Preium Message Shenanagins
Joelmli
Newbie

I can't believe that Verizon is unwilling to assist customers that are victims of this third-party premium text message scam that they help perpetrate. Verizon certainly makes it more difficult for me to activate or change features on my account, as the account holder, than it is for somone to steal money from me monthly by adding a feature to my cell phone bill. The features I mention are supposed to require a double opt in, with two positive responses from teh account holder to the thief, but Verizon apparently looks the other way and just adds these items to the bill without any proof or making any attempt to protect their account holders from this type of deceptive business practice. Then they claim helplessness when called about it, and when the phone call is escalated, it is mysteriously dropped after a long hold for a supervisor.

 

Verizon is apparently not in a position to refund my money, as they are powerless to recoup this loos from the thief, and would rather roll around in thier portion of the ill-gotten gains than keep a customer who has been loyal for 10 years. I have 6 accounts, a monthly cell bill of $400, and a Verizon bill at home of $300. That is $8400 per year, and an estimated $84,000 over the last 10 years.

 

Good job Verizon!

 

I guess I will get an I-Phone after all (in 5 months when my contracts expire and I switch to AT&T)

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Re: Premium Message Shenanigans
bosslady85
Specialist - Level 1

The premium message downloads are accumulated when the user of the handset downloads ringtones, games, wall papers and answers trivia questions or place votes from a 3rd party vendor. You can reply back to the message and text the word unsubscribe or stop to cancel the messages.  I would also recommend you add a Premium SMS block.  This will block the line from getting premium SMS messages.  This can be done from your online account.  Once you have signed in, click on the My Service tab and select My Plan, select the number you would like to add the feature to and click on Add/remove features. Select the block, then submit the change.

Re: Preium Message Shenanagins
sadie85
Contributor - Level 3

It is something that you or the phone user would have had to signed up for and then ignored the message stating you would be billed. Add the block and contact the company directly and see if you can get a refund from them. These companies bill through Verizon. So if Verizon credits you the company is still getting their money and Verizon is taking a hit.

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Re: Preium Message Shenanagins
karenadd1
Newbie

Having the same issues.[edit]

 

{please keep your posts courteous}

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Re: Premium Message Shenanigans
Kelly7874
Newbie

I just joined the forum to post about the issues I have been having, only to find this thread, which describes my concern precisely.

 

Like the inital post, I have also been a Verizon customer for many years and spend several thousand dollars per year on our account. My husband and I use the accounts primarily for work purposes and our bill typically fluctuates several dollars per month. Only last month (1/19) did I notice I was receiving the "Too Lazy" premium text charge. I called CS at Verizon, who kindly refunded the 9.99 and put a block on both lines, stating I would not be charged again. Since then, I went back and reviewed my bills, noting that I've been charged for this service EACH month since 5/26/09. Yesterday, I reviewed my most recent bill, and the charge was there for 1/9/10. I called Verizon again. This time the customer service rep was quite rude. He stated that since the 1/9 charge was before I made my initial call, I was responsible for it. Until my bill came, how was I supposed to know I would be charged again for it, considering we never actually receive the text message?

 

He then stated this was a service I had to double opt into to sign up, by entering my phone number, insinuating that I was "tricked" into entering the number. The tone of the call was very condescending. We do not enter our numbers anywhere online. I've read several posts on other forums stating this particular company has been accused of falsely signing up people for the service. Contacting the "Too Lazy LLC" company is useless. They are known for fraudulent activity and have a "F" rating from the BBB. I've read enough to know not to text them "STOP", as this would continue to verify the number. The CS rep did not want to hear any of this. He went into "just repeat our policy" mode, restating several times that I must have signed up for the service. The tone of the rep was not necessary. What happened to customer service?

 

Funny thing is that I have received occasional calls from VZW in the past, stating how I can change this or that to save money on my bill. You'd think they'd mention the 9.99 bogus charge. Should I have scrutinized each bill prior to last month? Probably. I wasn't even asking for a refund of past months, just the most recent month.

 

 

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Re: Premium Message Shenanigans
SuzyQ
Community Leader
Community Leader

Kelly7874 wrote:

....Yesterday, I reviewed my most recent bill, and the charge was there for 1/9/10. I called Verizon again. This time the customer service rep was quite rude. He stated that since the 1/9 charge was before I made my initial call, I was responsible for it. Until my bill came, how was I supposed to know I would be charged again for it, considering we never actually receive the text message?

 

....The CS rep did not want to hear any of this. He went into "just repeat our policy" mode, restating several times that I must have signed up for the service. The tone of the rep was not necessary. What happened to customer service? 


Kelly,

I would call back, get another rep, and restate my case.  Keep calling untl you get a rep that will work with you - if you blocked premium and got the previous months' charge refunded - then there should have been no charge for January.  Keep calling till you get a rep that will see that and refund you....and watch your bill to be sure it doesn't pop up again. 

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Re: Premium Message Shenanigans
Kelly7874
Newbie

This past Thursday, I went into our local store rather than deal with CS over the phone again. The rep was helpful, but stated that since the Premium block was applied *AFTER* I had started receiving the texts from 47941, then I would continue to receive them (since I had "opt-ed" into receiving them).   He stated the CS should have told me that - BUT he wouldn't remove the latest 9.99 charge, which is completely ridiculous, even after I mentioned the phone rep was inconsiderate. He told me to go online, temporarily remove the block, then text, "stop, quit, cancel, unsubscribe" to the number, and then immediately reapply the block. He reassured me that I would not be charged additionally, though my confidence in the company is non-existant at this point.

 

Kelly

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Re: Premium Message Shenanigans
acraftylady
Specialist - Level 2

Yes if you would have texted stop right away when you got the first text that would unsubscribe you.  Too bad there is not a way to learn this stuff before it happens.  Mary

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Re: Preium Message Shenanagins
d20chick
Enthusiast - Level 1

Read your bills.  It's likely there's a time limit to what you can dispute (30 days? 60? 90?).  I admit, haven't read Verizon's Terms and Conditions yet.  Ask questions of the rep, especially when it comes to subscriptions & overages.  Is there anything currently pending unbilled?  How can I avoid this charge in the future?

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Re: Preium Message Shenanagins
Ann154
Community Leader
Community Leader

Oi! This thread was started in 2010!

I'm most definitely NOT a VZW employee. If a post answered your question, please mark it as the answer.

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