Used Apple Watch Can't Activate on Verizon

[renzska]

I’ve run into an issue activating an Apple Watch Series 3 on the Verizon network that was previously activated in a different network. Verizon Support is aware of the issue saying you need to exchange the watch for one that wasn’t activated on another network. Apple’s Engineering team is aware of the issue stating that it’s an issue with Verizon’s system and they do not know if Verizon will fix the issue.

My story: Bought an Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE on eBay that had been activated against T-Mobile. Went to activate it on the phone and it failed. I had to call Verizon who then asked “if I had purchased an “Unlocked Apple Watch” (no such thing) and said I needed to exchange it for one that supports Verizon.” Called Apple and the support person came back immediately saying that they were aware of this issue and it was only with Verizon and was an issue with Verizon’s system. Now I’m stuck with an Apple Watch that says it supports all networks, but cannot be connected to Verizon. To solve my problem, I have to sell my watch (at a loss) and buy a new one. The question now is, do refurbished watches have the same issue or is their IMEI reprovisioned to avoid this issue on sale? I’m most likely going to buy one from Best Buy and find out. Wish me luck.

One Apple Watch device supports all carriers: https://www.apple.com/watch/cellular/#mn_p

As more used watches are sold, the more we’ll see this issue. I’m hoping to save others from this same issue. Has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks,

John

 

[Just_Me_D]

Wow! I'm sorry you had to deal with an issue like that. I would be ticked! Still, before selling your Series 3 Watch, ask yourself how often you plan on using it over LTE? I have a series 3 cellular model, but I have opted to not activate the cellular portion. I use my Watch all day every day just like I did when I had my original series Watch, and I have not needed to have it working on a cellular network aside from my iPhone. Still, I understand that everyone's usage is different.

 

[renzska]

Just_Me_D,

Thanks for the response. I myself have had my Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE service since release day and love leaving my phone at home or in the car when I go out. The Watch with the issues is one I bought for my wife. She goes on long walks and runs and leaves her phone at home so having LTE is a huge plus, mainly for safety, but secondarily for being able to contact while she out on a run. We have six kids so coordination and unexpected events are a regular occurrence.

Here's hoping Verizon gets it together and resolves this issue soon.

 

[renzska]

I decided to take the watch to an Apple Store to see what could be done. I explained to them that I had purchased a Used watch from eBay that had previously been activated against T-Mobile and that it wouldn't activate on Verizon. I explained that I called Verizon and they gave me the incorrect information about needing a "compatible" watch. I then showed them my case number for my call to Apple Support where they explained that it was a known issue with Verizon and that they didn't know when/if Verizon would fix the issue. We went through the routine of unpairing the watch, repairing the watch, trying again, etc. and nothing resolved the issue. Surprisingly they said they would replace the watch. I did this on Monday around 11am, had it shipped to the Apple Depot for replacement, and had a replacement watch on Wednesday by 11:30am. I am happy to report that the watch activated on Verizon without issue from within the Watch App on my Wife's phone!

I wanted to give a shout out to Apple Support on taking care of the issue for me!

Obviously, if you're experiencing the same issue I recommend taking it to Apple, however, your mileage may vary.

John

 

[doogald]

I wanted to give a shout out to Apple Support on taking care of the issue for me!

Nice result, and thanks for sharing the good news. That said, let's hope that Verizon figures out a way to allow people to bring an Apple Watch to them that was activated on a competitor first.

 

[felloffthetruck]

I'm just wondering if you have the watch already activated with Verizon and cancel the service will Verizon be able to reactivate it again in the future?

 

[jpgti]

I just went through something similar with Verizon. Got a new phone, and when I unpaired my watch from my old phone the cellular somehow got deactivated. It would not activate when paired to the new phone. Spent hours on the phone with tech support, and they finally admitted defeat and submitted a ticket to the backend IT department. Tech support must have had me unpair/pair the watch half a dozen times, made sure watch and phone were not on wifi etc. Finally, just last night I ran across a post on the Verizon community forums that your phone had to have LTE cellular data turned on for voice +data. Looked and mine already was. Turned that off and back on, rebooted the phone. Phone received a carrier update, and finally the watch activated (on its own, I might add). The weird thing is, I don't think the carrier version changed. I read somewhere while I was troubleshooting with Verizon that the carrier version had to be 29.1 or higher. I was on 31.1 at the time, and am still on 31.1 after the carrier update I received. Im wondering if the carrier update was actually for the watch instead of the phone.

Regardless, its pretty clear that Verizon has no idea how to troubleshoot these watches. They admitted that it was probably on their end though, since the watch was working fine on my old phone and then suddenly wouldn't on the new one. He was literally reading through a troubleshooting guide that he had, and it was the same thing that Apple has posted on their site.

 

[Lee_Bo]

Regardless, its pretty clear that Verizon has no idea how to troubleshoot.......

You can just stop right there.

And yes, I'm a VZW (business) account admin, so I do know the frustrations.

 

[jpgti]

You can just stop right there.

And yes, I'm a VZW (business) account admin, so I do know the frustrations.

It all depends on who gets the call, and its all luck. Usually when I get someone that is completely clueless as to what needs to happen, I'll call back using the same exact prompts and the next person knows exactly what needs to happen. Thats true for tech support as well as account issues. Just the other day I was calling to disconnect a few old lines. The first agent told me the lines were already scheduled for disconnection at the end of the billing cycle. I knew this wasn't true, so I called back and got someone that not only said they weren't scheduled for disconnection, but that a couple of them they could disconnect immediately. Just makes me wonder, did I get tier 1 the first time and somehow got tier 2 the next? It is definitely frustrating.

 

[Lee_Bo]

It all depends on who gets the call, and its all luck. Usually when I get someone that is completely clueless as to what needs to happen, I'll call back using the same exact prompts and the next person knows exactly what needs to happen.

That's way too much work. I just stop them and ask for the next level support tech.

 

[CubsFanForLife]

I decided to take the watch to an Apple Store to see what could be done. I explained to them that I had purchased a Used watch from eBay that had previously been activated against T-Mobile and that it wouldn't activate on Verizon. I explained that I called Verizon and they gave me the incorrect information about needing a "compatible" watch. I then showed them my case number for my call to Apple Support where they explained that it was a known issue with Verizon and that they didn't know when/if Verizon would fix the issue. We went through the routine of unpairing the watch, repairing the watch, trying again, etc. and nothing resolved the issue. Surprisingly they said they would replace the watch. I did this on Monday around 11am, had it shipped to the Apple Depot for replacement, and had a replacement watch on Wednesday by 11:30am. I am happy to report that the watch activated on Verizon without issue from within the Watch App on my Wife's phone!

I wanted to give a shout out to Apple Support on taking care of the issue for me!

Obviously, if you're experiencing the same issue I recommend taking it to Apple, however, your mileage may vary.

John

I'm currently dealing with the exact same issue, except the watch I purchased on eBay was initially activated on AT&T. I literally walked back and forth from the Verizon and Apple Store at my local mall on Monday to no avail. VZW says it's not compatible with their network, Apple says that's incorrect and to go back to VZW. (Went to the AT&T store, too, to confirm it is not locked to them.) I also experienced an interesting interaction between Apple and Verizon customer support over the phone today (initially called Apple and they linked in Verizon) where each rep essentially blamed the other company for the situation.

Unfortunately, neither the in-store staff nor the Apple rep on the phone offered a replacement. Any suggestions on a path forward are welcomed!