No, I don't think they'll compensate you, unfortunately. Ask them if you can take the sim card out before you ship it. Then you could get a disposable phone at Walmart to use in the meantime. I think you can get one for as little as $20. Or maybe you know someone with a spare AT&T phone they can lend you. This is one of the reasons I keep a spare iPhone on hand.
Have you tried your sim card in your brother's phone?