Wrongful Data Charges Put Verizon Out 90 Million - The UpStream

Wrongful Data Charges Put Verizon Out 90 Million

posted Sunday Oct 3, 2010 by Jon Wurm

Wrongful Data Charges Put Verizon Out 90 Million

No matter how good your cell service providers is, at some point in your relationship mistakes will be made. I have had wrongful charges from Sprint, some iPhone users had massive charges from AT&T and now 15 million Verizon Wireless customers are experiencing the same. That doesn't mean it's the end of the world however. Shockingly, companies make mistakes but how they remedy those mistakes is what really matters.

Hit the break to find out how Verizon Wireless might make amends.

15 million mistakes is quite a high number to make and quite a mess to clean up but Verizon Wireless has a plan to make things right. Well, sort of. They do intend to reimburse customers in the amount of 90 million by crediting customers accidentally charged for data usage their phones initiated due to software routines built into the phone. Incorrectly charged customers will be credited in the range of $2 to $6. It wasn't made clear weather this was per line or per account but they did mention that some customers would receive larger credits. There is some speculation as to whether this will settle most of the wrongful charges. Some customers were way overcharged and it's possible that they may not be correctly reimbursed in the process.

Below is the press release from Verizon Wireless.

Verizon Wireless Issuing Credits To Customers

BASKING RIDGE, NJ - OFFICIAL STATEMENT.

May be attributed to Mary Coyne, Deputy General Counsel, Verizon Wireless:

Verizon Wireless values our customer relationships and we always want to do the right thing for our customers.

In October and November, we are notifying about 15 million customers, through their regular bill messages, that we are applying credits to their accounts due to mistaken past data charges. We will mail former customers refund checks. In most cases, these credits are in the $2 to $6 range; some will receive larger credits or refunds.

As we reviewed customer accounts, we discovered that over the past several years approximately 15 million customers who did not have data plans were billed for data sessions on their phones that they did not initiate. These customers would normally have been billed at the standard rate of $1.99 per megabyte for any data they chose to access from their phones. The majority of the data sessions involved minor data exchanges caused by software built into their phones; others involved accessing the web, which should not have incurred charges. We have addressed these issues to avoid unintended data charges in the future.

Verizon Wireless issues credits to customers from time to time based on regular review and monitoring. When we identify errors, we remedy them as quickly as possible. Our goal is to maintain our customers' trust and ensure they receive the best experience possible.

What do you think about how Verizon Wireless is handling the situation?

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