July 21, 2008 | In: Uncategorized
Verizon Finally Agrees to Follow Their Own Contract
After many attempts, I have finally been able to cancel my Verizon contract without an early termination fee. I got a call back from Rob, a Verizon manager, and he explained how, after further review, they will be able to follow through with my request. Now I’ve got to spread the word.
20 Responses to Verizon Finally Agrees to Follow Their Own Contract
Kyle
July 21st, 2008 at 10:30 pm
Congrats! I got my bill a few days ago stating the FUSC bill, please leave me tips on what to say when trying to get the free ETF!!!
Kate
July 21st, 2008 at 11:10 pm
Congrats!!!!
Barry
July 21st, 2008 at 11:29 pm
Congratulations! You should hire out and do this for other people as a paid service.
Kyle
July 23rd, 2008 at 8:20 pm
IT WORKED!!! A call to Verizon representative Doug for a total time of 38 min. 23 sec. without even talking to a supervisor! He got pretty bored with me since I had an answer to every word he said. (I followed your conversation almost word for word) I recommend this method for anyone wanting to leave Verizon without paying an Early Termination Fee. I did it to get the 3G iPhone. I managed to completely terminate my line in less than an hour, without waiting for phone calls from any other departments on any other days. Just remember to be extremely persistent and stern. Being too polite could backfire. I kept on stating that he was contradicting himself any time he said something that was not in the contract. Wish you luck to anyone else who tries this, to get a kind sales rep (or one that gets bored or annoyed pretty quickly!)
-Kyle
Ely Rosenstock
July 23rd, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Kyle, glad to hear it worked. I’m actually putting together a YouTube video for detailed instructions on how to do this. Once I post it in the next day or so, spread it to your friends.
Now you’ve got to find a store that has the iphone in stock.
Kyle
July 24th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Totally true. I am struggling to get to a store to get the iPhone in New Jersey!!! But luckily I am only about an hour away from the 5th avenue Apple store which has EVERYTHING in stock, so thats my destination this weekend. When that YouTube video does goes up, post the link, it will probably be a good reference for others.
-Kyle
Joe
July 25th, 2008 at 11:07 am
Ely (or anyone else with experience on this) –
Once you terminated your contract, were you able to port your phone number to AT&T? That’s the sticking point for me with going through this procedure — I’ve heard that if you cancel before getting your new service, the number cannot be ported…but I’m concerned about starting the new service and then having to try to get the ETF waived retroactively.
In any event — congrats on your success! I hope to be able to follow suit soon.
-j.
Ely Rosenstock
July 25th, 2008 at 11:22 am
Joe,
What you need to do is tell Verizon that you’d like to cancel in a few weeks. They’ll set up a date for your contract to terminate. They’ll also put a note in your account that you can cancel without the ETF. Call up Verizon again and ask a new customer service person to confirm that the note is in your account. Then you can port over to AT&T. Once you port, the contract is automatically canceled with Verizon. You WILL be charged the ETF, and you have to call back, have a customer service rep look at the note, and refund you the money. You keep your number and don’t pay the ETF. It’s a pain, but it works.
Joe
July 25th, 2008 at 11:43 am
ROCK. Thanks for the prompt reply. I’ll probably give this a try within the week.
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Jeremy
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Our predicament is slightly different. We have phone service and wirless Internet service through Verizon. What if I only want to cancel the Internet but keep the phones? It seems the Internet is on the same form of contract.
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August 4th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
[...] truly locked rate regarding all fees that the carrier sets would stop people like me from jumping ship when small rates [...]
Cookie
August 5th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
I am currently trying to get out of my contract. I had two supervisors who blatantly told me they would not fix the charge. So I’ve filed a better business bureau report for shady practices, etc. They should be required to answer it so we will see what happens.
Lisa
August 6th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Wish I would have had this knowledge handy a year ago when I left Sprint – I moved to a neighborhood with sparse coverage, etc etc. I have been a happy AllTel customer for the past 12 months, but now that they’ve announced plans to sell out to Verizon I will keep this information in my arsenal – Ely thanks for sharing and empowering the rest of us!!
billy
August 13th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Hey Ely, thanks for this information. i have tried countless times with different calls to customer service reps. and their supervisors. i was never called back by two supervisors who had promised to get in touch with me. Long story short, i am being told that because a credit is being offered to my account, the adverse effect is erased and so i HAVE to continue service or pay ETF. I tried to explain how that credit was never part our our contract and i do not accept the credit but instead would like to simply end service. they’re having none of it, any advice? they also gave me an adress to Basking Ridge NJ to contact somebody by mail but that is just going to be an added delay and doesn’t seem worth it. i guess i’ll just keep trying new customer service reps…
mitch
August 13th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
I’m having the EXACT same issue. Any suggestions?
George
September 19th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Congrats on winning the good fight. I’m a landline lubber myself, so I’ve never had to deal with those Early Termination Fees from Verizon. But I have had to deal with them on landlines and other utilities. The best defense against those BS fees is a change of residence.
Just curious – what do you think about mandatory binding arbitration clauses? This seems right up your alley: (tried to post a link but keep getting the message “discarded”)
Josh
December 2nd, 2008 at 7:18 pm
I’m in the Army, and told them that I was in Iraq when the fee increase occurred. I told the lady that the soldiers and airmans relief act covered me from any change in contract while I am deployed. They turned off my phone instantly, and told me that they would get back to me later. I was also told that my early cancellation fee has been dismissed.
Hohn
April 13th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
Am downsizing my business and want to reduce my lines from 8 to 2 and Verizon wants me to pay them an ETF around $110 per line even though I told them I want to remain withing verizon. They insist on saying I gave an “oral agreement ” and said they sent me a note confirming that, yeh like I remember seeing that ?? I can’t get anywhere with them . Any help from anyone on this ??
Ashish
September 16th, 2010 at 4:26 pm
@Ely Rosenstock
Ely, you had some serious patience and I admire your line of reasoning! But besides the ‘materially adverse effect’ clause, can one get out of a contract by moving out of the coverage area or even the country??
Appreciate your comment. Thanks.