How can I reduce my bill without jumping the Verizon ship. Way too expensive for what I use

[WIGGLLESTC]

Don't use much data and the service in my immediate area is not that great.  Looking at other suppliers  if I can't reduce my 2 line fee.  Suggestions?

[mama23dogs]

Have you priced prepaid?  or the current plans?

If you are paying for phones, that is quite an addition to the bill. 

[smith6612]

We need a breakdown of your bill to understand why it is so high and what can be cut down.

[Acrillix · Accepted solution]

WIGGLLESTC​

Hey there.

Best way to lower you bill is to be aware of what you're paying for. Remember.... You pay not just for the devices, the network, the ability to use the network, but also for the improvements, customer service, etc etc etc...

Heres a break down of what a 2 line bill would look like if they had 2 new Device Payment Agreements (my account has 4 lines but ill list 2 here) and no additional features....

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge - $32.00/month

Line Access Fee - $20.00/month

iPhone SE 16GB - $16.00/month

Line Access Fee - $20.00/month

Plan - 8GB of data for $70.00/month

Taxes and Surcharges (Depends on your billing state, plus how many phone calls you make etc)

Comment back with your devices and plan and I'll tell you what you can do.

Also, do a Account Analysis. It's available on the website. My Verizon > My Usage > Account Analysis

[cynthiaurbytes]

An access fee for each device? Clearly a ripoff! I watch as much tv on my Direct TV satellite and I don't pay an "access fee". Stupid! Paying for "customer service"? That's ridiculous, too! That should be on Verizon's dime!

I can't wait for internet phones to come on line. NO MORE ACCESSS FEES!

[mama23dogs]

Name one cell phone company that doesn't charge any "access fee" per line.

You can't, because they all do.  Every provider charges for each device, provides a phone/data number and a SIM card so the device has access to the mobile network.  

[Future2Hope4]

Tmobile doesn't have an access fee. After 7 years with Verizon I left. Verizon's greed is terrible: 1/3 if the fees on your bill aren't federal or state mandates. Instead, they represent administrative fees to line Verizon's pocket. To give an example--several years back I called them because I noticed my bill kept inching upwards. By 4 cents, 10 cents, etc.

Guess who that fee went to? Verizon. Lets do math: an increase of .10 cents across 100 million (yes, million) postpaid subscribers = $10 million dollars in extra revenue for Verizon. For nothing more than adjusting the bill by a few pennies.

Lets say 40% of the 100 million have plans that require access fees. $20 x 40 million = 4 million in revenue.

Then there's a percentage of you plan rate that is profit. Not cost profit. That is in addition to the access fee. Go down your bill and do that math.

Here's the real driver: dividends. Verizon has over 4 billion shares of company stock outstanding with dividends at or above .50 a share per quarter.  They pay out $8 billion a year in dividend payments.

Your bill dollar value is just one if the reasons they are able to do that. Awesome for shareholders; terrible for customers.

Leave. If enough of the 100 million leave, verizon will cut those prices. They have 8 billion in dividends to pay--they need you to help pay them

[Acrillix]

TMobile does charge an access fee it probably is just worded differently. Its there, I guarantee it.

And do you not understand how business works?? VZW is not a non profit organization. They make money. They provide a service, and you pay for that service, and they get rich. Like seriously where have you been??

[Snn5]

There are a couple ways to view T-Mobile's rate plan.  Take the $50 Simple Choice plan.  You could say that they charge $30 for 2GB data and $20 for the access charge, or just say $50 for the plan.  Basically, access fee or not, same price without the detailed breakdown of categorized charges.

[sprmankalel]

cynthiaurbytes wrote:

An access fee for each device? Clearly a ripoff! I watch as much tv on my Direct TV satellite and I don't pay an "access fee". Stupid! Paying for "customer service"? That's ridiculous, too! That should be on Verizon's dime!

I can't wait for internet phones to come on line. NO MORE ACCESSS FEES!

You do pay an access fee for your Direct TV. The fee paid for every box or converter.

[Aliciak1986]

iPhone XR 1 line unlimited talk text data $155.00 every 2 weeks 

[vzw_customer_support]

Aliciak1986, we can see how $155 a month for one phone on Unlimited can be expensive and we'll be more than willing to see how we can help reduce your cost. Losing you as a customer isn't what we want and can explore any savings opportunities that exist. We've sent you a private message to further assist. Thank you.

AlanS_VZW

[rcschnoor]

---

@Aliciak1986 wrote:

iPhone XR 1 line unlimited talk text data $155.00 every 2 weeks 

---

I don't know how you could possibly be paying this amount every 2 weeks, even on the most expensive tier of unlimited data without autopay with a checking account/debit card. There must be SOMETHING other on your bill aside from service.

For example, Get More Unlimited data will cost you $100/month without the autopay on a checking acct/debit card + taxes/fees yet you claim to be paying $310/month($155 every 2 weeks x 2). What else are you paying for? The largest memory size of iPhone XR would be $750 and if you choose to make monthly payments it works out to $31.25/month. That would bring your monthly bill up to $131.25 + taxes/fees, still FAR below the $310 you claim.

What exactly is the breakdown of your bill. Simply stating you pay $155 every 2 weeks does not really provide enough information for people to help you out. Saying you have unlimited talk text data doesn't really help either as there are MULTIPLE plans at varying prices with the same features.

If you want more help, you must provide more information.

[rcschnoor]

WIGGLLESTC wrote:

Don't use much data and the service in my immediate area is not that great. Looking at other suppliers if I can't reduce my 2 line fee. Suggestions?

If coverage in your immediate area is not that great, why wouldn't you look at other providers even if you CAN find a way to reduce your bill?

[vzw_customer_support]

We don’t want to see you leave. We’re going to dive in and find the best plan for you. What’s your current plan? How much data do you need?

StevenM_VZW
Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport
If my response answered your question please click the 'Correct Answer' button under my response. This ensures others can benefit from our conversation. Thanks in advance for your help with this!

[LENNYEDGE]

i just dropped contract like a bad habit, went prepaid and half as much im paying for 2 gigs and extra 1 gig data, but prepay gets less support and no cloud or vzw antivirus=us protection.

[Ann154]

There are other options for an Antivirus application available in the Play Store. There are tradeoffs for choosing prepaid over postpaid accounts. Looks like you have discovered some of those.

[sprmankalel]

As mentioned there are other options for anti-virus protection. Plus, I have worked with these devices for 6+ years (and owned them) and never have I seen a virus.