When we experienced this issue of unexplained data charges with two Samsung
phones and a tablet, I consulted the same knowledgeable Verizon rep who
sold me the phones and the plan. His only advice was to turn off the
phone's functionality in all but WiiFi mode. This made it unusable on the
road and in any location where I could not log in to a WiFi service. It
was very inconvenient and I was still exceeding my 3GB limit each month.
After deciding that I would like to use my smartphone and tablet 24/7
without being assessed extra fees, I switched back to T-Mobile with a 3GB
data plan. Two updated versions of our Samsung phones, and a Samsung
tablet. They have been used to access the web, short videos, music, and my
work email 24/7 since I dumped Verizon last summer. Two billing cycles,
and I am using about 2MB total data. I cannot burn through it at nearly
the rate Verizon was charging me.
Congratulations if you have a plan that works for you, but the hundreds of
people posting on these forums are not crazy. They are customers who have
a choice, in many cases they have been loyal Verizon customers for years,
and when Verizon sells them a phone and a plan they expect the company to
take responsibility for a surge in data fees. So far, Verizon's answers
have been vague, the main answer seems to be "just shut it off." I want to
use my phone at all times, I gave Verizon a chance, and was dissatisfied
with their data charges. I am happy to have switched and hope each person
posting here makes the best decision for their family.
On Fri, Dec 5, 2014 at 2:27 PM, zellerandy <forums@verizonwireless.com>
your android phone will tell you EXACTLY which app is using data. So why don't you just find that out and disable the app or change it's settings? Verizon should give out free data just because phone makers or app makers can build something correctly.
How do I opt out of this thread?
mrhelper,
i have read or skimmed this entire thread, and your replies are not only unhelpful, they are also unnecessary. People are having very similar issues and are looking for a solution. They are frustrated, as am I, by receiving individual responses from Verizon representatives instead of a list of techniques to try to solve the problem. Such a list would save customers time by giving them a means to rectify what they could themselves before having to spend time speaking with someone at Verizon only to complete tasks such as turning off notifications for each app individually, deleting unused apps, etc. Some people have re-posted that after trying Verizon's suggestions, their reported data usage has not decreased. If you analyze the numerous posts on this thread spanning several months, users are predominately experiencing the issue with the Samsung S5. At the time they discovered significant increases in data charges/usage, their online behaviors and device utilization had remained constant. Usually one of two things had changed: either they upgraded their device or had switched their carrier to Verizon. After one or both of those events, their current data usage compared with previous usage often more than quadrupled in a short amount of time, usually less than one billing cycle.
Such a drastic change in data usage is unusual given the high number of post contributors stating they had not changed their behavior when using electronic devices. If it were only a few people experiencing issues, perhaps your posted replies would have merit. However, from what I have read, people of various ages, backgrounds, and knowledge of digital literacy are all sharing this experience. Perhaps your time would be better spent thinking of ideas that may not yet have come up or researching other possibilities for why this might be happening in an effort to provide a realistic, long term solution.
24sevnlibrarian wrote:
mrhelper,
i have read or skimmed this entire thread, and your replies are not only unhelpful, they are also unnecessary.
Actually if people would follow my advice they would eliminate this issue. People would rather pretend Verizon is up to some nefarious plan and come here and complain then still be frustrated when their problem still exists instead of you know actually doing something about it. why, I'm not sure. Maybe that is easier than doing things like checking app settings and turning off mobile data when on wi-fi. Also taking my suggestion would pop the "Verizon's evil doing evil things" balloon and some people rather suffer with data issues than to do something that destroys their view of Verizon. I'd rather be proven wrong and fix a problem than continue to believe I'm right and still have a problem just to be stubborn, but that's me. Verizon is not adding to your data an that's that. I'm starting to feel that this is ploy for people to get Verizon to give them unlimited data but that's not going to happen.
Thank you for 24sevnlibrarian for sharing your thoughtful perspective!
Although our family bailed on Verizon after two months due to the
unexplained jump in data fees, I keep up with this thread because I think
that many, many longtime customers are due a refund and a real
explanation. Hoping your situation is resolved to your satisfaction!
On Sun, Dec 14, 2014 at 7:30 AM, 24sevnlibrarian <forums@verizonwireless.com
We have come to the same conclusion...the repeated mantra from Verizon is that this must be user error. We have spoken to multiple customer service and tech reps all with the same conclusion, it must be our fault...amazing the first thing each tech tells you when you call with this problem is that they can sell you a bigger data package...call me stupid, we fell for this the first three times...every time we expand the package, we somehow increase data usage to outgrow the package...even though our patterns remain constant.
The best answer I have heard so far is that the phone will seek the fastest source of data...i.e. if you are connected to wifi and the cell data is faster, the phone will automatically seek the faster source which may be cell data. The tech answer is to turn off cell data and not use the technology the phone was designed for...i.e can't iMessage. This sure seems like a design flaw to me...not one I should have to pay for or limit the usage of the technology.
All I know is that the BS we all are receiving from the Verizon HQ is scripted and the defense mechanism given to the techs is all based on the same talking points...very easy to hide behind user error.
Hopefully someone comes down hard on Verizon
I left T-Mobile after ten years when I called about there new phone upgrade policy and I got a rude customer service lady with no interest to work with me after 10 years. On my first initial call to T-Mobile they tried to talk me into a cheaper data plan because as they stated my highest data usage in the last year was 1.3 GB. I've been with Verizon for 20 days now and I received a data usage alert of 75% of my 2 GB plan.....in just 20 days with the same exact everyday routine I had with T-Mobile, wifi is on every time I'm home. Just got off the phone with Verizon they were curious about wifi being on at same time as data not being off, same thing I've read here, the only problem is I don't even use the thing even when it's on wifi when I'm home with an iPad and PC. Apps aren't updated, nothing is open, the only apps running are those which they advise not to uninstall because they come with the phone. So far not so good, I have no problem paying the fees to leave as long as I'm good and happy with a wireless provider. My question is for those who've done it, who do you recommend after verizon?
I went back to T-Mobile after two months with Version's awful data charges.
Recently received an $800 reimbursement of my account transfer fees from
T-Mobile, which looked like the best deal on the market. I am happy with
their in-person customer service. Their rep Lance at the T-Mobile store on
Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood has invited me to visit anytime I need help
troubleshooting, and I have taken him up on this three times. Good luck
with your decision! 6
I'm accruing data when the phone is on wifi and the data is TURNED OFF. I turned off data at 9:06 PM last night and turned it back on at 7:05 AM. I had pings to data (less than 0.00001 GB) at 10:31 PM, 12:45 AM, 3:30 AM and 6:16 AM. How is that possible? The only way I can get it to stop pinging data is to turn the phone completely off (although I haven't tried "Airplane Mode", yet). I called customer service yesterday. She was a little confounded. I will call back today and tell her about this thread.
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