AT&T settles with Unicel users
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By BRUCE EDWARDS Rutland Herald STAFF - Published: November 10, 2009
Unicel customers who complained about the switch to AT&T will receive early termination fee refunds and be entitled to keep the same cell phone rate plans they enjoyed with Unicel, under the terms of a settlement announced Monday by the Vermont Attorney General's office.
The settlement requires AT&T Mobility to continue service to Unicel customers who haven't selected AT&T or another cell phone provider by the December cutoff date and provide them with free AT&T cell phones. AT&T will also pay the state $230,000.
Assistant Attorney General Elliot Burg said Monday a primary concern was that Unicel customers who did not choose AT&T or another cell phone provider by the Dec. 22 cutoff date would lose their service and their phone numbers.
"We saw that as a situation as very unfair to the Unicel subscribers and the question then was what to do about it because no one had the ability to keep the Unicel billing platform active after Dec. 22," Burg said. To its credit, Burg said AT&T came up with a plan to continue service to the remaining Unicel customers after the cutoff date.
Verizon Wireless purchased Unicel two years ago for $2.67 billion, including its Vermont territory. However, Vermont regulators raised objections because Verizon Wireless was already the dominant cell phone company in the state. As a result of a divestiture agreement, late last year Verizon sold the Unicel network in Vermont to AT&T and along with it between 100,000 to 150,000 Unicel contracts. Approximately 65,000 Unicel customers have already switched to AT&T.
When AT&T acquired Unicel, it agreed voluntarily to offer customers similar plans and rates to what they had with Unicel. In fact, AT&T did put in place similar calling plans, but many Unicel customers were never given that option. Instead, customers were directed to standard AT&T plans that cost more or had fewer minutes.
According to the Attorney General's office, AT&T began urging Unicel customers "to enter into AT&T contracts to avoid loss of service, and required them to pay a fee of $200 for each cell phone if they terminated their Unicel contracts early" and switched to another cell phone provider. Customers had until Dec. 22 to select AT&T, another cell phone provider or lose service.
Those early termination fees totaled between $150,000 and $250,000.
Aleda Dutton of Castleton is one frustrated former Unicel customer who was charged a $200 early termination fee when she switched to Sprint.
On Monday, Dutton was still trying to straighten out her disagreement with AT&T when she was told of the settlement.
"My latest call was two hours ago and they still insisted I owe them $200," Dutton said.
AT&T Mobility spokesman David Mancuso said the company has been working all along with the Attorney General's office and the Public Service Department to resolve consumer issues.
"This was a very fast and complex transaction that occurred when we moved in to do business in Vermont," Mancuso said.
He said throughout the transition AT&T has worked to offer additional plans and options with Monday's settlement part of that process.
Burg, however, said the problems encountered by AT&T could have been avoided.
Under the settlement AT&T is required to:
Refund all early termination fees paid by former Unicel subscribers, with 3 percent annual interest.
Send current Unicel customers a free AT&T cell phone with comparable features as their Unicel phone and activate the phone by request or automatically when the Unicel system ceases operating on Dec. 22.
Offer to continue existing rates and terms until the Unicel contracts expire, and after that on a month-to-month basis.
Former Unicel customers who switched to AT&T, or whose Unicel contracts expired after October, will be able to change their AT&T contracts back to the same rates and terms as their Unicel contracts and receive a $50 billing credit.
Other provisions in the settlement address comparable rights for Unicel business customers and subscribers with "SIM cards" and wireless data cards.
For more information, call the Attorney General's Consumer Assistance Program at (800) 649-2424.
bruce.edwards@rutlandherald.com
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