Can You Hear the Fee: Jeff Weiss

My first impression of a cell phone carrier doubling their early termination fee is: there must be a lot of people canceling early. The thought of being charged $350 if I wish to break my contract does not bode well for me as a consumer who is making a choice about cell phone carriers.

I understand that cell phone companies spend a lot of money to acquire new customers. They discount expensive phones, offer promotional deals on services, not to mention the labor involved from the salesperson in the store to the person performing the credit check that ensures you won't be a financial risk once your billing begins. However, Verizon's new policy of charging $350 for an early termination fee for a smart phone is excessive. It's $150 more than what Sprint and T-Mobile charge and double what AT&T (the home of the iPhone) charges.

I stand by my first impression. If a company wants to charge me an excessive fee for canceling their service, I have to suspect that many people have canceled early and the company is trying to stop the bleeding. And that tells me as a consumer to chose a different company.

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