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Frontier charges you a router rental fee even if you don't physically possess the router. They'll waive the fee temporarily when you decline the router, but eve

Frontier charges you a router rental fee even if you don't physically possess the router. They'll waive the fee temporarily when you decline the router, but eventually it comes back and becomes immovable. The only way to get rid of the fee (that I've ever found) is to switch to a new account in the name of another person at the same address. F$*# Frontier, I hope they enjoy bankruptcy!

londons_explore 6y ago
Just send them a letter knowing about their mistake. Then wait 6 years. Then take them to small claims or arbitration, saying "look, I let them know about this 6 years ago and they still haven't refunded me". You should win back all those fees easily, and after 6 years it might be enough to be worth doing.
- inetknght 6y ago
  A consumer shouldn't need to take a company to court. Most consumers don't have money for that, and all I've known don't have time for that.
  - Retric 6y ago
    I think most people would go to small clams court for 150 x6 = 900$.
- Ididntdothis 6y ago
  Have you actually tried this or do you know anybody who did this? I hear a lot of advice “just do X” but rarely the advice givers have tried it for themselves.
  - lolamericans 6y ago
    On the same level as "contact your lawyer"
- chongli 6y ago
  What happens if they decide to just pay your default judgement of $900 (or whatever it amounts to) and then ban you from being a customer of theirs for life? If they are the only broadband ISP in your area then what do you do?
  - 0xEFF 6y ago
    They couldn’t because they’re a public utility in this situation.
    - chongli 6y ago
      So then you sue them in order to get an injunction to restore service? But that is no longer in the realm of small claims court. That means they can bring in their corporate lawyers and tie you up in court for years. Suddenly your $900 windfall turns into a massive liability you can no longer afford.
    - jandrese 6y ago
      Who is going to stop them? The FCC? You think Ajit Pai is going to side with the customer on anything?
    - mbreese 6y ago
      I think they'd only be a public utility with respect to phone service. For internet service, you'd probably be out of luck.
- npsomaratna 6y ago
  You'd want to file your claim within a "reasonable time period." Undue delay will result in the court denying your claim. What is "reasonable" is subjective. A couple of months would likely be considered reasonable; a couple of years, probably not.
  - gccxsse 6y ago
    So send them the same.letter every couple of months. When you are done using frontier, go get a refund
- znpy 6y ago
  This reminds me of that time I read about this LifeProTip: sometimes if you want to get something fixed yout should get the legal team involved instead of the support team. The example was about some kind of elettrical switch having some wiring exposed. Letting the electric power company know about this via the usual means was unhelpful. What was helpful was contacting the legal team via phone, let them know that the wiring was exposed and that it would have been a huuuuuuge liability if somebody got fried and after any kind of acknowledgment (even the smallest, even a simple "okay") on their side let them also know that the call was being recorded. Now the ball is in their field. It's passive-aggressive, but (according to the story) that's what got the stuff fixed very soon.
  - znpy 6y ago
    Generally speaking, As an IT person, if somebody from the legal team comes and says "fix this issue immediately otherwise we're liable" or "shut X down immediately" then I do that. Unless somebody above me (and above my pay grade) says otherwise.
tzs 6y ago
Not for long: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/01/us-finally-prohibits-isps-from-charging-for-routers-they-dont-provide/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/01/us-finally-prohi...
- Teknoman117 6y ago
  So, how hard is this to get around for an ISP? I've heard of a few that either charge you a modem rental fee or charge you a "self equipment support fee" that just happens to be identical to the equipment rental fee.

londons_explore 6y ago

Just send them a letter knowing about their mistake. Then wait 6 years. Then take them to small claims or arbitration, saying "look, I let them know about this 6 years ago and they still haven't refunded me". You should win back all those fees easily, and after 6 years it might be enough to be worth doing.

inetknght 6y ago
A consumer shouldn't need to take a company to court. Most consumers don't have money for that, and all I've known don't have time for that.
- Retric 6y ago
  I think most people would go to small clams court for 150 x6 = 900$.
Ididntdothis 6y ago
Have you actually tried this or do you know anybody who did this? I hear a lot of advice “just do X” but rarely the advice givers have tried it for themselves.
- lolamericans 6y ago
  On the same level as "contact your lawyer"
chongli 6y ago
What happens if they decide to just pay your default judgement of $900 (or whatever it amounts to) and then ban you from being a customer of theirs for life? If they are the only broadband ISP in your area then what do you do?
- 0xEFF 6y ago
  They couldn’t because they’re a public utility in this situation.
  - chongli 6y ago
    So then you sue them in order to get an injunction to restore service? But that is no longer in the realm of small claims court. That means they can bring in their corporate lawyers and tie you up in court for years. Suddenly your $900 windfall turns into a massive liability you can no longer afford.
  - jandrese 6y ago
    Who is going to stop them? The FCC? You think Ajit Pai is going to side with the customer on anything?
  - mbreese 6y ago
    I think they'd only be a public utility with respect to phone service. For internet service, you'd probably be out of luck.
npsomaratna 6y ago
You'd want to file your claim within a "reasonable time period." Undue delay will result in the court denying your claim. What is "reasonable" is subjective. A couple of months would likely be considered reasonable; a couple of years, probably not.
- gccxsse 6y ago
  So send them the same.letter every couple of months. When you are done using frontier, go get a refund
znpy 6y ago
This reminds me of that time I read about this LifeProTip: sometimes if you want to get something fixed yout should get the legal team involved instead of the support team. The example was about some kind of elettrical switch having some wiring exposed. Letting the electric power company know about this via the usual means was unhelpful. What was helpful was contacting the legal team via phone, let them know that the wiring was exposed and that it would have been a huuuuuuge liability if somebody got fried and after any kind of acknowledgment (even the smallest, even a simple "okay") on their side let them also know that the call was being recorded. Now the ball is in their field. It's passive-aggressive, but (according to the story) that's what got the stuff fixed very soon.
- znpy 6y ago
  Generally speaking, As an IT person, if somebody from the legal team comes and says "fix this issue immediately otherwise we're liable" or "shut X down immediately" then I do that. Unless somebody above me (and above my pay grade) says otherwise.

tzs 6y ago

Not for long: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/01/us-finally-prohibits-isps-from-charging-for-routers-they-dont-provide/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/01/us-finally-prohi...

Teknoman117 6y ago
So, how hard is this to get around for an ISP? I've heard of a few that either charge you a modem rental fee or charge you a "self equipment support fee" that just happens to be identical to the equipment rental fee.