Lop-Sided Cell Phone Contracts To Be Decided By Supreme Court
Speaking of crappy cell phone providers, we’ve long been aggrieved by the providers’ one-sided contracts. Sign up for a cellphone and all you are really guaranteeing a company like Verizon, Sprint or T-Mobile is that, over the course of the next year, you will continue to pay them whatever arbitrary monthly fee that they spontaneously dream up, regardless whether or not that is the fee you initially agreed to.
Most cell phone contracts give the provider permission to change service agreements at the drop of a pin. Furthermore, customers have no recourse: part of the contract also requires that a customer agree to not file suits, but instead submit to the arbitration of the provider to settle disputes.
Sounds a bit sleazy, a bit one-sided, right? Well, luckily, the Supreme Court’s now been asked to weigh in on the issue. The proposed act being decided upon will require cell phone companies to provide their customers with copies of the contracts, inform customers of service agreement changes and, most importantly, get their consent. The cell phone companies aren’t happy, but boo hoo… there’s nothing fair about the current arrangement. We’re pretty sure the Supreme Court will do the right thing here.
Supreme Court Asked to Rule on One-Sided Cell Phone Contracts [Consumer Affairs]
Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.