WASHINGTON – Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inc. would need to warn customers before levying extra charges for mobile telephone usage under a U.S. Senate bill introduced on Tuesday.
The bill, introduced by Senator Tom Udall, a New Mexico Democrat, would require wireless companies to send warnings when subscribers reach 80 percent of their monthly allotment of voice minutes, text messages or data usage, according to a news release distributed by email.
“Sending an automatic text or e-mail notification to a person’s phone is a simple, cost-effective solution” that will help ease “the pain of bill shock,” said Udall, a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, according to the release.
As many as 30 million consumers have experienced sudden, unexpected increases in their bills after unknowingly exceeding monthly plan limits, the Federal Communications Commission said in October. The FCC has proposed mandatory automatic notices, and Udall’s bill would require the agency to write such rules.
Wireless companies told the agency in a Jan. 10 filing that mandatory notices could cost them “hundreds of millions of dollars” in compliance costs.
“Legislation is not needed,” Amy Storey, spokeswoman for CTIA-the Wireless Association, said in an email. “CTIA’s members currently offer their customers a variety of tools and features, such as 24/7 support on websites and toll-free numbers, to help them monitor their usage.”
Members of the Washington-based trade group include the four major U.S. wireless carriers: leader Verizon Wireless, second-largest AT&T, Sprint Nextel Corp., and Deutsche Telekom AG’s T-Mobile USA. AT&T has proposed buying T-Mobile in a deal valued at $39 billion.
