Dave says he was lured in by the promise of a low rate when he switched from Cablevision to Verizon FIOS, but the bills have been much higher than expected and when he called to complain he was told the promotion he signed up for didn’t fit anything Verizon offers.

He writes:

I recently signed up for the Verizon FiOS TV, internet and phone bundle for a discounted rate of $67 per month for the fist 6 months and $97 per month for months 7-24. I had heard that Verizon adds on a lot of taxes and fees so I inquired as to what I would actually be paying. I was assured that the price I was quoted was after taxes and fees. So you can imagine that I was very excited to be getting such a good deal. I was told that I was receiving said deal because I was switching over from Cablevision’s Optimum Triple play deal ($99 a month after taxes and fees for phone, internet and TV).

Needless to say, when I received my first bill estimate of $150, I was quite shocked. I immediately got on the phone with Verizon customer service and was told that since its just an estimate my discounts were not applied yet, and it is impossible to see the discounts until the service is activated (and I am locked into their contract).

So the installation comes and goes, everything is going well, I am very happy with the service… and then I get my first bill. $151. I once again immediately call Verizon’s customer service where I am told the reason my bill is so high is because it is for 1 and 1/2 months. So she breaks down the bill with me and we get an approximate monthly bill of $115. Well above what I was quoted and higher than what I was paying for Cablevision. She then informed me that the numbers I was quoted do not fit any promotion that they offer. (I had just received a flier a few days prior quoting $69 for the first 6 months and $99 for 7-24. After taxes and fees). After some discussion, (I admit, I got a little angry and for that I do feel bad) it is decided that my case will be submitted for review and I will hear back from them.

The next day I received an automated voicemail from a [redacted] informing me that if I have any issues please email. So I sent my story over to [redacted] and received a confirmation email that my issue is being assigned to one of her assistants.

After about a week of phone tag, I finally made contact with what turned out to be the presidential escalated service line (908-717-3115), where once again I was told that no such deal exists and the best they can do is give me a discount (down to $111 a month) for the first 6 months and inform whoever created my order’s supervisor that they made a mistake and should be reprimanded.

So now I’m locked into a 2 year contract paying a price I did not agree on. In a few months when the 6 month promotion ends I will be paying even more. If I try and cancel I will be charged a $365 ETF. Do you have any advice on what to do? Its a shame, because I really do enjoy the product.

Sounds like just cause for an EECB. Any other suggestions on how Dave can get out of this nasty contract?

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