Verizon Agrees to Record $25M Settlement With FCC Over 'Mystery Fees'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Telecom giant Verizon Wireless has agreed to pay a record $25 million to settle allegations it charged customers millions of dollars in "mystery fees," the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Thursday.
Verizon Wireless will also refund at least $52.8 million to more than 15 million affected customers, the FCC said.
The settlement was the largest ever reached in FCC history.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Today’s settlement requires Verizon Wireless to make meaningful business reforms, prevent future overcharges, and provide consumers clear, easy-to-understand information about their choices," FCC's Enforcement Bureau Chief Michele Ellison said in a statement.
The FCC began investigating Verizon Wireless in January after large numbers of consumers complained of unexplained data charges. The investigation focused on “pay-as-you-go” data fees -- charges of $1.99 per megabyte that apply to Verizon Wireless customers who do not subscribe to a data package or plan.
The investigation found that approximately 15 million “pay-as-you-go” customers may have been overcharged for data usage over the course of three years, from November 2007 to the present.