Federal Regulators Wants to Eliminate Cell Phone "Bill Shock"
Federal Regulators Wants to Eliminate Cell Phone "Bill Shock"
Posted 05/13/2010 at 5:30am
| by Paul Lilly
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Nobody wants to tear open their mobile phone bill and find that they owe $18,000 like the Verizon customer whose two-year unlimited data promotional plan ran out, and was then charged on a per kilobyte basis. It happens, though not awlays to such extremes, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) wants to put an end to the practice of it calls "bill shock."
According to an AP report, the FCC is considering mandates that would require wireless phone companies to alert consumers in advance of reaching roaming or data usage limits on their wireless plans, which would effectively put the onus on the subscriber to keep bills from ballooning. But is it already there?
That depends on who you ask. The reason the FCC is getting involved in the first place is because it has received hundreds of complaints from across the country dealing with every major carrier. But what do the wireless carriers think?
A spokesman for Verizon Wireless said his company already offers customers safeguards against so called "bill shock," including the ability to look up monthly wireless usage through their phones and online tools to set limits. Verizon said it would even retroactively change a customer's wireless plan to help reduce an unexpectedly high bill.
Is the FCC doing the right thing by stepping in, or is it ultimately up to the customers to do a better job at regulating themselves?
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Ghok
October 14, 2010 at 12:56pm
Regulation isn't about going to the government over being bullied, it's about companies that don't have to offer good service or or fair prices because they have a monopoly. I'm all for the invisible hand, but telecommunication is not like the typical product you buy in the store, and frankly I'm tired of the lack of decent service in my country.
That said, I've never had a problem staying under my limit. It just sucks that I can't use my phone when I'm out of town because I'll be gouged (but that's another issue...).
fuzz_64
May 15, 2010 at 6:12pm
In Canada, Bell will text you when you reach certain limits on your plan (or if you don't have a plan they will text you to inform you that your bill is running up and to buy a plan fast).
Phrish
May 13, 2010 at 1:13pm
"including the ability to look up monthly wireless usage through their
phones and online tools" - LAME"would even
retroactively change a customer's wireless plan to help reduce an
unexpectedly high bill." - BETTER
It would depend on *how* they go about "retroactively change"ing a customer's bill.
- Phrish
neo1piv14
May 13, 2010 at 2:24pm
Wait. Why is "the ability to look up monthly wireless usage through their
phones and online tools" lame? That seems like exactly what people are bitching about needing.
PawBear
May 13, 2010 at 11:46am
" Verizon said it would even retroactively change a customer's wireless plan to help reduce an unexpectedly high bill."
$!8000? Am I missing something here? Is someone lying?
"Either we conform the Truth to our desires or we conform our desires to the Truth."
timmyw
May 13, 2010 at 2:04pm
I'm sorry I'm a Verizon customer and love their service, but that ain't what is happening in the trenches. I had an unexpectedly high bill recently because I finally ditched the landline. I followed my usage like a good little consumer and when I figured I was gonna go over my text message limit I upped my plan, while I was at the Verizon store (not an independent vendor), I asked the agent to check my voice usage and was told I was fine with my current plan. A week later I get hit with something like 100 minute overage. I went back to the store and said "WTF?" They were willing to retroactively change my plan but I would still have to pay 1/2 of the overage. I eventually had to get the manager involved to have that waived being as I was in the store just 7 days earlier and told everything was fine (and I'm sure if it wasn't they would have tried to upsell me on the spot).
politik
May 13, 2010 at 9:36am
There is no way the costs associated with data transport should be charged in the per KB, period. It is simply disproportionate to sell you a 1GB data plan for $20 and then charge $100 for going over by a single megabyte. It is a cash grab, plain and simple.
neo1piv14
May 13, 2010 at 10:22am
You know, there's entire industries built around people being irresponsible and stupid. Should gambling and those late night TV infomercials all be illegal because they bank on people being irresponsible? Yeah, it's a cash grab game, but one that you agreed to play when you signed your contract. If everyone really wants to stick it to the man, then buy an unlimited data plan and get your money's worth out of it. Maybe they have to charge a bunch more per KB because they have to pay their agents for all the time they spend sitting around on the phone dealing with irate, irresponsible customers.
geared
May 13, 2010 at 8:12am
I really think people take everything for granted. You bought the plan. You are SUPPOSED to watch it. There's no hidden charges. If your plan is over your limit, you should know better. We're not newborns, we all have responsibilities. End of story.
Shrody
May 13, 2010 at 8:05am
The FCC dosen't need anymore power, they already have too much. I hate high cell bills as much as anyone, that's why I pay attention to what I am doing with my phone.
brotherj
May 13, 2010 at 7:40am
I've got a 3rd solution that's so silly it shoulda been part of the whole system:
How bout a usage meter built right into the phone? Cars have been doing it for years...even the electric company gives you a meter though it's hard to read but this is 2010 for Pete's sake. Cell phones require constant communication between the phone and the carrier...we're talking a few bytes of data for the phone to tell me once a day "Your current bill is $xxx.xx".
Or would that get in the way of all my sms, facebook, twitter updates?
LatiosXT
May 13, 2010 at 7:29am
I just don't like how expensive service plans in the US are. Carriers want to nickel and dime us for every service, including the most basic of basics.
I lived in Japan for some time and I enjoyed their plans better. It was basically $25 up front for service and from there it was free texting/calling to a number in the same carrier. You were only charged for talking if you were the one making the call (I believe, I was just told not to make too many calls, but I could receive all the ones I want), and even then it was like 5-10 cents a minute. Texting between carriers was around the same price (which probably isn't any better than here, but oh well). Your phone also had its own email address, like an actual email you could use (which was your phone number @ provider .co.jp) that came standard.
The only downside I believe was there was no real discount on the phone. That or I think the only discount was the contract agreement one.
aerogamer
May 13, 2010 at 9:07am
Not that I like my bill either, though I'm kind of low on my usage, but I'm guessing that Japan has a much lower cost/service ratio simply due to land mass/user ratio. Think of all the cell towers in the US that are essentially in "the middle of nowhere" (like where my parents live) that only service a couple hundred people at most in a day, yet still cost as much if not more to maintain/build... Oh, and I recieve a text when I am approaching/going over my limit. My usage is also very clearly displayed when I log in online. I've always known when I'm getting close to/going over my limit. Why? 'cause I aint made of money, nor do I have a geneticly altered awesome tree that grows greenbacks for me. Just because I have more cheques in my check book, doesn't mean I have more money in my account; likewise, just because my phone isn't shut off doesn't mean I'm not racking up charges out the wazoo.
razorpetti37
May 13, 2010 at 8:26am
I agree with the convienence and ease of using pay-as-you-go plans in other countries. I lived in Australia for 5 months and it is very common to use pay-as-you-go cellular plans over there. Granted, it was unpleasant spending $60 on a basic phone up front, but after that, it was extremely easy to manage your spending. If I figured I would spend $25 on calls and texts for a month, I would stop by a gas station, ask the clerk for $25 in Vodaphone credit and I received a code printed on a receipt to recharge my phone with credit. If I ran out of credit before the month was up, I just stopped by another gas station or grocery store and recharged my phone with more credit. With a wide availability of recharging depots, this type of system great. Unfortunately, in the U.S., I think there are a lot less recharging depots for pay-as-you-go services. I'm not positive about this, considering I use a normal contract service, but I've had Australian friends visit and try using pay-as-you-go phones here and they complained about the difficulty of using them.
razorpetti37
May 13, 2010 at 7:17am
I personally haven't filed for bankruptcy due to my wireless bill, but I will admit, back in highschool, I know I received some harsh repremanding from my parents for some obnoxiously big phone bills. I think most wireless users at some point have exceeded their allotted minutes or texts and have been charged a pretty penny for doing so. I strongly believe that most people exceed their minutes due to ignorance.
Yes, wireless carriers normally offer a method to view your current wireless usage, but rarely do they make this an easy procedure. Typically you have to navigate through various web pages and logins to access the simple information you require. As the other comments on this article have already made clear, most people don't know how to do this or don't spend the time to do so. So, I guess the wireless carriers have a somewhat legit argument that they do provide the information necessary to manage your bill, but there are at least two simple procedures the wireless carriers could implement to substantially reduce over-usage. Whether or not they decide to do these things on their own, or forced upon them by the FCC, that is their choice.
Solution 1: When an individual reaches the allotted minutes or texts per their wireless plan, the carrier would text message a notice to the individual that their limits are about to be exceeded. Most people would see this as a strong hint to stop using their phone. If they don't know how to access their text messages, they should stick to landlines.
Solution 2: The wireless carrier could institute an automatic stop-service limit based on the price of their wireless plan. If the current balance on their monthly bill exceeds the price of their plan by XX%, then the service is stopped until a text message or phone call is made to restart service. For example, when signing a service contract, the customer agrees to a stop-service limit at 200% of their monthly plan price. If the user's plan is $100 per month, and they have exceeded their allotted data plan, causing the current balance to be $200, their service is halted until the wireless carrier receives confirmation that service should continue.
I think both of these solutions would help prevent extreme wireless bills, as well as preventing talkative teenagers from dropping a bomb on their parent's wireless bill.
neo1piv14
May 13, 2010 at 7:31am
"I strongly believe that most people exceed their minutes due to ignorance."
"As the other comments on this article have already made clear, most people don't know how to do this or don't spend the time to do so."
Due to their ignorance? Anyone that you trust enough to give them a cell phone should be old enough to understand the concept of a minute and how that relates to an allotted grouping of minutes. The issue shouldn't be that people don't know how to check their minutes. The issue is that people are remaining ignorant because when they're handed the information for their phone, service, and carrier, they just throw it in the bag without looking at it. I've never had to check my minutes via these obscene menus and sites that people are always referring to. For every service I've ever had, there's a #3-digit-number or something similar you can call and it will tell you your account balance, data usage, text usage, and minute usage. I remember running up my parent's bill one time because I thought I had unlimited texting when I really didn't. As it turns out, that's my fault, not Verizon's, and I paid them the $50 bucks I owed them. People should learn their lesson and realize that if we want the government to treat us like adults, we shouldn't come running to them every time we think someone was being a bully.
razorpetti37
May 13, 2010 at 8:09am
I agree, I don't know if it should be mandated by the government for wireless carriers to provide these extra services, but I think the carriers should be practicing these things regardless. It's not like service providers have been going out of their way to improve customer service.
Aside from who demands such services should exist, I would like to address the issue of customer ignorance. Assuming that a person does know how to check their minutes/data, because apparently in your experience, they have made it easy to check, it doesn't mean the person will actively check their usage. You can make the argument that neglecting to check your minutes is your own fault, but it would certaintly improve one's chances if the carrier would be proactive in notifying the customer of excessive use.
If the thermostat in my apartment warned me that my electric bill was going to be $200 because I was running the air conditioning too much, I would surely welcome the feature. Am I going to go outside and check my electric meter every week to read how much I am consuming because the information is available? No, probably not.
neo1piv14
May 13, 2010 at 10:17am
But you don't run your AC too much because common sense tells you that if you try to keep your living space the temperature of your refrigerator, you're going to pay insane sums of money for it. Yeah, it might be nice if carriers let you know when you only had 20 minutes left on your plan or something, but if direct intervention by your carrier is the only thing stopping you from going over maybe you should invest in plan with a few more minutes.
Honestly, if I was a phone carrier, I would offer people a "Babysitting charge." Pay us $5 a month, and we'll guarantee you that you will never go over your minutes, texts, or data again by disabling the appropriate feature on your phones when you reach your limit. You can, of course, bypass the babysitting feature by calling in to our toll free number to get your phone reactivated, and you have to provide a couple different forms of verification to ensure that you know that you're going to be charged extra.
If people really need someone to babysit them like this, then I think it could be turned into a selling point.
jihnn
May 13, 2010 at 6:57am
i lived by the cell phone.... had several $600 monthly bills because of overages and roaming
been a few years back then it was very complicated to find out how many minutes i had left, it was there but buried in the menu somewhere
got rid of the cell.. haven't looked back i figure it is a least a savings of $1000 yearly... now i never say "you there"
maybe i will answer my landline maybe not.,, point is cells are very expensive and whatever the justification not really necessary
brotherj
May 13, 2010 at 6:28am
I get emails and SMS advertisments from my wireless carrier, my banks, long distance carriers, and even the freakin' electric company. These are people I'm already WITH asking me to upgrade or change something about my plan to give them even more of my money.
If they have that kind of time (I'm sure it's all automated anyway), they can send a damn txt if some unusual activity is giong on with my account like....oh....an $18000 bill. The fact that the FCC even feels they should step in shows that these companys only care about gouging citizens for as much of their money as they can get.
I grant that some personal responsibility has to come into play here but it only takes a lick of common sense to know that if i rack up a 5-digit bill, clearly I'm overlooking something and maybe a tap on the shoulder before it gets out of hand will ensure you get paid.
anonunga
May 13, 2010 at 6:27am
I wonder how much it would have cost that Verizon customer to check his balance considering he was being charged by the kilobyte.
Snap poll for the readers.
Before reading this article how many of you knew you could look up your monthly wireless usage through your phone and how many know how to do so? Now considering readers of Maximum PC are likely to be more technically inclined than the average Jane or Joe, how many of your non-technically inclined family or friends do you think know?
This should demonstrate just how much effort Verizon and other companies put into making their customers aware that it "offers customers safeguards against so called "bill shock,"...".
aerogamer
May 13, 2010 at 9:57am
I've always been technically inclined; though I despise the term. It's not a natural knack I had toward technology; it is a process of logical problem solving which applies to every area of life. I've been asked by friends and family to help in all manner of capacities and am able to do so, not because of previous experience or education (of which I had/have none formally) but simply that instead of becoming frustrated, angry, and giving up the moment of being presented with something that is unfamiliar or is confusing, I step back and look at it and think: flowchart...
Example, my sister needed a VCR (yeah, back when I was your age) plugged into a TV. There's only one cable and it can only connect to one thing, so I'm not just doing it for her; what a huge disservice that would have been. So I ask her leading questions (not that I'm trying to be a jerk and say 'Do it yourself', but I want to help her think through it):
How many plugs on the back of the TV=1; back of VCR=4; match the TV=2 but one is labled in and the other out. What do you want as the end result= VCR to play on TV. What should you do=VCR out to TV in. Done, and know she won't need me when I'm not there.
Too many people expect everything to be done for them by someone else. Why?
neo1piv14
May 13, 2010 at 6:52am
Your average Jane or John Doe should know how to do it. Ever T-Mobile phone I've ever owned came with about 4 pre-loaded contacts for Customer Service, Check Balance, Check Minutes, and 411. Calling the check balance or minutes numbers sends you a free text to let you know just how much money/minutes you've racked up that billing cycle. The average John Doe should be able to look in his contact list. Also, with ever new phone I've purchased, there was a little pamphlet in the box that had the same information on it. Of course, people don't read that so they can claim they were never told, but that's just life. Also, if you move into the 21st century and use the online bill pay to take care of your phone bill, it will show you right there how many minutes, SMS, MMS, and kb of data you've used that month.
Honestly, if the general public decides that they want the government to be more involved with their life, that's fine by me, but I don't really need someone shepherding me and making sure I wash behind my ears every morning. Everyone who has complained about their carriers not offering enough ways to track their usage probably hasn't read any of the tips they've been given. Then again, if they actually read all the information in the first place, they'd realize that they didn't have any room to complain when they were charged per KB of data.
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