T-Mobile must clarify its advertising about its no-contract...
T-Mobile must clarify its advertising about its no-contract plan as part of a court order, effective nationwide, said Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson. The court order was filed in Seattle’s King County Superior Court. “My office identified that T-Mobile…
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was failing to disclose a critical component of their new plan to consumers, and we acted quickly to stop this practice and protect consumers across the country from harm,” he said in a statement Thursday (http://1.usa.gov/14eDGXX). T-Mobile disputed the characterization: “While we believe our advertising was truthful and appropriate, we voluntarily agreed to this arrangement with the Washington AG in this spirit,” it said in a statement. The telco said its “goal is to increase transparency with our customers, unleashing them from restrictive long-term service contracts -- this kind of simple, straightforward approach is core to the new company we are building.” T-Mobile customers may face heavy penalties for trying to cancel plans before the two years in ways not “adequately” disclosed, said Ferguson’s office. It called this a “balloon payment,” sometimes higher than other carriers’ termination fees and charging customers the full phone price if they leave T-Mobile before 24 months. T-Mobile “cooperated,” Ferguson said, saying the telco signed an assurance of discontinuance that it wouldn’t misrepresent consumers’ obligations and that it would better disclose the contract termination payments it demands. “All consumers who purchased T-Mobile service and equipment between March 26 and April 25, 2013, can obtain a full refund for their telephone equipment and cancel their service plans without being required to pay the remaining balance owed on their devices -- as long as the customer cancels his or her service per the terms of the agreement, including returning the equipment to T-Mobile,” according to Ferguson’s office. T-Mobile must reach out to customers to inform them of this opportunity, the attorney general added. The telco also paid the Washington State attorney general’s fees of $26,046.40 as part of the assurance agreement filed Thursday.