AT&T to Pay $700,000 Fine and Refund Customers for Data Overcharges
By Kimberly Mirando
AT&T has agreed to pay $700,000 to the federal government to settle charges it overcharged wireless data customers by automatically switching those on pay-as-you-go data plans to its mandatory monthly wireless data plans. AT&T will also refund affected consumers who were overbilled, which could be as much as $25 to $30 per month, depending on data use.
The Federal Communications Commission said in a press release that it began investigating AT&T over these practices last year after receiving a number of consumer complaints. The problem started in 2009 when AT&T made monthly plans mandatory, but promised existing pay-as-you-go data plan customers they could keep their old plans. According to the FCC investigation, however, some consumers who replaced these phones under warranty or insurance, or who moved to a new residence, were switched to the monthly plans, even though AT&T told them they could keep their old plans.
AT&T spokesman Marty Richter downplayed the FCC consent decree, which will require AT&T to pay $700,000 to the U.S. Department of Treasury and refund individual customers affected by these changes. Richter said less than 0.03 percent of AT&T wireless customers are affected by the consent decree, adding that AT&T had already discovered and corrected the issue by November 2010 and provided refunds to customers who contacted AT&T.
“Based on a review of our refund process, we believe a vast majority of those customers affected by the billing error have already been made whole,” Richter said. “But as part of the decree we’ll be providing a bill-page notice to affected customers, offering refunds, and giving them the option to return to a data pay-per-use plan, or to have a data block applied to their phone.”
Still, the FCC urges AT&T subscribers to check their bills closely and contact the company if they feel they’ve been wrongly overcharged for wireless data.
So far no class action lawsuit has been filed over the AT&T data overcharges.
Updated November 9th, 2012
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13 thoughts onAT&T to Pay $700,000 Fine and Refund Customers for Data Overcharges
i was a 5 year cust of att i had my bill down to 63.00 a month i bought a drown that required 5g tyhat i did not have i had no idea that they did this. oh well i went in to get a new phone and because of my plan they said i did not have any deals on phones. oh well so they gave me 800 for trade and 1200 for new phone i told they guy i do not want insurance i never buy insurance or extented warrenties tyhats just me he told me that if i join art for 25.00 i would not have to pay activation so i did and auto payment which i already did it would save 5 a month so i left there with 125.00 bill i was told that was best deal. 2 years down the line i am having some money problems so i cancelled auto pay and they started sending bill they charged me 13.00 insurance and 8. for early trade in. 21×24 504.00 arp never got 35 fee and 5 for clould dishonest and auto pay is the way they get away with it probably saleman got bonus for insrace and up sales they do not care about it and i feel they owe me cant wait till one more year i dont think i am only one that insureance was added when they said no
I LOGGED INTO AN OLD AT&T ACCOUNT I HAD A BILL FOR $1836.99. CANCELLED THIS ACCOUNT LONG AGO WITH FULL PAYMENT. I FOUND OUT THAT BECAUSE I WENT TO GET A DEVICE TURNED ON THEY SAID COULD NOT DO IT BECAUSE OF THE LAST COMPANY. AT&T WAS THE LAST COMPANY. THEY ARE FRAUD!
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