Bad and wasteful product design, or why I now hate Verizon and LG...

(Murphy's Law Rules My Life, ep. 100,000,003, approximately.)
Last Fall, my new and much liked LG Octane phone disappeared. Whether I lost it or someone found it before it was lost, I don't know. All was not lost - my son's older LG phone, an eNV3, was still in the house. I called Verizon Wireless and had the Octane bricked and the other phone reactivated with my number. All went well until a few days ago when I needed to know the phone's serial number. I had to remove the battery to see it. When I went to put the battery back it wouldn't go into place properly. On a second attempt, a tiny spring in a tiny notch fell out. The notch was one of the places where the battery tabs insert. Now by tiny I mean tiny. The whole thing was about 4mm long when compressed in the notch. I couldn't find it. The battery did go back into place without it and seemed to stay well enough until this morning when I picked the phone up and it fell out. Nor will it stay anymore. I thought, "Hey, let me try the Verizon Store! Maybe they can help me." The only thing they could do was look for a similar phone in their junk drawer to cannibalize. "I'm guessing it's more than a year old," said one of the guys. They said a corporate-owned store wouldn't be able to help me either, and had the nerve to suggest buying a new phone! Right, spend maybe $150 on a new phone because of a 4mm spring that probably costs ten cents per kilogram. Good thinking, Verizon Store guy. I may be older than the guys in the store, but I am not so old that I can't tell anymore when someone is acting like a dick. I'm more than a year old too, but I am not ready to be replaced by a newer model just yet, either.
There is nothing remotely related on the Verizon Wireless website. The 'contact us' link on the LG site gave me a popup that told me I was not authorized to use it and demanded an authorization number and a password - clearly another example of intelligent design. After hunting around I did find an email contact link that worked, and I am now waiting for a reply.
All this for a spring the size of a penpoint.
I hate you, Verizon and LG.
UPDATE: I have now heard from LG support. They have offered to have me send in the phone to be repaired out of warranty for the "low" price of between 40 and 100 dollars, not including shipping fees. In my response, I asked to be pointed to the assembly plant or the original supplier of the springs. I don't think I will ever buy another LG product again and I advise you who are reading this to beware of such crappy design and such contemptuous service.
MORE: If I were stupid enough to send in my phone, I would have to have it deactivated and use my even older phone until it was returned. When it would be returned, I would have to call to have it reactivated. What's practically the first thing they ask? "What's the serial number?"
Really, there is no reason that you shouldn't be able to remove and replace the battery easily as often as you feel the need. My old RAZR had the micro SD card under the battery; never had a problem.
EVEN MORE: LG customer service finally deigned to tell me that they don't send out "internal parts". I asked for either an exception or another source for this tiny cheap spring - no answer. I sent a letter to the chairman and CEO of LG. I can't wait to see what happens.