Will Verizon Charge Me For The Whole Month If I Cancel Service

I spent half-dozen months evaluating different alternatives before cut the cord with Verizon FiOS. This video shows the 6-step process that I followed to detect the near cost-effective way to spotter television for $150 less a month.

My Verizon FiOS Bill

I was paying nearly $240 a month to Verizon FiOS for a "triple play" that included Idiot box service with their Extreme Hd packet, 50 megabit Net, and domicile phone service. Here is a look at my actual bill from January 2019:

Why I cancelled Verizon FiOS

When I signed up with Verizon FiOS, nearly iv years ago, my bill was around $160 with new customer discounts. At the time, Extreme Hard disk drive included 2 premium channels, HBO and Starting time. I signed up with a ii-year contract, but Verizon extended the introductory pricing for an boosted year without me request. That was nice, right?

And so, afterwards the third year passed, they did 2 things that annoyed me. Offset they dropped HBO from my bundle. They didn't reduce the price and didn't substitute some other premium aqueduct in its place. They simply removed it from my package and said I'd need to pay an extra $xv a month to keep information technology. No cheers.

Second, they removed all my new customer discounts. My monthly beak jumped past $80 overnight. I get it: I wasn't a new customer anymore and so that's to be expected. It still hurts.

The only perk they gave me, again without asking, was a free upgrade to 100 megabit Cyberspace even though my package only included 50 (which was plenty of capacity for me anyway).

And then that's when I starting investigating cutting the cord with Verizon FiOS.

Three Part Strategy

My strategy to string cutting (or even cord shaving – which means reducing your cable bill without completely cutting the cord) is a 3-prong approach: reduce your services, buy your ain equipment, and eliminate your home telephone.

Reduce your services

Take a difficult look at the shows y'all watch routinely. The best place to runway this is your electric current DVR: make a listing of all the series yous record and their channels. Listing these channels as "must-haves". Adjacent, think near what yous sentinel when you channel surf. Listing those as "overnice-to-have".

Assuming some of those must-have channels are local broadcast networks, like ABC, CBS, etc., yous tin probably get many of them over-the-air using an Hard disk antenna. The come across what you can get, go to Antennas Direct and apply their Transmitter Locator (found under Learning Heart). But enter your zip lawmaking and see which channels are in range. They've got actually skillful customer service so experience free to conversation or telephone call them with any questions nearly antennas.

After you make up one's mind what you tin can get over-the-air, you can evaluate streaming services that include the residue of your must-have channels. Expect to spend $30-$lxx a month on a streaming service. Some of them include local channels so you could potentially bypass the demand for an antenna, only they tend to cost more every month. So it's worth investing in an antenna because broadcast Tv is FREE.

Purchase your own equipment

The law requires cable companies to enable subscribers to buy their equipment instead of renting information technology. But the cable companies make a TON of money on rental fees so they don't publicize it.

They too make you lot feel like you lot'll lose support from them if you lot accept any bug. Not true. They may not support the device itself, simply they will certainly help you restore your services with your own equipment.

Just brand sure you buy a cable modem from their approved listing. Not sure where to find that? Just Google the proper noun of your cable company followed by "cable modem". Merely wait at official results from THEIR website, not from eBay or other online stores. You lot may need to poke around a bit, but you'll detect it.

Bring your own WiFi

Even if you determine to apply the cable company'south modem, I strongly suggest y'all buy your ain WiFi router. Why? Two reasons.

First, it makes switching so much easier. If you e'er change Net service providers, but plug your router into the new modem. Even if their device has built-in WiFi, disable it and use your own. It'southward such a pain to reconnect all the devices in your household to a new router!

The second reason is security. If y'all use the cablevision visitor's router, they can access anything on your home network. Having your own router volition keep them out. Period.

I personally utilize an Amplifi Hd WiFi mesh arrangement in my house. It was super like shooting fish in a barrel to fix and my coverage is excellent throughout the house. Much meliorate than my Verizon FiOS router. And I take the data to bear witness information technology. STAY TUNED — SEPARATE VIDEO IN THE WORKS!

Eliminate your Habitation Telephone

Remember when "the phone company" became deregulated and cable companies could offer telephone services? Your cablevision company convinced you to port your phone number to them considering, as office of the "triple play", your home phone was essentially gratis (information technology would cost less than a la carte Television and Internet services alone).

I know, I cruel for it too. It made sense at the fourth dimension.

Take a shut look at your nib now. Later on the introductory pricing ended, Verizon FiOS was charging me $30 a calendar month for a phone that I rarely used. To add insult to injury, it only seemed to ring from solicitors despite the fact that I paid an extra $5 a calendar month for an unlisted number!

Now it seems anybody above 5th grade has a personal cell phone, so do y'all actually demand a habitation telephone anymore?

Maybe not, merely updating a phone number is harder than changing your WiFi password! Think of all the places that take your home phone number!! Friends, family, banks, schools, stores, doctors… the list goes on and on!

I establish a mode to go on my dwelling house phone number for gratis using Google Phonation. Watch that video hither.

What did I choose instead of Verizon FiOS?

I am fortunate to have multiple competing cable companies in my neighborhood. I ended upward switching to Optimum for TV and Internet for only $65 a month. They fifty-fifty gave me a $100 gift carte du jour every bit a bonus. I am non locked in by a contract – I can cancel at anytime – only this introductory pricing is locked for three years.

A lot can happen in the next three years (such as 5G). This industry is changing so fast so information technology's great to keep my options open.

What if you don't have multiple cablevision companies?

Thanks to government franchising, about people simply have one cablevision company to cull for TV and Internet. Still, there are other options, such equally satellite Internet, that can be used equally leverage with your cable company. You can usually negotiate a discount just by threatening to cancel.

If yous desire the best "new customer" pricing bargain from your cablevision company, you lot may demand to fully cancel your subscription and await for them to beg you lot to come up back. Verizon started sending me deals less than iii weeks after cancelling. The best i and then far is $lxxx a calendar month with a 2-twelvemonth contract, just they'll get better.

Y'all tin besides reduce your cablevision nib by buying your ain equipment. I bought my own cable modem for around $35 on eBay. I bought a brand new TiVo Commodities Vox DVR for $150 directly from TiVo and I bought two used TiVo Minis on eBay. Granted, TiVo charges a service fee ($15/month, $150/year or $550 lifetime), only information technology's cheaper than the $twenty DVR service fee going to Verizon.