Update – Verizon Fios and the 30 Day Internet Policy

Two weeks ago, PolisPandit wrote an article about Verizon Fios and the 30 Day Internet Policy.  The article described Verizon’s draconian “Policy” that requires consumers to pay for an entire month of internet service even if they cancelled one day into the next billing cycle.  In our particular case, Verizon demanded we pay a full 30 day amount for 10 days of service.  We filed a Consumer Complaint against Verizon with the FCC, as described in the article.

Fast forward two weeks, and I am happy to report that Verizon prorated our internet bill to around $27 from what was a $94.50 charge.  The company was forced to respond to the complaint under FCC rules and remediate any issues as necessary.  We received notice they will be sending a formal response to our complaint via postal mail, which we expect to receive within 7-10 business days.

This experience illustrates how important it is to keep large corporations accountable.  Although they may have vastly greater bargaining and market power than average consumers, by notifying regulators of bad practices, corporations are forced to justify their behavior.  Reporting illicit and bad behavior not only benefits you, the individual consumer, but customers everywhere.