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Do prepaid plans have same domestic roaming as postpaid plans?

My understanding when I got a prepaid plan was the prepaid plans have the full domestic roaming features that postpaid plans have. Since then I've seen several different answers to the question of how domestic roaming works on prepaid plans.

Can someone who really knows how Verizon does this with prepaid phone plans please tell me what the real answer is? Do prepaid plans have the same domestic roaming features as postpaid? I need a straight answer to this, not speculation or what someone thinks should or might be true.

Thanks.

Comments

Ann154

Generally, yes, but they are some differences. You can find those differences by checking the coverage map.

rvortman

I've looked at the coverage maps and read the FAQs...that's why I'm asking for the real answer. The coverage maps don't give me the full picture...for prepaid they look the same to me as postpaid. However, given the scale of the maps, they really doesn't answer what I'm asking. And the words in the FAQ's and plan descriptions (that reference the coverage maps, so I've been there *smile*) really don't tell me. There are references to paying extra for domestic roaming somehow, which seems a little hard to do with the nature of a "prepaid" plan where you're paying for the next month's service ahead of using it.

So please don't tell me that there are "some differences". That's why I asked, because I can't tell definitively what those differences are from what I see here. Please tell me what the differences are, and how I will see them. There should be answers to this, I'm on a plan, and I'm getting billed for something or other *smile*. That plan has to be well-defined to be useful to Verizon and to customers, and be manageable. So the answers are out there, and someone has to know what they are, I hope.

Thanks.

Ann154

Some locations are considered actually roaming because VZW doesn't actually own the towers or frequencies in that area. They have negotiated with those owners to use those towers, but that usage may be restricted to the postpaid customers.

Here is an example of the coverage maps with different types of coverage of an area I'm aware of having different ownership of the towers and frequencies.

rvortman

Okay, so what do those obvious (*smile*) map differences supposed to tell me? The "prepay voice" map seems to show that the whole area is covered for a prepaid voice plan, at least that the way that it looks at first glance. What's "LTE-M"? I really don't see what this tells me that's different between prepaid and postpaid? Which of the data types that are listed are not available via prepaid?

I appreciate your going to the trouble of including maps, but really, what do they mean in terms of prepaid vs. postpaid? That's just not clear to me, I'm pretty dense, I guess. And I'm looking for general policies, not going to be going over coverage maps with a magnifying glass to eventually figure this out. How is domestic roaming different between prepaid and postpaid accounts?

Verizon_Support

We are sorry to hear about the confusion. Is there a specific area that you are inquiring about? Have you received roaming charges in areas listed under our coverage? StephanieS_VZW

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