Verizon Wireless will have to refund about $90 million to 15 million subscribers. The massive refund program aims at making customers stay with Verizon instead of choosing another carrier. The customers were charged for accessing the Internet on their devices which was not supposed to happen.
There have been tons of complaints from subscribers who said they were mistakenly charged a dollar and 99 cents for accessing the internet on their phones which they did not use. These customers will receive between two dollars to six dollars of credit in their October or November bills. Customers who are not with Verizon will still receive refunds through the form of checks.
FCC opened up an inquiry which was resolved after five months. They were looking as to whether the wireless carrier should be required to warn the phone user if they will incur charges for roaming or overage. Verizon said that the refunds will go to the customers who were wrongly charged because of the capability of their phones (because of the software) but did not even have data plans.
Michelle Ellison, an FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief said that they started investigating on this matter when the “bill shock” among subscribers was prevalent. They started looking on the matter about 10 months ago when complaints started to pile up. ”We’re gratified to see Verizon agree to finally repay its customers,” Ellison said in a statement. “But questions remain as to why it took Verizon two years to reimburse its customers and why greater disclosure and other corrective actions did not come much, much sooner. The Enforcement Bureau will continue to explore these issues, including the possibility of additional penalties, to ensure that all companies prioritize the interests of consumers when billing problems occur.” Source: FierceWireless
Will this $90 million dollar refund be enough to save the credibility of Verizon or have the customers forgotten the issue already and shifted to another provider. Or are some customers still in the brink of complaining about more data charges problem? Verizon said that they are valuing customer relationship. Customer satisfaction is their main concern and that is why they are issuing this million dollar refund.
A simple $2 data charge can turn into a big lawsuit. Good thing, Verizon is willing to pay for their mistake. Was it their fault that the phone’s software had capability of using the internet even without data plans? Well, this is not just the problem of Verizon but other wireless providers as well. At the end of the day, it is good to know that Verizon is making amends with this simple $2 mistake.
So, what’s in store for Verizon this quarter or the next? Only time will tell. We will keep track and definitely Verizon will be up on its toes to make sure that nothing like this will happen again in the future.
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That is true. On a big scale, this is bad on their reputation but at the same this will also save their name. Damage has been done. Users are thankful they will be given refund.