Back in September I had a long conversation with Stacy S. from Verizon regarding changing my plan agreement. I had been overpaying on my plan for about a year by having data overages each month, and even though I wasn’t under contract I never got around to getting onto a more modern plan and taking advantage of a subsidized phone offer. I told them that I was considering going with a different carrier because I thought I had been overcharged (even if it was by my own negligence) and I had seen better plans advertised from other carriers. Stacy S. said they wanted to keep me as a customer and said she could offer me a $50/month plan that would include unlimited texts, unlimited calls, and 4 GB of data. She also said that since she was getting me this “special” deal (“I am a manager” she told me), she could not offer me my usual employee discount that is offered to employees at the company where I work. I was fine with this since I was getting a good deal. I agreed to a two-year service agreement with Verizon over the phone with Stacy S., which got me a subsidized phone.
After I received the phone, I called Verizon in order to activate it. The person I talked to mentioned that there was an additional $40/month “line access fee”. I told them that this is not what I agreed to over the phone. They said sorry, but that was the deal: $90(plus taxes), not the $50 I was told. They tried to offer me plans that weren’t as good (bait & switch) and I told them I wanted them to get Stacy S. to call me back and figure this out. (I knew she’d remember since we had a multiple-hour talk) The Verizon rep left a note for Stacy S. and her manager on their system and said I would get a call back. Within a day I realized I was going to need to call Verizon back, because they weren’t going to get back to me. I called again and this time a representative told me that the person I had talked to earlier had misread the system, and that my plan was in fact for $50/month with “no line access fee”. The representative said this was not standard, but did confirm that this is what the system indicated, and attributed it to Stacy S.’s managerial authority. I thought “great, my plan will cost only $50, like I was told."
Fast forward a month (after my one-month interim plan had expired and I was now in the middle of my first “unlimited talk/text and 4GB data for $50 a month” plan), and I realize I am going over my 4GB data limit. I called Verizon to see if I could add more data to my plan. The guy on the phone switched me to the $60 for 6GB (and unlimited talk/text) plan. After he made the plan changes he noted that I would have the standard “$40 line access fee” too. I told him I did not have the “line access fee” in my previous plan. He said that was impossible because Verizon didn’t offer that kind of deal. I said you can check the recording with me and Stacy S. He said Verizon doesn’t do that, and even if she had offered me this plan, it didn’t matter because Verizon was still going to charge me the “line access fee.” I explained that I would have never entered into a two-year service agreement if I knew I was going to be paying $100/month. He said it didn’t matter.
I asked to not be under the service agreement contract since it was misrepresented when I agreed to it. Verizon said they couldn’t do that even if the contract was entered into under false pretenses. I was flabbergasted by this policy, so I asked them to put it in writing. They said they wouldn’t do that. (Who wants to admit terrible practices?) While talking to multiple Verizon employees over the phone, the message was clear: We don’t care what was told to you on the phone when you signed up for the subsidized phone, you are under contract now and we’re going to be charging you $100/month.
I got my first $100 bill today. Not happy. I was told I would have a $50/month plan. I was told that even if the contract agreement was misquoted, I would still have to live with it. It’s interesting that Verizon thinks they can say whatever they want when making a verbal contract over the phone and then not live up to it. And on top of that, they say that even if the contract was misquoted, it doesn’t matter; I’m still obligated to do business with them at a higher rate for two years. If that’s the case, why not just tell people they'll get a $1/month plan over the phone in order to get them to agree to getting a subsidized phone in exchange for committing to a two-year service agreement. This is a class-action lawsuit waiting to happen!
Jon
p.s. I find it funny/frustrating that people who work for a communications company cannot contact other employees that also do phone support for Verizon in order to clear up confusion. You wonder if this practice is intentional. There excuse of having "different call centers" does not preclude their ability to communicate via phone and email in the 21st century.
I'm not sure where they got the 4GB for $50, because basic phone users who switched to smartphones were only offered 1GB for $50 and 2GB for $60 on a 1 year promo for a 2 year contract. It did not have an access fee and excluded employer discounts. When you changed your plan to 6GB for $60, you changed from a plan that is no longer offered to a current plan. This means the old plan can not be gotten back, since it is no longer offered. I have heard of customers getting their old plan back, but normally it was within 14 days of the change and after any new equipment was returned and the restock fee paid.
Hi Snn5, Thanks for the reply. Are you a Verizon employee?
I actually did "upgrade" to the 6GB plan within the past 14 days, so maybe they'll give me my $50/month plan back which did not have the "line access fee."
Also, I was not a user that "switched to [a] smartphone" plan; I just switched my 350 minute talk and limited text plan to something that was a better deal.
Any thoughts on Verizon's practice of misquoting a plan and then still locking people into service argreement contracts?
I am NOT a Verizon employee.
All I can refer to is this:
This agreement and the documents it incorporates form the entire agreement between us. You can't rely on any other documents, or on what's said by any Sales or Customer Service Representatives, and you have no other rights regarding Service or this agreement.
Most customer service call centers are for INBOUND calls, and reps are not allowed to call out, particularly to another rep. Call centers are also sometimes in totally different parts of the country, so the rep is probably telling the truth when they say the don't know John Smith or whoever. I spent five years working in call centers in high school and college, (no, not Verizon) and if I had ANY ability to reach out to another non-management/supervisory rep, it was via email.
While this situation sucks, it is, in fact, stated on the Customer Agreement that:
This agreement and the documents it incorporates form the entire agreement between us. You can't rely on any other documents, or on what's said by any Sales or Customer Service Representatives, and you have no other rights regarding Service or this agreement. This agreement isn't for the benefit of any third party except our parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, agents, predecessors and successors in interest. Except where we've agreed otherwise elsewhere in this agreement, this agreement and any disputes covered by it are governed by federal law and the laws of the state encompassing the area code of your wireless phone number when you accepted this agreement, without regard to the conflicts of laws and rules of that state.
Verizon isn't going to cut your bill in half because a rep said your bill would be $50, and they don't have to. I'm not saying I think that is right or that I agree with it, but it's the truth. She said the plan would be $50, and it is. Unfortunately, the plan doesn't include the access fee. Plan gives you minutes, text, and data, access means you can use it. If you keep escalating you might get them to release you from the contract without an ETF, but if that is offered or promised, be vigilant in watching that last bill to make sure you don't end up with a huge fee putting a black mark on your credit.
Ooo, ninja'd!
P.S. I am not a Verizon employee either. This is a community forum for customers, as you surely found out when you set up your profile.
Thanks, Snn5. So do you just help people out in the Verizon discussion forum for the fun of it? Are you contracted by someone else to do this, even if it isn't Verizon? I'm just thinking that this is the last discussion forum I'd want to hang out in if it were up to me:) I'm sorry if I am interpreting your "I am NOT a Verizon employee" remark as a game of semantics, and you truly are here as an unpaid good samaritan.
One of the people I talked to after being mislead mentioned this Verizon clause. So I guess I was right; Verizon employees can say whatever they want over the phone in order to get you to agree to a service agreement and not be held responsible. Does this seem fair?
Anyway, I'm waiting for a Verizon represenative to adress this matter.
I am going to use law as an example here. No I am not an employee of Verizon and never will be. There's a REASON why you hear the term "GET IT IN WRITING".
Now let's say you owned a business and I worked for you. You give me no authorization to make offers or deals on behalf of your company. I tell 100 people if they buy this and bring a friend they'll both get a $100 from you, and they do so. Do you as a company honor my claim? This goes with any business, or person. Even California verbal commitment statues has this scenario exempt as well. Welcome to the old saying " Get it in writing" comes from. That will make it legally binding.
Now for some tidbit(pun intended) of information about credits. It takes up to 2 cycles to show up. Sometimes when a rep says your next bill they mean the bill after as the first bill may have already been printed and can't be adjusted unless you want your bill late or combine with the following months bill. I didn't read everything initially which is a bad thing to do, but if it's less than 60 days you might be angry over nothing yet.
JDKJDK wrote:
...........you truly are here as an unpaid good samaritan.
Well, this is a past time I suppose, I wouldn't call it a boat load of fun or anything, but I myself learn something everyday, mainly that interpretation plays a huge part of everything that is not already in writing.
Anyway, I'm waiting for a Verizon represenative to adress this matter.
You can tell who is and is NOT a Verizon employee by their candor and words. An official Vzw rep will give a more scripted answer and not allude to any verbiage that would incriminate the corporation.
Start a new topic or ask questions in the open forum.
