had the same protocol for voicemails, does not mean this is always the case.
It would be nice to see people admit they were wrong.
Good luck!
For those of you who posted the comments about me not taking responsibility for my part. I did.
"Did I read the fine print? Did I get on the internet and search out information on the new iPhone 4? Did I read the information that came with the phone? No I didn't. Why? Past phone upgrading history indicated I didn't need to."
Perhaps you simply need to open your eyes and read.
Blueiz wrote:I'm not sure who marked my question "Solved" because it surely hasn't been.
Only you can select a "solution" on your posts... Sorry for ignoring your whole thread, but I do not have an answer for you and do not intend to get caught in such an emotional, serious post.
vereyezuhn wrote:
Blueiz wrote:I'm not sure who marked my question "Solved" because it surely hasn't been.
Only you can select a "solution" on your posts... Sorry for ignoring your whole thread, but I do not have an answer for you and do not intend to get caught in such an emotional, serious post.
You're mistaken because I did not mark this issue resolved. Clearly Verizon has that control as well.
Hi, I received a new iphone yesterday...I had voicemails on my old Droid Eris and I specifically asked the sales rep if my voicemails would be lost. I didn't think I was going to get the iphone..but the sales rep talked me into it so I did not research or read fine print prior to making the decision. I did specifically asked the sales rep because I had a VM with a similar story...the sales rep assured me that my VM's would still be there! I am deeply saddened that they are gone. My question to you is did you get a resolution and should I bother contacting verizon to retrieve my VM?
Start a new topic or ask questions in the open forum.
