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A wireless industry proposal under consideration by the government that would make it easier for cell phone customers to break up with their service providers was met with withering criticism by consumer advocates on Wednesday.
The plan would give consumers a break on fees charged when they quit their service early, but would also let cell phone companies off the hook in state courts where they are being sued for hundreds of millions of dollars by angry customers.
Cell phone companies routinely charge customers $175 or more for quitting their service early. Under a proposal being reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission, the wireless industry would give consumers the opportunity to cancel service without any penalty for up to 30 days after they sign a cell phone contract or until 10 days after they receive their first bill.
The proposal would require companies to reduce fees month by month over the course of a contract based on how long customers have left, according to people familiar with the offer who spoke on condition of anonymity because the FCC has not approved it.
It would not abolish cancellation fees entirely and would not refund such fees to anyone who already paid them.
If approved by the FCC, the proposal would take away the authority of states to regulate the charges, known as early termination fees.
"If this plan goes through, the nation's largest cell phone carriers get a get-out-of-court-free card," said Chris Murray, senior counsel for Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports magazine. "We have long opposed limiting consumers' rights to sue, and that seems to be what we're doing here."
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The plan would give consumers a break on fees charged when they quit their service early, but would also let cell phone companies off the hook in state courts where they are being sued for hundreds of millions of dollars by angry customers.
Cell phone companies routinely charge customers $175 or more for quitting their service early. Under a proposal being reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission, the wireless industry would give consumers the opportunity to cancel service without any penalty for up to 30 days after they sign a cell phone contract or until 10 days after they receive their first bill.
The proposal would require companies to reduce fees month by month over the course of a contract based on how long customers have left, according to people familiar with the offer who spoke on condition of anonymity because the FCC has not approved it.
It would not abolish cancellation fees entirely and would not refund such fees to anyone who already paid them.
If approved by the FCC, the proposal would take away the authority of states to regulate the charges, known as early termination fees.
"If this plan goes through, the nation's largest cell phone carriers get a get-out-of-court-free card," said Chris Murray, senior counsel for Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports magazine. "We have long opposed limiting consumers' rights to sue, and that seems to be what we're doing here."
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