Hotspot Data vs Phone Data???

[DMathews1]

I would like to clarify once and for all if Hotspot Data is included in my regular Phone Data Limit.   I now have, under the Get More Plan, 30 gb of Hotspot Data and 50 gb of phone data before potentially getting throttled down in speed.

Nowhere in the Verizon Unlimited Data Plans does it say that the Hotspot Data is "included in the phone data" AND I must have spoken to at least 4 Verizon customer support employees who told me the two data amounts are indeed separate.  One tech guy from New Jersey (Noel) specifically told me they asked that specific question to the "Verizon Trainers" and they answered that "the two data amounts are separate".  But it appears, based on data usage reported on my Samsung Galaxy S20+ and comparing it to the Verizon Data Usage reported in MyVerizon that the Hotspot data is indeed coming out of the "regular data limit".   

So in my case, it appears that the 30 gb of hotspot data that I use is subtracted from my 50 gb of "regular data", leaving me with only 20 gb of phone data usage before my data speed is potentially throttled down.

One would think that if this were the case, Verizon would make it very clear via an asterisk or bold print somewhere in their Unlimited Plan literature  alerting their customers what the "true data usage" happens to be.  This should not be so hard to find and to confirm.  As I mentioned, most Verizon Employees believe that I would get 30 gb of hotspot data plus 50 gb of regular phone data.   Can someone tell me for sure how Verizon treats the hotspot data relative to my regular phone data limit.  Thank you!

[vzw_customer_support]

Hello DMathews1,

It's important to know the details about the plan you have,. I can definitely provide you with clarity. The Get More Unlimited plan provides 50 GBs of LTE within the plan. Up to 30GBs of that high-speed data can be used with the Mobile Hotspot that the plan includes. I do hope that information clears it up for you. 

Please keep in mind that we have other options, if more data is needed. Here's our current plan options: https://www.verizonwireless.com/plans/ 

ChristinaB_VZW

[DMathews1]

Christina-

Thank you for your reply. I believe what you are saying regarding the hotspot data being part of the premium data under the unlimited data plan is correct. At least, that is based on my own personal experience.

However, can you show me "anywhere within the Verizon document you provided" in the link above that says what you are saying? Nowhere in that document does it say that.

I just got off the phone a while ago with a very high-level tier-2 tech support person in one of Verizon's top technical support offices in the United States who said the hotspot data and the premium data were separate "cans of data" and were treated separately,  i.e.,  30 gb of hotspot data PLUS 50 gb of premium data. She said that I should be able to use 30 gb of hotspot data plus 50 gb of premium data for a grand total of 80 gb. 

And she is one of about five or six Verizon employees, some in upper management, who have told me the "exact same thing".  Hearing what you have told me and experiencing what I am indeed experiencing with my data under my Verizon Get More Plan, it appears that Verizon needs to do some serious educating.  

Verizon needs to inform their employees exactly the way data is being measured, and Verizon customers need to be informed as to what the exact situation is relative to hotspot data and premium data.

One would think that Verizon Wireless, a giant in the communication industry, would be the best at good communication... in this particular instance, they are missing the mark by a mile!

Btw, if I overlooked something in the attachment you provided that confirms what you said, please let me know, and I will stand corrected. Thanks again Christina for reaching out to me on this issue.

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[vzw_customer_support]

DMathews1, we do agree with you. You should always be receiving proper information the first time you reach out to us. We do apologize is this did not occur. We take your feedback seriously and will be sure to pass it along. In regard to the data, Christina was correct. You are given 50GB of 4G/LTE before you may see slower speeds. You will only see slower speeds when you are in a congested area. This link goes over this further: https://www.verizon.com/about/news/network-management-verizon-unlimited-explained

Your hotspot uses the same bucket of data you are allowed. Your smartphone data usage (ex: apps, browsers, videos, etc) and hotspot data usage are all 4G/LTE. The only difference is that your plan only allows your hotspot to use 30GB of 4G/LTE. Once your hotspot has used the 30GB you will see slow speeds until your new bill cycle begins. Here is a link specific to your plan for more details: https://www.verizon.com/support/get-more-unlimited-faqs/#mobile-hotspot

ChristineK_VZW

[DMathews1]

Christine-  Thank you for your follow-up reply!

I am presently talking to the highest level of Verizon...Executive Vice-President.   Their office told me today that the two amounts of data (hotspot & premium LTE data) are separate "buckets of data", and one is not used at the expense of the other.  If the Executive Vice President's office does not know what's going on with Verizon hotspot data as it relates to Premium LTE data, how are we Verizon Customers supposed to understand what's happening???

As I asked Christina above, I will ask you as well. - -  Can you show me/us exactly where in the Unlimited Plan Data information for (Play More, Do More or Get More) it says what you and Christina have mentioned, ie, that the "hotspot data comes out of the premium LTE data bucket"???  That would be very helpful if you could.  And if you can't, one wonders why Verizon isn't doing a better job at communicating to us customers and to their employees.