By Diane Lee (WSPA)
Verizon and Sprint must pay back $160 million to customers who got bogus charges, and you may deserve some of that money.
It’s an update to a story we did last month on how to get refunds for unapproved 3rd party cell phone charges. At first it was just T-Mobile and AT&T. Now, the other major carriers have to pay up.
HOW TO APPLY FOR A REFUND:
Anyone who had unauthorized 3rd Party charges after July 1, 2010 qualifies. You must submit a claim by December 31, 2015 to get your refund. Follow the links below:
Verizon Cramming Refund
Sprint Cramming Refund
Many people thought they were signing up online for free ringtones, wallpaper, or subscriptions to horoscopes and celebrity gossip. Instead they got recurring charges, like Takeisha Collins.
“I was getting charged 2.99 for a ringtone that said free. stopped doing the ringtone, and they just kept sending me a bill and it was like the bill was going up more and more and more and I was like, OK so I let this service go, I don’t have this number, I paid my bill before I left you guys alone, why am I still getting a bill for the next month?”
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says Verizon and Sprint collected a 30-40 percent cut of the gross revenue from these so-called cramming charges over the last decade.
Now thanks to the Bureau’s lawsuits, those phone companies have to pay you back.
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU’VE BEEN CHARGED?
For one, don’t call Sprint or Verizon. Customer care won’t be able to give you that information.
Starting July 1st, the refund sites will give you the billing summary for those exact premium text charges.
Sprint and Verizon say they will also be reaching out to affected customers to let them know about the refund, but it’s always wise to check for yourself.
Verizon’s site also allows you to register for an email notification when the billing summaries become available.
And both sites have a phone number specifically for cramming related questions.
Collins never thought she’d see her money back. Like so many, she paid the charges so she could keep her phone service and credit in tact.
Now Verizon and Sprint have stopped allowing these third party charges. But the lesson still remains: Be careful giving out your number online, and keep a close eye on your phone bills.