SubscribeCharter Spectrum will soon charge you for a full month of service, even if you downgrade or cancel in the middle of a billing cycle, ending a decades-old practice of issuing a partial month credit for dropped services you no longer want or need.
Tucked into customers’ May billing statements, Charter Spectrum announced it intends to stop giving partial refunds for service effective June 23, 2019:
The financial benefit to Charter Spectrum is substantial, because customers will be forced to pay for a full month of service even if they cancel during the first week of a new billing cycle. The cable industry has been gradually shifting away from issuing partial month credits after other telecom companies, notably Windstream and wireless operators, moved to “full month billing – no refunds for partial month” billing.
Cablevision/Optimum was among the first cable companies to stop issuing credits for disconnects that occur before the billing cycle ends. It led to a 2017 class action case against Cablevision, now owned by Altice USA, filed by an ex-customer. A 2018 ruling dismissed the class action case, compelling the plaintiff to use mandatory arbitration, required of all new subscribers. The final disposition of the case is unknown. Charter Spectrum maintains a similar clause in its own terms and conditions.
I just got snookered by DTVs similar policy! Will never go back to them, ever. A day after cancelling and signing up with Sputum, a Directv guy called and left message and asked if it would make a difference if they lowered my $135 bill for a low end crappy “select”package (not even Espn!) by $60. He called back and I said heck yeah it would have made a difference. I asked and asked Asian cystomer svc if they had any alternatives. No! But here’s another trick Sputum tries to do. I got a buyout deal for $160 from Sputum.… Read more »
Sorry, tried to review and edit typos or unclear language, but youll get the gist of it.
Spectrum not prorating for services not used……….sounds illegal. Come to my restaurant and if I charge you for a full plate but give you a half portion……you’ll accept that? Do I smell a class action lawsuit in the making?
Yes anyone want to join?
They are doing this to us. And we still have them as a provider. We only changed the person paying the bill to my son’s name. We wanted new equipment, and a lower package from Gold to Silver. We called on the 3rd of August. And because the equipment wouldn’t come till Monday we kept it on till then. However they actually turned it off on the 4th. The day the bill was generated. So now they want us to pay both bills from both accounts for the same household but two different accounts. I am beyond angry. This is… Read more »
I totally agree. They did the same thing to me for the month of October 2019. I cancelled services on October 4, and they said I owe them for the entire month of October plus November 1st and 2nd. How in the world can this be legal!
What is their billing cycle? Is it different for everyone? I canceled October 30th, it was the soonest I could turn in equipment, actually stopped using the 29th. They told me billing was from October 14th to November 13th and I owed the whole month. They just sent the bill on the 13th and it was due the next day?. I think they are just getting an extra full month out of me. I can’t trust them.
I agree. My billing cycle is from October 25 thru November 24 and I canceled on the 12 of October they say I owe for the full month how’s that possible
Either the billing date is the date you began your original account date installation or a made up date by them as to make it different according to their devious method of charging for an extra month regardless of when you start service or stop service. They will get you any way they can. Our bill generated on the 4th,, we called on the 3rd to switch the bill into my sons name, change the package and because they couldn’t do the installation until that monday they charged us another whole month for 1 days service. It wouldn’t have mattered… Read more »
i am having the same issue, but in my case, i cancelled cable just wanted internet in my new local. I told them to make the connections on the new local Nov. 1 but for it to be transferred on the 4 (new local just internet) , I wanted full service to stay at the old locale til the 4, but as of the 1 I had no cable. I called explained that I still wanted the cable at old local , after trouble shooting (3 hours) still no cable. long story short they charged me $230 for old local… Read more »
It’s not, and it’s also against Spectrum’s own company policy. I cancelled my service towards the beginning of November, the day after the bill came out, and they credited the entire month back to my account. You may need to call and talk to someone different as I’ve noticed that Spectrum is really bad about different representatives telling you different things – I always just call back until I get someone who’s willing to cooperate and if all else fails ask for a supervisor – they’re way too lazy to even get on the line so they always approve your… Read more »
Thanks for your note. I just cancelled yesterday Feb 6th, 1 day after my billing cycle started and have been told I owe the monthy $178 total. I have been explained their non prorated policy that is unclearly placed on page 2 of their bills by 3 minions. I will kerp calling until I find someone that understands the downside of Lousy Policy, Poor PR and Dreadful Customer Service.
I tried that approach and two different reps told me there was no supervisor who could waive my months fee. My billing cycle is from the 6th to the 5th and I took my equipment in on the 7th. They said they couldn’t access my account and they would keep trying..they finally accessed my account on the 8th which was 3 days into my billing cycle so they are making me pay the full month. I’m beyond livid!
Yep just happened to me 162.00 plus 134.55 for same month wow that’s expensive service
Spectrum is the worst company ever. Unfortunately there’s none others in my area can’t wait till there is spectrum so out of here
So normally I would agree with everyone on this forum as Spectrum’s customer service is sh**, but this seems really odd to me. I just had the exact same situation in October, so about the same time you did..transferred account ownership from my dad to my name and downgraded, and they prorated both the old account and the new account without me even having to ask. I would call them back, ask for a supervisor and tell them there was a mistake with your bill and get the balance of the month that you didn’t use refunded to both accounts.… Read more »
You may live in a state where pro-rating is mandatory. Also, you transferred your account, which means it remained open, only the accountholder’s name changed. In states where Spectrum’s no pro-rating policy is legal, if you close your account, they will not refund the remaining balance even if you appeal to them.
Hello Phillip. Thanks for your comment. Where do I find this information, about mandatory pro-rating by state?
This started in May of 2019,, I have done everything you mentioned. They even told me that we shouldn’t have been able to transfer the account into someone else’s name. LOL. Even though our home living situation completely changed at that time, and the bills had to be rearranged on who would pay what. We should have just completely cancelled and waited a week or two and started a new account. The rep on the phone said nothing about this when we asked to change the account into my son’s name since he would be paying the bill.
YES!!!
I do, please see my other comment on here. I want to watch them burn.
I cancelled Spectrum a day late and they are charging me the full month. I received ebills and didn’t read the may information on their new policy of no prorating; I was unaware of this new rule. Spectrum, as well as other companies should be prohibited from this practice. When I called to discuss the bill, the rep. read in her notes that I told the clerk for disconnection, that I wanted to stop service the following day; not true. I called to disconnect the same day. If Spectrum allows their reps to write false information so they can collect… Read more »
This happened to us! I called to cancel our service because we’d be moving in one week to a new state. The rep we spoke to over the phone said we could not schedule a cancelation day and that we would need to drop our modem off to cancel. When we did drop our modem off on January 1st, they informed us the rep could have scheduled a cancelation date and they probably chose not to because they did not want to lose a customer. When we dropped the modem off they stated we would not be charged for another… Read more »
Not only that, icanged my mailing address,did not receive paper billing to new address yet 12 days and counting.called and spoke to a human being.charged me another 5 dollars to my bill because she was human instead of computor.
I would LOVE to join any class action suit against Spectrum.
There already is one . Hopefully this site allows links
https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/consumer-products/internet-speed/spectrum-false-advertising-and-hidden-fees-class-action-lawsuit
Count me in
I do! Charging for services not
received certainly sounds like a crime.
Yes, I do want to join a class action lawsuit against Spectrum. Is there a lawyer in on this discussion? Let’s get this going. Just found out I owe $234 when I’m 2 days into my billing cycle and want to cancel. There should be a law against this! It’s robbery!
I have filed complaints with the CPUC, FCC, CCTA, Attorney General, BBB, City Attorney, District Attorney, State Senator, and Congressman. Spectrum mailed a letter saying I could “continue receiving the services that I already paid for”, but that is impossible since I moved to a new address that Spectrum doesn’t service. It’s not like my landline, internet, and cable are “cell phones” that I can take anywhere. My new address is not in Spectrum’s service area. Therefore, their 2019 new policy about paying a monthly subscription should not apply if someone due to moving to a new location that doesn’t… Read more »
This literally just happened to me! I’m being charged 75 dollars for THREE DAYS of service!!! I want in on any lawsuit!!! Why am I paying for service I am not receiving?!
Fully agree. The charge should be prorated.7
I would LOVE to join any class action suit against Spectrum. If had I been aware of the new “no refund” policy, I certainly would have timed my cancellation for the end of a billing cycle. As it was, I ended up paying nearly $100 for an unused partial month. Spectrum’s “notice” was one sentence buried in with a lot of unrelated advertising on the monthly bill (which I’m sure most customers never look at if they have Auto Pay). It’s like they intentionally tried to sneak it in, hoping customers wouldn’t notice, which I (and apparently a lot of… Read more »
I am pissed at them too. But your analogy is not the best. It is a little more like they gave you entire serving but you only ate a portion of it. We could all decide to cancel/change at the end of the cycle so we use the most of what we pay for. In reality even though it sucks, its like ordering a 32 oz stake and only eating 3 oz and expecting to pay for only 3 oz. It is obvious their intent is to charge us for one more month than we use. My final bill states… Read more »
I don’t believe there’s a comparison between food and public service. What we buy at a restaurant, leftovers can’t be served to others due to safety for others health. Internet, phone, gas and other similar services, are necessities customers request which companies take advantage of from greedy notions or out of desperation because they’re losing money.
your analogy is horrible….The 32 oz steak never arrived.Instead i payed for a 32 oz steak and the 3oz steak showed up. Spectrum are crooks!!!
As much as I hate their policy, this comparison is just stupid. It is “come to my restaurant, eat 1/3 of your plate and demand paying 1/3 of the price”.
Ok restaurant owner. Someone orders a menu item. They eat only half because they’re full and they don’t want to take it home. Are you going to take half the price off?? I didn’t think so.
Your point is well taken, but if I come to your restaurant and order a full plate and get a fu;; plate, but only eat half of it would you give me half refund? I doubt it, and I’d be a fool to expect it. The problem with Spectrum is similar but they didn’t put out the effort to let ppl know of this policy change, and to me that is the issue.
Not the same – a better comparison is that they order a full meal, but after you make it they say they only want 1/2 and you should adjust the price. I suspect that you would charge them the full amount. The cable companies pay the networks by the number of subscribers. Once the month starts they don’t get a refund from the networks, so why should they give one to you?
Just happened to me! I was a day late to turn back the equipment and they refuse to give me a credit or make an exception and I have to pay for an entire month of service at $143! It should be illegal to charge for service you don’t get!!!!! I’m all for a call action lawsuit!
Returned equipment and cancelled service july 3 because house being renovated and not livable for a year, still being billed for full month. Will not be using spectrum when I return to my home
I similarly called to cancel my internet on June 6th. The guy at Spectrum tried to convince me not to cancel. I said, “Do I have to have a reason in order for you to cancel my services?” He kept on with his pitch…had me hold. Came back on the line offering to drop the cost of my internet to $50 a month. I said to cancel it. Well, Charter Spectrum didn’t do what I asked. Then, I get a bill in the mail with past due charges!! I made another call to Greg on July 10th asking him why… Read more »
I too have recently been through the similar outcome, July 2019, with Spectrum and its shady and unethical business practices. I am in my mid 40’s and due to a recent sickness, I was unable to pay my bill by the due date; but I was in hopes of receiving monies to cover the monthly payment in time before they’d suspend my service, it didn’t come through soon enough. So on July 5th/6th, Spectrum suspended my internet service (I dropped their cable a couple months earlier for being overpriced). I have been a Spectrum customer for years now, with prejudice,… Read more »
They stop billing you when you are soft disconnected. Yes at the end of the billing cycle. You are soft disconnected if you are 60 days over due..that’s 2 billing cycles. They are just looking for the money from the services you used. If you knew you couldn’t pay the bill why wouldn’t you cancel before a non pay disconnect happened? Instead you are complaining about having to pay for services you recieved and didn’t pay for. Also did you ever reach out to have your internet looked at? Equipment/lines?
I plan on cancelling my Spectrum service as soon as my local telco begins to offer fiber in my area.
My suggestion for anyone planning to do this is to go to a local Spectrum store and cancel in person. Drop off any Spectrum equipment and get a receipt! I realize it’s a hassle, but you’re inviting trouble by cancelling over the phone.
Yep, I cancelled internet service July 1st. They still billed me 65.99 from June 27th to July 27th.
This is absolutely unethical, robbery, and complete horse sh*t. How are these companies able to do this?
Looking forward to the massive lawsuit on this one.
Cancelled Sept 4 and charged for full month cable and Internet. Close to $170. Mad as heck!!!
Same thing here. Turned box in September 13 and was billed from September 10 through October 9.
same thing here. Is there a class action lawsuit yet??
Yeah — my dumb luck – cancelled spectrum during the week of June 20th and apparently fell into this new trap. (Got hit with full month bill although my cancellation occurred on 3rd day of new billing cycle.) Just not gonna pay it…let them chase me. Or just send me the pro-rated bill like any ethical company would do… Adios Spectrum!!!
So want happened ?? I just got the same story and then a FULL month charge !! do they just keep calling until you give up ? Credit Score get knocked down 200 pts ?? I cancelled on the day SPECTRUM told me to and they charged for a month anyway !!!
Got hit with the full month bill even though canx on 14 July. I called and was told this is there policy. So they are collecting money for no services. I sent a complaint to the FTC, and I will follow up two a email to my congress rep. Spectrum is a corrupt, and this is criminal. Send a email to your congress rep and to the FTC.
any updates. im going through this right now.
Received new rate increased bill on July 4, called them right away to cancel service. I was told I still need to pay the full price for July 4 to August 3, even I didn’t use for a day. I waited until August 3rd and called them again to cancel, got a lot of BS as usual and finally got the service canceled. I sent the equipment through UPS on the same day, still get a bill a few days later. I’ll not pay that damn bill.
It seems their billing start date is day before you cancel.
I am livid, this is the same thing that just happened to me. I have never in my life had this happen where I am going to be charged for service I am not even using. I was not aware of this change, so I am not paying it until they prorate it like they should. I used to like Spectrum and now I am so pissed I will not go back to them ever again.
I bet as soon as you canceled you could not log into your spectrum acct, even though you were still paying? This happened to me. Paying, but acct officially closed.
Military move. Place we are moving to Spectrum does not service area. I turned my Equipment at the Store August 1st . Was charged For August. So paying for services I’m not using. They said that was s valid charge. I understand that . Rep did not inform me I would be charged for the month while I was there. Poor Business practices. Put themselves in the customer shoes.
My bill went up too, was having WiFi problems ( imagine that ) had to get on laptop Instead of my phone to try to fix it. Which still isn’t working right, (my husband takes care of the spectrum bill I never look at them) I do all the other bills.Anyway there was a extra charge on there for a (the ) idk spectrum app? Which neither of us ordered , I’m going to call just seen this yesterday , did anyone else get charged for that , and from what I’ve read so far it’s a Android thing and… Read more »
Yeah, Spectrum pulled the same scam on me too. After yet another rate increase, I decided to cancel my service. After I told the rep repeatedly I was NOT interested in ANY offers to keep me with them, She took on an “icy” tone. So I asked what would the prorated amount would be so I could pay it immediately I was informed that I had to pay the entire bill, that as of June they stopped doing that. I was stunned. I told the rep right there that I was glad I was getting rid of Spectrum and it’s… Read more »
File a compliant with FTC. FTC Negative Option rule
https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us?return_to=%2Fhc%2Frequests
I don’t know how petitions work, but I started one to get Spectrum to start providing a prorated final bill again. Charging people for service they did not provide is THIEVERY. http://chng.it/tb6V7b2h
File a complaint with the FCC: https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov
It was very easy to do and Spectrum is required to respond.The more formal complaints they receive, the more likely it is that something will be done.
I did this already, but nothing came of it. I really wish everyone would do this so then the number of complaints would stand out to someone and make a difference!
I just found out about spectrum no longer prorate they want 113.00 dollars for 2 days of service
Done. Complained on FCC, FTC and BBB and will be contacting the attorney generals office for my state
You also can file complaint with attorney general office north carolina
Any responses from the agencies and attorney general yet?
Just like everyone else – I called on July 16, 2019 to have my phone line cancelled because it wasn’t used…AT ALL!! I was told that due to Bundling, my bill would be HIGHER if I cancelled JUST THE PHONE!! WHHHAAAAT???!! So I told the guy to “..just cancel the whole account, then!!” I was immediately sent to the cancelling department. I ended up speaking to a female that should NEVER have a customer service job! Very cold, never asked me any questions, NEVER mentioned that as of June 23, 2019, that Spectrum would not be prorating service for customers… Read more »
Same story as everyone else. I cancelled day 7 into a 30 day cycle. Customer service is useless. Hopefully complaining to AG office helps.
I disconnected my Spectrum service on August 31, 2019, but did not call and cancel service until September 8, which was the 1st day of new service period. No one said anything when I canceled then get a bill in mail for $467 for service period 9/8-10/7 plus equipment not returned. I returned epuipment on 9/12 but paying for full month. Never dealing with Spectrum again … they have no respect for this senior citizen or their customers. I had to reboot modem and router so many times during the year and experienced a lot of buffering … good riddance.… Read more »
How would it be legal to charge for services not rendered? I’m taking this to the BBB for state of Texas. Never have I ever heard of lawful right to collect monies for services not rendered.
Received 2 phone calls and a letter from Spectrum asking for 64.00 for late payment. I cancel Spectrum internet I have been paying one month ahead for years! Now they told me they bill per month. I still paid on time. Waiting for lawsuit.
Unfortunately, this is apparently common throughout the industry. If ANYONE has a link or other resource for a class action or other course of action I’d appreciate it. Frontier is charging me over $250 for service I didn’t receive because of this policy.
They just admitted something very interesting to me. It is not in their internal policy to inform users as they are canceling that their cancelation policy has changed and that they will still be charged through the end of their billing cycle.
Unbelievable. I just called Spectrum to cancel my cable and home phone and was advised they no longer pro-rate. So even though today is the 4th of the month and I want to cancel now, I have to pay up until the 28th! I’m so angry right now! How can this be legal?? I’m basically going to give them $200 for NOTHING! They will never get my business again!
My retired mother (on fixed income) switched to Spectrum 2 years ago when a direct sales rep showed up at her door. She switched because Dish wasn’t working during rain/snow storms, and she was tired of the irregularity of service. She was lured into a “bundle” that started at $89.95/month, or around $115/month with taxes/fees. A lot, but doable. After 1 year, she was paying $146/month. Untenable for someone on a fixed income, but she didn’t tell me about it, and they wouldn’t work with her, even after she called them numerous times to ask if she could switch to… Read more »
I just spent two hours on hold, was transferred 4 times during the call just to ask them to cancel my services. First of all, my wifi was suppose to be 100 mbps and we were typically getting 9 to 15 mbps. We never liked cable and was incredibly happy to find out that Direct TV has an option to switch over to wifi when there is bad weather. We switch over and then I called Spectrum to cancel. After sitting on hold for a half hour each time before being transferred to a new person because it was the… Read more »
Spectrum raised my rates as of 9/26/19 and we received 2 letters advising of the price change dated 9/5/19 that we physically received them 2 weeks ago. One advised our bill would be $189.45 and the other advised it would be $195.45 and the real bill came in at $196.91. We called to discuss these changes as the bill was raised $40 per month. They offered to take $6 off of the bill but that was the most that they could do unless we moved our mobile phone to them also then they could talk to us more. We advised… Read more »
That is very bad business..cancelled my cable tv 2 days in of the billing cycle and told me I would have to pay for the services for the entire month. That is not acceptable..paying an extra $130.00 for no service? Come on now
Just an FYI. A few days ago, I downgraded my Internet service from ultra to standard and they pro-rated my bill. Maybe I got lucky, but I suspect they still pro-rate for downgrades.
My billing cycle is from the 1st to the 30th. I had went in on the 2nd and ask to downgrade the cable part so they did. so in the meantime I had no idea I still was being charged for the whole month of the original package service. I’m glad I seen this post I feel like I’m in the same boat. So compared to some of the other complaints I see I feel like I’m in a better boat😄 I am paying for services that we were not even getting so I told them to switch it back… Read more »
This must be illegal. I will not pay for service not received. Dispute the charge on the credit card and so be it.
Have you gone through with the dispute? What was the outcome? Thinking about doing it myself to be done with the absolute hassle that is Spectrum
We need to file class action law suit
Just happened to me as well. I cancelled TV only, kept internet and phone. I called the day the new cycle started and was told I was fine, just return the equipment. I did that and low and behold they charge me the full price. I called and was confronted with the rudest person ever. The FCC should do,their job and stop this corruption. Try You Tube TV, I switched and am extremely pleased. If this goes to a class action, I’m in.
I just got off the phone with Spectrum and I cannot believe that they can steal money this way for unused service. WTF?!! I am going to contact our local news station for a “story” — this is so unethical and unprofessional – the rep said lots of companies are doing it now? Really, I have not experience a one until this day. I am still in awe…..
SPECTRUM aka Time Warner aka Xfinity-NOT TRUSTWORTHY Overcharge Customers at end of bill for days you don’t use the service. 1st FUTURE BILLING on service dates is a trap so after you get the service they can change the rules on you. They will only tell you about the change in a message on your bill because they know customers don’t look at bills since most have paperless billing. If your billing cycle is 9-16-19 & 10-17-19 and you cancel your service on 10-20-19. They will not prorate the 3 days they are now making their customers pay for the… Read more »
Just canceled and was told the same, so I am supposed to pay approximately $156.00 for 4 days. Spectrum says “No Contract” I will be disputing.
so how can I cancel ppv and cinemax and how can I reapply after the series games are played
CAN ANYONE HELP ME LOWER MY CABLE BILL SO I CAN STILL WATCH WORLD SERIES AND PPV
Ordered a ” U Must Have” small indoor antenna and affixed it to a window in the house. Spent around $ 25 and if you write an Amazon review, they will send you another one free. It downloaded 66 channels, but I am in a large city(Phoenix) with several local TV stations. Can’t get ESPN, but get Fox and the other 3 major networks.
Same thing happened to me in October 2019. I cancelled my tv and telephone service on 10/4. The new billing cycle began on 10/3. Spectrum billed me for the full month of October! When I called and cancelled these services, Spectrum did not tell me that I would have to pay for the services for the entire month. — I called billing on 11/6/19 and talked to a Billing Supervisor who said they had notified customers in either May or June 2019 billings. (Interesting that they encourage customers to AutoPay, so we don’t even see the invoices unless we go… Read more »
I encourage everyone to file complaints about Spectrum’s practice with the Federal Bureau of Consumer Protection at https://www.ftc.gov/about-ftc/bureaus-offices/bureau-consumer-protection It was very easy to file the complaint and they require Spectrum to contact the consumer and try to resolve the issue and report back to Bureau Consumer Protection within 30 days. I filed my complaint with the Bureau of Consumer Protection on Wednesday, November 6th, and Spectrum’s “Case Manager” called me today to discuss my complaint, which Spectrum received from the Bureau of Consumer Protection. Supposedly Spectrum will call me Monday Nov. 11th and tell me what, if anything, they are… Read more »
Just filed a complaint myself. I encourage EVERYONE on this site to do so!!
The more complaints the FCC receives, the more likely things are to change.
cancelled my service back in october on the 16 due to no service from any of the included equipment an never getting either my phone or internet working never getting the posted speeds then get bill in november for full month of october AND november!!!! when i called they told me they never closed out my service due to it being “stuck” flipped out and they reversed all the charges for the double charges and rest of the bill once i said that i was going to take them to court for the poor service
Didn’t see the fine print in May’s bill, and I never agreed to this when I selected their svcs. I was just charged $69.99 by Spectrum for 9 days of Internet svc after switching providers! SMH Need a CAL for the $$ they are blatantly stealing from us. And where is the BBB on this issue?
I just called to cancel, as we’ve gone with a new provider and I was told the same thing!! She stated my billing cycle ends on 12/12 and they’re a “monthly subscription service” like Netflix, so they don’t prorate. It’s 11/20, it isn’t even December yet!! How do you charge someone for services they don’t even have??!! I bet you I’ll be fighting that!!
Here is a new wrinkle that I believe shows their intent to defraud. My service date was for past 3.5 years from the last day of the month to the next to last day of the next month. So I took my equipment in on Oct 30, 2019. Ask and paid next month bill for $80. Receive paper bill (first ever) on Nov 21 for past due as current month at $140 plus late charge. Called and said my service date was changed in April of this year and that the began a new policy of not prorating last month… Read more »
Cancelled 2 days into the billing cycle and was charged $236.
This is bull***t. My parents (88 and 93) moved to assisted living. Cancelled 1 week into the month, and has to pay the full month. This should be illegal. This is a public utility. That’s not serving the public very well.
Spectrum did the same to me. Does anyone know if they still pro rate starting services ?
No they don’t
Filed complaints with the BBC and FCC. One rep. from Spectrum I spoke with said the same thing you all have “In May we sent out a letter explaining the billing”, yadda yadda. If I did this with my small business, I’d be out of a job. Of course Spectrum said they don’t pro-rate the bills, I replied and said well I’m not paying for a service I didn’t use. Still owe $49.99 for one month of 30 mb internet which rarely tested above 20mb. Anyone know the legal ramifications? Like if they try and send this to collections, what… Read more »
I will NEVER use or recommend Spectrum again! Shady and unethical practice of charging for services never received when terminating service. It is wrong and this company is making money on their recent change for billing. We were customers for many years and were charged a full month of billing for one day of service when we moved. We called to cancel services two months ahead and were never told that we would be charged for an entire month by using one day of service!!!
File a complaint with the FCC: https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov
It was very easy to do and Spectrum is required to respond.The more formal complaints they receive, the more likely it is that something will be done.
Can some one plz tell me if i paid for new spectrum services i paid $181 ,3 days later they canceled my installation and said i was gonna get a refund but 3 days after that THEY SAID THEY ARE KEEPING MY MONEY FOR AND OLD DEBT THAT I DONT EVEN REMEMBER, CAN THEY DO THAT ,THEY DONT WANT TO GIVE ME A REFUND ,who do i call?
Anyone familiar with Class Action Lawsuits? I would really like to start one against Spectrum. For nearly 20 years I’ve been a customer, and not once have I ever gotten what I paid for. In fact, the last 8 years at a completely new address has bene the worst, only recieving about 20% of my paid internet speeds, and having to shell out thousands to repair lines they damaged and refused to fix. At this point, we’ve moved from this house to another and as such we cancelled our service. We’ve been on auto-pay with paperless billing – a mechanism… Read more »
I am only paying them for the 6 days of the billing cycle I actually had service I turned in all their equipment On December 15th. my billing cycle was from December 10th 2019 to January 9th 2020.They are only getting paid for the 6 days I actually used their Service. They accepted the equipment and deactivated my account on December 15. I made a prorated payment for the 6 days in my last billing cycle. They advertise “NO CONTRACTS” so this is not a breach of contract by me.Its not a contract. PERIOD!!! Also they advertise and charged me… Read more »
If you weren’t told about the new policy when canceling your service during a billing cycle, file an FCC complaint https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/ While Cablevision and some others “claimed customer service representatives are trained to tell departing customers that billing would continue until the end of the billing cycle, allowing customers to schedule a disconnect at that time,” Charter-Spectrum is SPECIFICALLY staying silent when customers call to cancel service. At no point during my call, 6 days into my billing cycle, was I told about the new policy. In fact, the representative tried to get me to downgrade my service to save… Read more »
Spectrum prorates services in the states of NY and NJ and also pro rates services for those going on military deployment, natural disaster, and in cases where there is a transfer of service where the new address and the old service overlap. All of this is legal because they do not obligate the customer to any contract and you agreed to their terms of service which can be amended at any time as long as they notify you in writing of the policy change, they satisfy this when they notify you on your billing statement which spectrum has the reasonable… Read more »
Sounds like the Charter Spectrum employee doesn’t want FCC complaints filed…. probably because the FCC reviews complaints for trends or patterns that can lead to investigations or actions against carriers. So, the more complaints, the more trends and patterns that may emerge. I think we should let the FCC decide whether or not what Spectrum is doing is legal.
I’m from NY and they prorated my services when I downgraded my Internet. I thought I got lucky, but this is the first time I heard that it’s because I live in NY. Thanks info.
That is not true. A rep told me that I would get the prorated amount in early December 2019. Under that premise, I kept the service for a few more days. Then tried cancelling service and suprise surprise, that didn’t happen. Was charged a full month. I told them to play the rep’s recording to confirm his offer and of course they wouldn’t. I ended up paying for two more unnecessary months.
How can they charge me for equipment that they hooked up someone else’s service with?
I just learned of Spectrum’s “no pro-rated invoice” issue when I called to cancel my service. They seem to have little ability to make a managerial decision to provide the pro-rated rate, so any arguing is basically pointless. However, I did learn this. If you add any additional service, the supervisor said that this fee will not become effective until the next billing cycle. In other words, you could easily play the game to add services (premium channels, faster internet) at the beginning of each pay cycle and then cancel them right before the end of the pay cycle. Wash… Read more »
have you tried this?
I like this idea Eric. I’d like to do this too but I also want to take the high road and just go through with a class action lawsuit. Spectrum’s actions should be illegal and it’s costing Americans millions of dollars a year.
I was just charged $97 for an internet and cable service I did not received just because I cancel 2 days after the start day with Spectrum. This is so unfair, they are charging for a service they did not provide and a product I did not have. I don’t understand why the Communication Commission and the Consumer Advocacy allow this unfair practice.
My father died and we coincidentally cancelled his Spectrum service the same day the new billing cycle started, so we’re charged for the entire month. $138 is a lot of money for nothing. I tried to get this corrected at the Spectrum store (where we waited 2 hours to turn in his equipment) and they couldn’t adjust the bill there. Called billing twice and gave up after being on hold for 1/2 hour. Just now filed a complaint with FCC…
Jeff, sorry for your loss, first. In most states, you shouldn’t be responsible for your late father’s debts, unless you were still using the service. Since you’re returning the equipment to Spectrum, it doesn’t appear that you are. In order to collect any money owed by the deceased, Spectrum should have to file a claim against his estate at your local county courthouse. When my father passed a couple of years ago, and we went to get the death certificate processed, the courthouse told us to write Deceased on his bills and Return to Sender. We had to put it… Read more »
Thanks for the advice, Mike. We are familiar with the probate process, but in this case the cable was in my name as I had set-up and paid dad’s utilities. So it’s technically my debt, not dad’s. But I’ll continue to fight w/Spectrum
That makes it more difficult. I wish you the best in your fight.
Same thing happened to me. Called when my bill doubled would not do anything. Called today and cancelled service and they wanted to lower $50. If they would have done that in the beginning, I would have stayed. Now, they won’t prorate and want me to pay $180 for 10 days of service. This is beyond ridiculous! They must be losing a lot of customers and why they changed their policy. They can double our bill, reduce channels without telling us!
I just received a Spectrum bill in the mail for $128.99. I normally have an automatic payment for just Internet taken out of my debit account for $69.99. We canceled our service on Friday, January 1, 2020. I called spectrum and the same thing was told to me. They no longer prorate the bills. That means I have to pay two Internet bills this month. One for spectrum which will come out on the 18th for 69.99, and again for my new Internet. I can’t believe they can actually be so crooked! I’m actually paying almost $70 for nothing! The… Read more »
It’s the principle of the thing, right? Nobody should ever pay for service they don’t receive. Just because Spectrum says that’s their policy doesn’t make it right. So – I do believe I was one of the 1st hit with the policy change (I switched off spectrum on June 4 2019 – and I think they instituted new policy on June 1 2019.) Any advance warning of their new “no-pro-rating policy?” Nope. So – I just said no way am i gonna pay the whole month. It’s the principle of the thing. Now spectrum has a collection agency on the… Read more »
I was wondering what would happen if I don’t pay my $253 bill. I owe them $97 of the total and am willing to pay that amount. They can pound sand for the balance. I will dispute any collection. I won’t go down without a fight. I am willing to wager a 20 point drop in my credit score. You only need a 740 to be considered best risk anyway.
They turn you over to collections and potentially hit your credit. Your score will probably drop by more than 20 points and this will stay on your report for 7 years. That may not be worth it to you.
The thing about this policy change is that it appeared as a cryptic bill notice buried on a single invoice mixed in with lots of other notices. Most people probably didn’t understand what it meant, and it certainly did not get the prominent warning and attention it deserved. I have been recommending people planning to switch providers do so in concert with the end of the Spectrum billing cycle so you get the service you are paying for and then transition to the new provider a few days before Spectrum ends their billing cycle, leaving you paying for only a… Read more »
everyone who this has happened to needs to file a complaint with the FCC. It is a very easy process.
They now call themselves a “subscription based” company…and say they don’t have to refund your money if you stop service before your the end of you billing cycle as I switched over to another provider 12 day before the end of my biling cycle and they said they don’t issue refunds… Big wind fall for them I’m sure, The financial benefit to Charter Spectrum is substantial, because customers will be forced to pay for a full month of service even if they cancel during the first week of a new billing cycle, they prove again they are slim balls morans… Read more »
Spectrum should be renamed “RECTUM” !!! That is what they are doing with their new cancellation policy,trying to shove it up ours.DO NOT stand for this,Grow some BALLS. I cancelled 5 days into the months billing cycle and returned all their equipment on that same day.I paid them for the five days.(prorated)and told them to shove their service “UP THEIR RECTUM” !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! “AN EYE FOR AN EYE AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH” Furthermore, I was paying for 200 mbps service and only getting 139 mbps max. What they do is, throttle down the band width during times of high… Read more »
The FCC has a place to file a written complaint. I did that and they forwarded it to Spectrum. Spectrum called today to acknowledge receipt of it and said a representative will get back to me within 48 hrs. Apparently the practice is legal but I’d say unethical as it results in a corporate windfall at the expense of the consumer. Probably will need a legislative change to cure the practice. I’ll be contacting my Washington representatives about the matter.
Spectrum is trash sent us a bill weeks after we gave back boxes and had stopped service since beginning of the year…Our bill was zero then we got a new bill,with upgraded services we never asked for..Someone at spectrum gave us upgraded new services after we long cancelled our cable…Trash company years with them and bill kept getting higher and higher..Went to the competition.. bye bye
If they admit you returned your equipment, you should be able to cancel this bill. If they don’t help you by phone, file a BBB complaint online. If you were signed up for service but never picked up equipment, it should be an easy resolution to zero out the balance and re-close the account.
Same thin just happened to me. I cancelled on 4/9/20. Not only did they charge me April, but May as well. They say the bill was created the same day I called, but the date on the bill is 4/10/20. So they lie and steal.
that’s illegal.. being charged for services you didn’t use
i was moving on the 8th of April(didnt have charter had xfinity) i called on the 7th april to open an account. I moved on the 8th, unpacked and everything. didn’t get my modem and cable box till the 21st ( two days ago) was told it was shipped on the 17th so it took 4 days to get here and 10 days to ship. i got my bill today says billing started on the 8th of april… im paying for 2 weeks i didnt have service. and i didnt call to activate my account untill the 21st. this is… Read more »
Just one final last way Spectrum can screw you any way they can. I had internet with them for years, and has always been lousy. Raised my bill last month. Finally got a new ISP and transferred over. I can’t believe they have the balls to try to charge me a full month. Screw it I just won’t pay it at all! If they send me to collections, I’ll just fight it on my credit report. I’m over with Spectrum. Will never deal with them again.
I am being scammed by spectrum as I write this, I am a 19 year old college student with a baby boy. When COVID-19 started spectrum came out with an amazing offer, “FREE INTERNET FOR 2 MONTHS FOR STUDENTS” and well I am low income so I cant even afford for a phone bill (I have a free government phone). Obviously seeing this offer I went to call and signed up and the lady in the phone was very ethical and I saw it very easy to get the free internet! Well I called March 24 and my package arrived… Read more »
I DO NOT HAVE SPECTURM LOG IN SINCE I LOST MY PHONE 6 WEEKS AGO. I AM TRYING TO GET A SIMPLE LANDLINE. THEY TAKE MONEY OUT OF MY ACCOUNT EVERY MONTH AND I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET A TV
chanel for weeks. what is their emergency email when one has no phone. I am a widow, 63 with cancer, I need to call my doctors.
I cancelled my cable & phone service over the phone and just kept internet with Spectrum on 3/31, the guy tried everything to keep me, putting me on hold so that he can find a cheaper bill, I told him NO thanks just cancel the service, I only want your internet, I cannot afford the cable, phone & the internet at once due to the COVID-19, he kept saying I understand but obviously he did NOT if he kept trying to go in and adjust my account to where the bill wouldn’t be as expensive, after telling him NO THANKS… Read more »
I put service on seasonal suspension, as I have done for the past 10 years, first with Brighthouse then with Spectrum, when they took over. Suspension was $25 dollars for season, with BH and @$20/mo with Spectrum. Now they are taking away pro-rate as well. We were charged a full month for 3 days service. They get away with this because the regulatory agencies as no longer existent. Another case of this Administration (FCC) screwing the consumer to enrich the top 1%.
This is theft, there is no other way to describe it.
THE POLICY SUCKS IF I STOPPED MY CAR INSURANCE THEY WOULD STOP THE INSURANCE THAT MOMENT WHO OWNS SPECTRUM tRUMP POLICY IS UNFAIR BUT REBULICATIONS WHO OWN CHARTER THEY REALLY DO NOT GIVE A F*** ABOUT AMERICA UNLESS THEIR BOTTOM LINE HURTS!
Fortunately I live in NYS and was prorated only $70. The reason I cancelled was because our bill went from $178 to $222 a month for basic cable, phone that we never used and 100Mb internet that rarely reaches 70Mb. They wanted $135 for just basic TV if we cancelled phone and internet. Yes $135 a month for basic. We opted for Verizon FIOS @ 400Mb @ $59 month for a year on autopay and ordered Philo on the fire stick ($20 / month), it has 58 channels, every channel spectrum has and more. So from $222 month… Read more »
Hi Lou,
I live in New York also and canceled my spectrum acct early in the month. My final statement shows a pro-rated credit for $70. How does spectrum credit you? Do they send you a check? Credit the card you paid with, etc.?
Thanks, James
I am just now another victim of this policy that I did not read. I used to get printed statement wasre, suddenly they changed to email statements, so I can see the new amount, but I could not get to see the details (just got some error message even when I tried to get a new password or create an account). And I get the statement after the end of the current period instead of before like I did before. So when I cut my services, they would not give pro rated credit
I called them before the billing cycle and they did not inform me that I could save a month by cancelling earlier. So am paying a full month for 3 days of service. Screw them and I will always make sure anyone knows they suck and should not use them.
Spectrum held my equipment in the store for two days so they could bill me for another month. I proved to them that this was true by evidence of gas receipts that clearly showed I was in another state. There was store video of me turning in the equipment on time and before the next billing cycle. I threatened to seek help from the BBB and a week later I got a bill from a collection agency for 74.99. Avoid Spectrum at any costs. The people are rude and obnoxious. Recently they made an error putting in my credit card… Read more »
Spectrum plucks the SF ARZ football game from my subscription and sells it to Amazon out from under me and everybody else. I don’t get the game because I’m not a Prime member of Amazon. .
They get paid twice is you sell your home and the closing doesn’t correlate with the billing cycle and the new owners use Spectrum. How is this legal?
F*ck Spectrum they charged me for 2 months of services I never received! They customer support is terrible. EVERYTHING ABOUT THEM IS TERRIBLE! WILL NEVER USE THEM AGAIN. When called to have them at least restore my streaming services they gave me a run around for 3 days still no results. ABSOLUTE FRAUD AND THEFT. I’ve hired a legal team to fight for me now.