Credit: Joe Maring / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Verizon retroactively applied a new 60-day paid service requirement to a phone that was purchased under older FCC-mandated unlocking rules.
- A Kansas customer sued after Verizon refused to unlock the device, and the court ruled the policy change violated state consumer protection law.
- Verizon was ordered to refund the phone and service costs, raising concerns that it is ignoring current unlocking rules while its FCC appeal is still pending.
For years now, Verizon has had the burden of being the only carrier that is required to unlock all fully paid-off devices within 60 days of purchase as a result of an earlier agreement with the FCC. While Verizon has since appealed to the FCC to remove this limitation, it is still obligated to follow it until the measure is ruled on. Of course, that doesn’t mean it always plays by the rules without a little pushing. As first reported by Ars Technica, that’s exactly the situation in which Kansas resident Patrick Roach found himself in earlier this year.
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