T-Mobile is facing a class action lawsuit after raising prices on older cell phone plans. The lawsuit alleges T-Mobile broke its promise to maintain these plan prices for life, a guarantee known as the Price Lock and Un-Contract Promise. Customers in Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania filed it, and surprisingly, it's escalating.
The future isn't looking bright for the mobile carrier, as the case is coming right after a recent scandal. They were exposed for paying the hackers who breached customer data to delete it.
Customers are suing T-Mobile for bad Un-Carrier moves
Following hacker bribery and unsavoury sales tactics, T-Mobile continues to find new ways to piss off customers. The mobile carrier recently told those on older plans that their monthly prices would go up by $2 to $5. It's not surprising, considering that it they gave us a heads-up earlier in May. They made the announcement via a post on their website. Impacted customers will receive text notifications from 9 AM Eastern Time and 7 PM Pacific Time.
Starting June 5, the cost of the voice plan will go up. But they emphasized that the affected plans still offer great savings compared to competitors like AT&T and Verizon.
ONE, Magenta, and Simple Choice plans to be hit with T-Mobile price hike
Although T-Mobile doesn't say which plans are affected, The Mobile Report has recorded cases of customers getting the text notification. The plans to experience a price increase include the following:
- ONE.
- Magenta Max.
- Magenta.
- Magenta Amplified.
- Magenta 55+.
- Magenta Military.
- Magenta First Responder.
- Simple Choice.
Customers will continue to enjoy all existing benefits and do not need to take additional action. But they don't see things the same way. T-Mobile’s action has broken the Price Lock and Un-Contract Promise, which have guaranteed lifetime rates for certain plans since 2017. While customers were upset, it seemed like there wouldn't be much fallout initially. However, many of them have come together to file a class action lawsuit against T-Mobile.
Many complaints have been sent to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The National Advertising Division (NAD) even suggested that T-Mobile should stop advertising their Price Lock policy since they didn’t stick to it, which makes sense. But customers think more should be done to hold T-Mobile accountable for not keeping their promise.
Following the backlash, T-Mobile has sent letters to anyone who filed a complaint and appeals to them to retract it, blaming inflation for the increase. It also clarifies that the Price Lock associated with accounts opened between April 28th, 2022 and January 17th, 2024 are not affected.
Stay or leave: What's next for T-Mobile customers?
So far, not every customer is facing T-Mobile's price hike. According to The Mobile Report, some ONE subscribers have gotten the text message while others haven't. Free lines are also not affected.
But with all these factors considered, your options are pretty clear. You could either accept the increase if you’re happy with T-Mobile’s service, or leave T-Mobile. If you’re on a plan covered by their Price Lock guarantee, you can switch carriers and ask T-Mobile to cover your final bill.
