Carrier plans come and go. At any point, a carrier might choose to discontinue a plan it’s offering and replace it with another. You’ll usually still get to keep the old plan, but that will not stop that carrier from still trying to get more and more money out of you. Verizon has been guilty of this, increasing the price of its grandfathered plans several times in the past, and now the company is once again raising the prices of grandfathered plans.
Verizon is raising rates for customers on grandfathered/legacy cell phone plans for (at least) the third time in the past year. More specifically, the Economic Adjustment Charge, introduced in June 2022, is set to increase by $0.99 to $3.97 for each smartphone and data device meeting specific criteria. The charge is applied automatically to new activations, upgrades, contract expirations, and phones with 12 months or less on the payment plan, so it’s pretty hard to escape for most customers.
Legacy rate plans, both for consumers and business accounts, are also reportedly subject to increases on January 23, 2024. More specifically, plans such as the Business Unlimited Smartphone Plan, Business Unlimited Essentials Plan, and Business Unlimited Plus Plan will see a $5 per month increase, while the New Verizon Plan, Flexible Business Plan, and New Verizon Plan for Business Plan will increase by $3 per month. Only a limited number of legacy plans are being impacted for now, but similar to the Economic Adjustment Charge, customers cannot evade these increases indefinitely, as they are triggered upon line activation, device upgrades, or contract completion.
These changes have not been publicly announced by Verizon, so there’s a chance that the company might back down from them. These are also changes that are taking effect for the old legacy plans that are no longer offered —if you happen to be on any of the newer plans, or even any legacy plan that’s not listed above, you won’t be seeing a price increase, at least for now. If you have any of those plans, or you get hit with an Economic Adjustment Charge, be prepared to pay a little more or switch your plan.
Source: The Mobile Report
