In the latest example of a corporation trying to nickel and dime its customers, the telecom giant has announced a new “$2 payment convenience fee” for people who, well, want to pay their bill.

Basically if you are the kind of person who can’t commit to auto-paying your phone bill and like to pay online or on your phone, well, your bill is going to be going up two bucks a month starting on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, January 15.

Yeah, there are ways to go month-to-month without incurring the fee—electronic check, a Verizon gift card, paper check in the mail, or paying in person at a Verizon store — but if you want to pay your bill online or on your phone, well, be ready to part with two hundred pennies.

So, why is Verizon doing this? According to Big Red, “The fee will help allow us to continue to support these single bill payment options in these channels [the still free options] and is designed to address costs incurred by us for only those customers who choose to make single bill payments in alternate payment channels (online, mobile, telephone).”

So…basically Verizon (which is not exactly in the poor house) found a place where they could wring out a few extra pennies and is doing just that. What comes after this? Fees for accessing more than 100 cell towers in a month?

Verizon needs no discussion or approval to add or increase fees?

UPDATE: Verizon caved.



  1. send them a box of rocks C.O.D.

  2. Gildersleeve says:

    So they’re dropping the charge now, but was it because of the public outrage or the FCC threatening to investigate? I refuse to believe it was a “Oh Shit – somebody noticed” reaction.

  3. Glenn E. says:

    I wage Verizon won’t proved any data on exactly what percentage of its costumers actually autopay, compared to single pay. I’m betting the vast majority don’t allow Verizon to tap their bank accounts, every month. So Verizon would be charging $2 for doing business as usual, for the largest percent of subscribers. While cutting a break for the rich, who don’t care what ride Verizon takes them on. They can’t be bothered to deal with paper bills, every month. They make far more money, a minute, than the phone bill amounts to. So their time is worth more than any billing mistake Verizon might make. So yeah, don’t squeeze Donald Trump for an extra $2. Just the average poor and middle class subscribers. Make sense?

  4. Glenn, you are right. They will add on the nickle and dime charges at every opportunity. Things like a few extra overtime minutes billed, roaming charges when you were not roaming, $4.99 “premium” text messages that they are notorious for, equipment insurance that was not ordered, double bank drafts, etc. Always get a paper bill via US snail mail and pay via money order with these turkeys. Or pay cash at the local Verizon store and GET A RECEIPT. They have been known to run checks twice thru the billing system. I dumped Verizon shortly after Cingular got GSM service. I chose Verizon’s predecessor, Primeco, instead of Sprint when I got my first digital cell phone. Primeco was not very good.


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