Child Item

Site Totals

61500 Questions Answered 271 Categories

How to leave Verizon after contract ends - taking with me the phone number?

My contract is about to end - Nov. 5 - and I want to port the number over to an entirely new phone, which will use Straight Talk.

Do I let the contract expire, then port the number? Or do I port the number first, then let it expire? It's not clear whatsoever. If I port it before, then I risk an early termination fee (ETF) unless I clear it with them first. I'd rather let it expire, then port the number over, eliminating any risk of ETF. But if I do that, will my number be lost? or is there some kind of grace period when I can still port my old number out?

Comments

rcschnoor

Why would your number be lost if you let the contract expire? After the contract expires, you will still have service with Verizon until you decide to cancel or port the line.

Just make sure you are at your contract end date and not the date you are eligible for an upgrade, which would be at 20 months of a 24 month contract.

benver

Just make sure you are at your contract end date and not the date you are eligible for an upgrade

Thanks for that - I'll make sure.

I'd like to close my account on the same day my contract ends - that is, I don't want to pay Verizon for November if I'm not going to use it. If I understand correctly, I won't be able to do this. I will need to pay Verizon for November in order to port the number out AFTER the contract ends. If I do it before, I get ETF. If I do it after the contract ends, but don't pay for service, the number disappears. So really, I signed up for 25 months and not 24 if I want to keep my number...

Ann154

You should also know that Verizon doesn't prorate your final bill. When you port your phone number to another carrier, your service with Verizon is automatically canceled. However if you port out at the beginning of your billing cycle, you will be charged for the entire month of service. I would suggest waiting until after you have completed your contract and porting your phone number within a few days of when your billing cycle ends.

For example if your contract ends November 11th and your billing cycle ends on November 16th, you should port your phone number any time between the 12th and the 16th.

benver

Arright. Here's what I believe to be so:

First off, as rcschnoor mentioned, make sure you're looking at the right date. The discount date is 4 - 5 mos BEFORE your contract ends. Don't be confused.

When to terminate - well, there are two dates here also. There's your "billing cycle" date and there's the date your contract ends. Your contract ends exactly 2 years (or whatever your term) after you sign up. For me, that's March 6, 2013. However, my "billing cycle" is from the 15th of each month. So my contract will end on March 6, but I will continue to have service until the next billing cycle on March 16.

Therefore, porting the number should NOT be a problem, because I will call my new phone provider on March 7 - one day AFTER my contract ends - and ask them to port my number to the new phone/plan. That way, I don't break my contract, don't get charged an Early Termination Fee, and my number will safely port to the new phone within that week and a half.

This really should be explained simply somewhere other than a user forum. It is NOT AT ALL simple and clear, and I think that is by design. Hopefully this post will help anyone who needs to exit their Verizon contract and keep their phone number without incurring an ETF.

Finally, I would like to say how happy I will be to NEVER AGAIN sign a contract for a telephone.

Verizon_Support

That's terrible news benver! Our last option is to lose you as a valued customer! Please tell me why you would want to leave the most reliable network and the best customer service! If you do choose to leave, I recommend waiting until your agreement has expired prior to porting out. I'm looking forward to providing options to retain you!

Sincerely,

JonathanK_VZW

VZW Support

Follow Us on Twitter@VZWSupport

verizoniswayoverprice

Hopefully more people will find this thread Googling around. My phone transfer was made but my online Verizon account indicated my phone was "Suspended." Calling customer service was a joke. Mind you, my question was simple: "Will I owe Verizon any more $" and "What does suspended mean. Answers: "yes," and I never got an answer for number two.

So, here I am paying 65% more for Verizon and now they're coming after a pre-paid two weeks of service plus another bill cycle.... You can't imagine how many pieces of cranium I had to pull form the ceiling. Further, the Customer Service Rep was so poorly trained, she didn't know that "paid in full" means "paid in advance." To her, I was going to pay for 6 weeks of service whether I liked it or not. She told me it was due to my new provider canceling my account to late in the billing cycle. Which made no sense to anyone who's been through this process before. As long as it's switched within a current month, there is no new invoice for the upcoming bill cycle. So, I did the math of the situation, realized the CS Rep was wrong, questioned her logic, and then asked for a supervisor. The other thing that was weird, CS would not give me an explanation in writing other than snail mail! She couldn't email and was not authorized to give written data to customers. Who the H#ll uses snail mail anymore? I was told it would be 45 minutes before I could speak with a supervisor and they'd call me..... Still waiting! Almost Two hours later! Tells you how many mad customers Verizon has or how much they actually care about their customers!

I finally called my new provider and looked at that account on-line and sure enough, the CS Rep lied to place blame on my new carrier or was clueless of Verizon's non pro-rate policy. So, I called their CS department again and had someone with a brain at the other end of the line who explained it the way I understood it. She also told me it was not my new provider! My comment back was, "That's the way I thought it worked. You guys do a horrible job training your reps and thanks." I will not receive another months bill..... What a joke. They created all of that aggravation due to their lack of training or dishonest employees.

My point is this: The above is the reason I'm leaving Verizon. For the over priced service, they should be honest, train their Customer Service Reps so we customers do not get angry (they might save a few customers that way), and prorate billing cycles by rounding out to the next week. The reason I bring this up is I'm saving 65% by switching and, yes, that's a real number... I had to prepay my first bill. And, there's no hissing in the connection...... Way better deal!

>>Edited to comply with the <<

Message was edited by: Verizon Moderator

Child Item