Verizon charging rental for my own router

[Cramstar]

I sent the original router they gave me back to them, I purchased another one as to not have to pay rental. They are now saying my new router is theirs and are charging me rental on it. I’ve seen this as a recurring problem in this forum, even users purchasing brand new routers sealed having Verizon charge them for it. Why is Verizon charging me for a router even if it is someone else’s- why wouldn’t the charges be put on that persons account regardless of who has the router? They’re currently refusing to issue my credit back to me- can Verizon charge multiple people from a single device?? This is extremely concerning from both a consumer and business standpoint.

[Cang_Household]

Where did you buy the new router? From Verizon?

[Cramstar]

No, I did not get it from Verizon, I bought it locally.

[dexman]

Verizon support should be able to check the database to compare the serial number of the current router vs the router you were renting.

Question, is the replacement router brand new...a factory-sealed purchase from a dealer, or was it a private purchase...purchased from a former FiOS subscriber?

[Cramstar]

It was from local/private seller, they said they used it for a year without issue and then upgraded routers.

[dexman]

One of the unfortunate downsides to private purchases of FiOS routers. I'm inclined to think that the router is associated with an existing account. I'm not sure how to go about getting this resolved. As an alternative, there may be some brand new G3100s available on Amazon for less than the amount Verizon sells them for.

[Cramstar]

Assuming it could be associated with another account why would I incur rental fees instead of them being on that account? Wouldn’t the original user also receive a fee for failure to return equipment?

Another way to look to look at it- if I took this router and sold it to someone else tomorrow would they keep billing me as well as the next person? This seems very unlikely. All charges related to this equipment ‘should’ be billed to the associated account, in theory.

[Cang_Household]

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@Cramstar wrote:

No, I did not get it from Verizon, I bought it locally.

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That is a problem. The previous owner, or rather borrower, may never return the rental property to VZ.

The current account system associates a rental router to the Fios account on which it is connected under. This is supposedly to simplify the exchange process of rental property from customer who does not need it, Verizon, and customer who needs it.

A G3100, once enters the inventory, is designated either as a rental unit or not a rental unit. A rental unit could never be brought by a customer. If somebody tells you they payed for a rental unit so the rental unit become theirs, this is a red flag.

The best course of action is to return the router to Verizon, then ask the seller for a refund. I am not sure how probable is the latter process.