Verizon Class Action Challenges Set-Top Box Rental Fees

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Verizon New Jersey Inc. and Verizon Online LLC are facing a class action lawsuit alleging they misrepresent to New Jersey customers that they must lease a Verizon-supplied set-top box (‘STB’), digital adaptor, and/or CableCARD device for every television that will be used to access Verizon FiOS programming in the household.

Set-top boxes are “the prevailing conduit for cable television programming in American households,” the Verizon class action lawsuit alleges. These devices convert cable signals into viewable content and allow users to navigate the content.

“STBs serve a more deliberate and pecuniary function beyond any arguable technological role—they are a mechanism for extracting additional profits from unsuspecting consumers,” the Verizon class action lawsuit states.

Plaintiffs Rich and Leslie Struzynski and Rachel Wulk allege it is unnecessary to rent Verizon’s equipment because there are numerous available alternatives that Verizon customers can use to enjoy FiOS on multiple televisions within the same household “without the claimed ‘necessity’ of leasing multiple pieces of proprietary equipment from Verizon.”

The plaintiffs point to findings by Congress indicating the set-top box rental market is worth $19.5 billion annually, and that the average American household pays $231.82 in set-top box rental fees each year.

“Senior U.S. legislators have termed these policies, quite directly, as ‘unjust and unjustifiable,’” the Verizon set-top box class action lawsuit states.

The Struzynskis allege they have been Verizon FiOS customers since at least April 2010. According to the Verizon class action lawsuit, they currently rent three Verizon-supplied STBs and three Verizon-supplied digital adapters for use in their home, and pay approximately $51.94 in monthly fees for these rentals.

Wulk says she has been a Verizon FiOS customer since at least May 2015, and currently rents two Verizon-supplied STBs for use in her home. She pays about $21.99 in monthly fees for these rentals, the Verizon lawsuit states.

The Verizon set top box rental class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of the plaintiffs and a proposed Class of: “All New Jersey citizens who are current or former customers of Verizon, who purchased FiOS service, and who have paid rental charges, installation fees, and any other expenditures to Verizon for the installation, maintenance, and/or use of more than one Verizon-supplied STB, digital adapter, or CableCARD at any time from July 2012 to the present.”

The Verizon class action lawsuit asserts violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act; the New Jersey Truth-in-Consumer Contract, Warranty and Notice Act; and the New Jersey Declaratory Judgment Act.

The plaintiffs are seeking actual and statutory damages, treble damages, injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, costs of litigation, and other relief the court deems appropriate.

The Verizon class action lawsuit was filed in New Jersey state court in July, but was removed to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey on Aug. 28.

The plaintiffs are represented by David S. Senoff and Hillary B. Weinstein of Anapol Weiss.

The Verizon Set Top Box Rental Fees Class Action Lawsuit is Rich and Leslie Struzynski, et al. v. Verizon New Jersey Inc., et al., Case No. 1:17-cv-06485, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.