Crastinate

guys, do you have to have a message bundle before you call? right now I pay a fee for each message. thanks!

awesome advice. worked great.

@gm
No, you don’t have to have a message bundle. This will affect you also, if you send a picture to more than one person, it will charge per person instead of charging as a single text message, like it does now.

The notice of the pricing change is buried on the last page of your March bill.

What about if the FUSC goes down? Is there still eligibility to get out of the contract despite a decrease in the percentage?

I wonder how I can port my #’s and get out with no etf. If I cancel using the message bundle, then can i port my current #’s?

we did it. “Picture and Video Messaging Pricing Change”

the guy we got was really nice and it didnt take more than 10 minutes to cancel it. We called back and doublechecked to make sure they added the note on our account.

was there a recent change with Picture and Video Messaging Pricing Change that I could use?

@Ryan Johnson
Yes, that is what we used. The guys didnt even dispute it.

Ok. So all you have to do is bring up the change in picture messaging. And how it has a adverse effect on you, and they will cancel without ETF? What should I say?

@nl.
1. Call Verizon customer support
2. Mention the picture messaging change and due to that you want to cancel the contract
3. they will try suggesting a bunch of options
4. dont budge, keep mentioning the change and how you want them to waive the ETF

I have the unlimited messaging..will they still cancel because it really doesn’t effect me? I really want the iPhone!

So, After 4 reps, and 2 supervisors. I did it. At first, they acted like they didnt know about the pricing change at all. But I got to a superviosor, and he waived 3 lines, on a family plan. I dont know how many stinking other options they tried to give me. But, It wasn’t to hard.I just called back a couple times to make sure that they noted my account. And now, I’m about to be verizon free(: At&t, here I come.Thanks for all the help!

@Jill
Jill you need to change that before you call for cancellation.

Well I got through Level 1… but now ive been on hold for nearly 30 minutes. I wonder if anyone will ever get back on the line or if i should just call back… All worth it for the iphone!

will this work with the Federal Universal Charge that Verizon increased? when did this go in to effect? if i do it today will i still be able to cancel? what about my number?? i would like to keep my number when i switch to at&t….sorry about all the questions.

Hi, I want to cancel my contract with Rogers wireless… they are putting the cost of the package I have (voicemail, call display) up from $11 (that I agreed to when I first got the cell phone) to $12 next month, I haven’t recieved any notices I just noticed it on their website, I wasn’t sent a copy of the contract since I never actually signed anything, I was called by a rogers agent who was rather pushy even after I told her several times I wasn’t interested, but I eventually agreed and they mailed me the cell phone, I tried to cancel within the 30 days that the sheet that came with the cell phone said I could but the lady I talked too said I couldn’t so I was stuck with it, I really can’t afford it and I’d like to know if this will work with Rogers, if its in their contract.. or where I can find a copy of it since I don’t have one, thanks.

so i call verizon CSR and they said that they would get abck to me in 24 to 48 hours because they have to check to see if the Federal Universal Charge that they increased is a computer error….any ideas on what i should do? please help!!!

@nl.
Hey nl….did they increase the picture messaging?? if so, when? would i still be able to use that…i tried the federal universal charge that Ely said on his youtube video. verizon told me that it is a computer error. should i keep calling?

on hold for 45 minutes ,so far

Followed the steps precisely. Took about twenty minutes but mission accomplished. The rep couldn’t have been any nicer about it. Had to walk him through it all as he hadn’t heard of this before. Checked with his manager, they agreed. Done. Great stuff! Off to the iPhone!

what’s the last days we can call to cancel, regarding the Picture and Video Messaging Price Change? I got this on the bill date March 20th, 2009, so even though the change takes effect tomorrow (05/03/2009) does this mean I can cancel until May 20th?

Please read my story at

http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/452/RipOff0452294.htm

the tittle is Verizon Wireless Loyalty Dept I was told i could get out of my contract with no early termination fee because price changes affected me.. but Lakanja Jones denied me Florida Nationwide

i just updated with the last call i made.. where i recorded one of the reps acknowledging that this change is affecting me adversely but somehow her manager doesn’t have a copy of the contract nor access to the verizon wireless website

@gm
That’s what I’m trying to figure out. SC said “Correction – you can cancel UNTIL 5/3/09, it is 60days from the notice of change in surface I believe.”

I know we are talking about Verizon, but I have a similiar problem. I am trying to get out of my Direct TV contract. I recently recieved a notice that they changed the customer agreement, I thought this would be a perfect chance to get out of my contract, no luck. Everyone I talked to say that I would still have to pay the cancelation fee. I looked in the customer agreement after seeing your video but in there it says that directTv have the right to make changes to the agreement It says I have the right to cancel but I may be charged a deactivation fee. And like I said none of the people I talked to would budge on waiving the deactivation fee.

In the contract says 60 days from the day you received notice of the change. i received the notice on my march bill So i’m very close to the last day.. I already called like 4 times so they can’t say i’m past the date because i called before the 60 days..

On another note this month Increased their FUSC fee which i have also brought up.

I suppose to get 3 call backs from 3 different managers yesterday. According to their 72 hour call back policy. So far no one has called me except another stupid rep giving more excuses. here is teh email seh send me after our conversation part of it

“Fernando, thank you for taking some time to speak to me. In speaking to you, you stated that you receive our notice to you, regarding your messaging service. Previously, when you sent one picture message to more than one recipient, it counted as one picture (or video) message. Per the letter you received, you will now be charged for picture/video messages delivered to each recipient. I am truly sorry for this inconvenience.

I am sorry that the changes mentioned in the letter you received did not impact the terms of your service agreement. Therefore, there is no compensation ( or waiving cancellation fees) to you, in the event that you decide to cancel your service. Please accept my sincere apology in this matter. ”

I filed a complain with the FCC and the BBB

https://odr.bbb.org/odrweb/public/getstarted.aspx

http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm

I have updated my rip off report.
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/452/RipOff0452294.htm

and I’m very happy to announce that i just received a call from verizon telling me that i can get out of my contract with not EFT. She was very apologetic about the mixed information i got from the other reps. She gave me her number and extension and told me whenever i finish porting my number to give her a call and she also noted my account.

For a moment i questioned myself for wanting to get off verizon but that moment was shortly lived since i remember all the rude and obnoxious reps i talked to before. And because i want an iphone..

Note to Verizon abide to your contract and don’t ever ever F with me again

@gm

Question:
I checked and my Federal Service Charge went up two months ago from .76 to .88. I’ve paid my bill twice now, and used my phone. Is this going to prevent from using this tactic? Should I wait til my charge goes up?

Thanks for this post. I’m going to be doing this shortly because I will be getting the new (not-yet-released) 32 GB iPhone when it comes out in June. I have two questions, though:

1. Can I simply cancel the contract and stay with Verizon month-to-month until the new iPhone comes out in June or July, or do I have to cancel my service immidiately? (I only have until the 27th to get in on the newest text price increase.)

2. How do I handle porting my number to AT&T?

Thanks.

Ok, I am trying to cancel a business account with five lines and go month to month.

I really only need one line cancelled so I can get the iPhone, but might as well get out of the contract on them all and go month to month while I am at it.

I called to complain about the increase in the Federal Universal Service Charge (FUSC) and i got hung on the last excuse of this video.

They kept trying to credit the FUSC back to me to “remove the material adverse effect.” I kept insisting to the supervisor that this provision is not in the contract and that I have the right to withdrawal.

He would not budge after literally 30 minutes of me saying I am not happy with that resolution. He insisted the people have never been let out of their contract because of a FUSC change.

What do i do? Do I play phone roulette and hope for a different supervisor?

@Chance
Just call back. I had a really great rep in the cancellation department named Phyllis. She put me on hold for maybe 10 minutes while she consulted with her supervisor, and when she came back she said that as long as the number port is complete and the account is closed by June 1, I won’t have to pay the ETF.

I have five AT&T phones being shipped (should get here today), so once they’re activated, the VZW account should close. Once the new iPhone comes out next month, I’ll just re-up the 2-year contract.

Good luck!

Thanks for the reply. I will give them another try.

Just one clarification, I only want to move one number to AT&T. My parents want to stay with Verizon. Verizon tried to say if I did this to cancel my contract that I could not keep my numbers. Is this true or would I be forced to port all of them?

@Chance
Porting/closing the account is initiated from AT&T, so I’m guessing all you should have to do is have Verizon put a note on the account that the number being ported should not have to pay an ETF because of the FUSC.

The only complication could be if the number you want to port is the primary number on the account. If it is, you can have VZW change the account so one of your parents’ numbers is the primary. The catch is that will probably end up renewing the contract on the modified line.

Trying to do this and they arn’t biting at all!! They are saying in no way shape or form is a .16 cent increase a material or adverse affect and they have now said twice they will go to arbitration. Now waiting on a manager

Did anyone recently have success getting out of their Verizon contract?

Hey so I was wondering if you have any idea if that its either once the new charges are to take affect or if its 30 days around the change of fees

So I just jumped onto my own contract from my fathers. I was wondering if any of you guys know of any new changes on verizon rates. I have a Blackberry Storm and Hate it!!…I noticed on the bill it said that I was charged $29.99 for email and internet last month…and for this month they are charging me $49.99. I dont know if the $29.99 was for the half a month I didnt use or not, and now they are charging me the actual price. Is that grounds for getting out of my contract. If not what changes are coming that may give me a chance to get out of the contract.

Thanks

Thanks for the Video Ely…great to have people like you out there to help. I work in the Verizon buliding in downtown LA and we do not get cell reception in the building. Very ironic if it wasn’t so sad. However, as you may know, they do not guarantee cell reception at all…even in their own building. I also cannot get reception outside on the street near the building which they said would allow me to cancel…at first. I called in March and they started a Trouble Ticket but never followed up. Now they are doing it again but said I wont be able to get out. I am appalled at the awful customer service and want out. I need to be able to use my phone at work and not have to go out and walk 2 blocks to use the phone.

Have there been any recent changes or fee increases that I can use to get out as I am willing to try anything at this point? Anyone? Thanks!!!!

I called trying for 2 hours. 1st call unsuccessful in the 2nd one they kept offering me a $2.48 cent credit and I tried your arguments finally he told me I’ll have a supervisor call you back. 15 minutes later I get a call and the lady is pissed off she is like you kept my rep busy for 2 hours (this one was really like 40 minutes but whatever) and she says I have to call the legal department and that it isn’t her job even though the “customer” agreement says to call her and then eventually she is like why do you want to change so I was like I hate the service and reception (lie) so she goes fine I’ll cancel your service and waive the early termination fee you will get your final bill in 7-10 days. DONE! Now to get my new phone yer!

Have there been any changes in fees recently? I want to get 2 phones out of a verizon contract bc they have terrible phones and want to get the palm pre. Hopefully they have changed something recently!

I would also like to know about any recent fee changes! I’ve been wanting to cancel with Verizon for a long time now. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to take advantage in the picture messaging fee change since I have unlimited texts ‘n whatnot. I have absolutely awful service at the place I just recently moved to and I’ve called time and time again arguing that my phone calls are constantly being dropped, my text messages can be held for hours before being received, etc. They’ve even sent out a technician and gotten back to me with “Your area is a LOW service area, not no service” not allowing me to cancel without paying the ETF although they have waived overage charges due to the dropped calls and have also credited an extra 250 mins on my account. I just want to cancel! I need help!

First and foremost we should all be thanking Ely for doing such a detailed and even video tutorial for all of us to learn from and use for our own benefit. So THANK YOU Ely for all the trouble you went thru & for everything! This was the BEST news I heard in a long time.

After reading this entire thread along with additional links that have been posted here I went looking to see when I got my notice and now that its June 12th 09 its too late, I really only had til about May 20th 09 to use the messaging price change as my way out of my contract. So I started reading everything on my more recent bills (that could still be within the time line (60 days) to work) I noticed two things on my last two bills (April & May 09), I just don’t know if it’s really enough to cancel my contract w/o the ETF and still be able to port my number, the notifications that I received in my bill are copied and pasted word for word below. Please let me know if this will work or if I should believe the BS that the Verizon reps will give me when I do try to call and cancel… I think since I didn’t receive my April bill until the 26th I think it means I’ve got 60 days from that date to cancel since there’s been a change in the service, and maybe fees? Not too sure. I can’t seem to figure their numbers on the FUSC fee’s either. Can someone read the info below and let me know if this can still be used starting today??? I want out of my contract for both lines so badly but I would like to have the one number ported and the other just disconnected, also both my lines are in my friends name so its really his acct then I’ve got a split off from that. Do you think it’s even possible to cancel just my 2 family share lines and leave his separate lines alone while porting my number? Also does anyone have an e-mail address that could be used to contact Verizon so I could get our entire correspondence in writing? Anyone’s help at this point would be appreciated. Thanks in advance for any assistance you can offer me.

My April Bill

“FUSC Change
The Federal Universal Service Charge (FUSC) is a Verizon Wireless charge
that is subject to change each calendar quarter based on contribution
rates prescribed by the FCC. On April 1, the FUSC for products other than
the Verizon Hub changed to 2.39 percent of assessable wireless charges
except for separately billed interstate and international long distance
charges. The FUSC on these charges changed to 11.3 percent. The
Verizon HUB FUSC changed to 7.33%. For more details, please call
1-888-684-1888.”

“New Picture and Video Messaging functionality – (This was on April & May’s bill)
Effective 06/01/09, you will be able to send Picture and Video Messages
to friends on certain international Wireless Carriers. Picture and Video
messages sent to / from International Carriers will cost $.50 per recipient
to send and $.25 to receive. These messages are not included in any
existing messaging bundles. For more information on what countries you
can now send Picture and Video messages to, visit the International
messaging page at http://www.verizonwireless.com/internationalmessaging.
Standard messaging rates will continue to apply in the United States and
to Canada.”

Very interesting video – I too am leaving Verizon and getting the IPhone. You mentioned that you have a $25 off for the service agreement? I would be interested in that. Can you email me? gregcindyholman@comcast.net

Thanks so much!

Cindy

Don’t know if this is going to work or not but I initiated the trail of calls this morning to try and cancel my Verizon contract. On my bill that I received for June the last page has a “Notice of Administrative Charge Increase”. Seems like this rate effects everyone and all plans (except pay-per-user) would be included.

I also received my bill fot this month and at the end it had teh “Notice of Administration Charge Increase”….does this mean I can cancel since thye are upping the rate?

All “Verizon Wireless Surcharges” (ie. FUSC, Regulatory & Admin. Fees) have remained exactly the same on my April thru June bills. Is there any hope that one of these might increase any time soon so I can get the new iPhone 3G S or has Verizon locked these in?

So I just called and they said the Federal Fees fluxuate. It is a percentage of the bill so it not considered part of that rule in the contract?!? What do I do now???

HELP!

If I cancel my service with Verizon today, it will shut off my two phones. Is there any way that I can take my numbers with me to AT&T once I cancel with Verizon? Someone please help! Thanks so much Ely for this video!!

I just called in and used the Administration charge to get out of my contract. It took me less than 20 minutes, and I only had to talk to one person to get it done. I told them to leave my plan open until June 30th so I have time to port my number and had them notate the account saying there was no ETF. It was the most pleasant experience I’ve ever had with VZW actually. Hint: Be super nice and polite to the customer service rep- being one, it definitely helps!

I had been dreading the cancellation call to Verizon for so long that I had gotten an iPhone before I ended my Verizon contract. I have had two phones for two months, just because I didn’t want to have the phone fight with them. Needless to say, that was absolutely ridiculous.

Thanks to Eli and his four argument rebuttals, I was on the phone for 30 minutes and out of my contract in no time. I’m so relieved. Thanks so much!

My wife and I have both spent hours talking with multiple VZW reps and supervisors regarding the recent administrative charge increase effective July 1, 2009. We are being told that we cannot have the ETF waived because they will credit our account to offset the charges and any adverse effect. I’ve emphasized per Ely’s clip that it makes no mention in the service agreement that we have to accept this offer. Moreover, part of the last paragraph in the agreement reads “This agreement and the documents to which it refers form the entire agreement between us on their subjects. You can’t rely on any other documents or statements on those subjects by any sales or service representatives, and you have no other rights with respect to service or this agreement, except as specifically provided by law.” However, the consistent answer they’re giving us is that we will have no MAE because of the credit and therefore cannot terminate without paying an ETF. Has anyone figured out what to do? I’ve threatened arbitration and told them I would email the VP of customer service (barbara.trinko@verizonwireless.com) and file a complaint, and they just say go ahead. I’m so sick of talking to these idiots and am at the point of exasperation here. Can anyone who’s had success share the name and location of the person who helped you out and can I use you as an example? Please help…