GreatCall was founded by Arlene Harris in 2006 to provide aging adults with easy to operate technology, such as cell phones. The Jitterbug phone was the first product released. Live Nurse, which allowed users to chat with a nurse 24/7, was launched in 2009.
The company is considered to be a connected health technology service. GreatCall provides cellular service through the Verizon network, mobile devices, apps, and a wearable “alert” device.
The company also offers MedCoach, designed to help clients manage their medications and in 2014, the company added Link, an alerting app.
GreatCall was acquired by Best Buy in August 2018 for $800 million.
In January 2019 GreatCall announced a partnership with long-term care insurance provider CNA. Policyholders with CNA will offer them an in-home passive remote monitoring solution, Lively Home, and its Lively Mobile medical alert device.
Company headquarters are located in San Diego, California.
GreatCall
GreatCall was founded by Arlene Harris in 2006 to provide aging adults with easy to operate technology, such as cell phones. The Jitterbug phone was the first product released. Live Nurse, which allowed users to chat with a nurse 24/7, was launched in 2009.
The company is considered to be a connected health technology service. GreatCall provides cellular service through the Verizon network, mobile devices, apps, and a wearable “alert” device.
History
The company also offers MedCoach, designed to help clients manage their medications and in 2014, the company added Link, an alerting app.
GreatCall was acquired by Best Buy in August 2018 for $800 million.
In January 2019 GreatCall announced a partnership with long-term care insurance provider CNA. Policyholders with CNA will offer them an in-home passive remote monitoring solution, Lively Home, and its Lively Mobile medical alert device.
Company headquarters are located in San Diego, California.
I did not have much luck with Great Call services. My mom is elderly and too unfamiliar with technology to make customer service calls on her own with them. We recently switched to a different provider (alert-1.com/) and have had much better luck. It’s not you — it’s them!
I had Greatcall till today when instead of helping me with my phones problem that I relayed to them in an email dated June 29 after attempting to call them for help and not being able to get through to them by phone they attempted to call me today and didn’t reach me so instead of helping me they canceled my account and left me with ‘no phone service” I have no phone, I’m disabled, and they just cut me off even after stating in the email from today “To protect account security, normally, all cancellations must be processed over the phone.
We attempted to reach you at xxx-xxx-xxxx on 7/16/2020.
In light of the current situation around the world and due to not being able to reach you, your account has been disconnected and has a disconnect date of 07/16/2020, which is the end of your current billing cycle.
Sincerely,
Teresa | Care Operations Specialist
PO Box 4428 | Carlsbad, CA 92018
p | 800.733.6632
I needed help, I called twice, couldn’t get through, call kept getting dropped, I sent 2 emails asking for help. I said in my email what good is your service if I can’t reach you, I might as well cancel my account if I can’t get help, AND BOOM you cancel my account, that is not GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE You’ve left me with no phone and no way to get get help if I have a medical emergency, then your email says I can call, NO I can’t call, I HAVE NO PHONE…
Do Not Use Greatcall phone service for your aging seniors…Instead of helping me with my phone issue they canceled my account without even speaking to me.
Just some of the horror stories I’ve just read, wish I had known before I bought my phone from them.
Daniel , Tried to activate a replacement phone today for my 86 year old mother who is in a nursing home, and I got an error message, which said to call Customer Service. Your “customer service” representative was absolutely VILE to me. I want to speak to a supervisor. The call is recorded, you can hear it yourself.
I won’t bother trying to activate the phone any longer. I will throw it away and go with another company. But trust me, anyone who will listen is going to hear the story.
Angie My 75 yr old mother had the same experience with customer service! Called her about overages and she doesn’t manage the account. They proceeded to sigh and give her attitude. She then felt like it was a fake call. So bill comes in to me for $300! I put her back on Verizon.
Alison The app logged me out and I’m unable to log in and check on my mother. This is the second time this has happened in the last couple of weeks. How am I getting a log in server error as saying try again later?
This is not a good company to use, especially for vulnerable seniors. If I had known how bad this company was I never would have spent my money or time here and I’m warning as many of my friends and strangers to stay clear of this hoeeible company with nasty customer service. SHAME ON YOU
The service is HORRIBLE!
On 10/19/19 I bought my Jitterbug phone locally before calling Great Calls to set up the connection. When I asked your telephone agent for the $14.99 plan, he tried to tell me there was no $14.99 plan and pushed a higher rate on me—until I told him he was misrepresenting the advertised rate. Apparently this made him angry, because he started talking so fast and running his words together, that I asked him to slow down. So now, sarcastically, he started speaking so slowly, I suggested he was mocking me. He stopped this, but his game continued. I had emphasized that I wanted no extra services—no voice mail, text, or insurance, etc. After this call, very upset, I called back to talk with a different agent to make sure I got the lower base rate, which she confirmed, but said she saw no other extra services. However, today, I started receiving text messages!! (from sources unknown) and had to call yet again. This time the agent I reached said, yes, the first agent had set up a texting service. If you record sales calls, please listen to the recording of my very first call yesterday, 10/19, when the first agent set up my account. There should be consequences for the disrespectful way I was treated by this first agent. I also would like a letter of apology from Great Calls—if none is received, I will consider cancelling service. Thank you.
I am very unhappy with Greatcall at this time. I had a Samsung Phone for years and it worked fine with my 2015 Kia. When I saw the new Jitter Bug Phone I ordered it and found out it would not work on my Kia. Kia said I would need to spend $300 to put a new device in to be compatabile with the new device. This was not ever mentioned at the time and now when I asked that we go back to the old phone which is compatable with my Kia I was told that phone is no longer supported. So now I have no hands free in my car at all but do have your jitterbug for all the good it will do me while driving.
Hello, I have searched both the website and our handbook and every option to contact Corporate Offices is met with our GC website or an email such as this. Can you provide me with an actual email address or phone number for our corporate office? Thank you for your time.
Your marketing is to seniors who are prone to drop phones. Replacement glass is not available to after market repair shops to fix the screens.
Does this make sense?
Replacing a phone is not a good option.
Every other phone made does? Why not you?
Great Call’s new lively medical device is one big disappointment and scam, it does NOT work, the GPS failed, the Fall Detection does not work, the company is blaming Verizon for the issues but the FCC has reported it is Great Call DBA Best Buy that the devices are indeed faulty and a mandatory recall has been ordered to recall them all Nation Wide.
Great Call lied, and i wonder how many people have died as the device is not working as all.