When it comes to your Internet monthly fee, oftentimes things are not as straightforward as they seem – particularly once you realize that all those hidden fees that many providers charge don’t tend to stay hidden for very long.
It can be a shock to agree to a price of $100 per month for Internet service only to realize that your first bill is $130 or more after fees, but it’s also not an issue you have to contend with if you’re proactive about the situation. If you truly want to get better at watching out for any hidden Internet service fee that might rear its ugly head, there are a few key things to keep in mind.
The Art of Detecting Hidden Fees
One of the biggest hidden fees to watch out for is the dreaded activation fee which is not to be confused with an installation fee, a charge that is typically featured prominently on your agreement. An activation fee is something that like an installation fee, in the best case scenario, you should only have to pay for once. Likewise, be on the lookout for fees added to actions that may actually be a necessity at some point during your contract. Find out what their cancellation fee is, for example, because you never know when you may have to disconnect services. See if there are hidden fees that will be charged if you make a service call.
Conditional Fees
Another key type of hidden fee you’ll want to watch out for are conditional fees – meaning ones that only kick in after certain events take place. To that end, one of the most critical questions to ask yourself is: will my satellite and wireless broadband Internet service charge fees be based on usage?
Sure, you might think you’ll come nowhere near exceeding that 50 GB per month cap today. But what happens two years into your contract when you suddenly have many additional wireless devices eating up bandwidth? You’ll probably be dealing with a significant number of “overage” charges, which is why you need to know these exist now before you’re asked to pay for them later. Your best bet is to seek out a provider that provides truly unlimited data with no caps. Phoenix Internet is proud to offer high-speed internet that is unlimited with no data caps.
Another example of this idea in action is a fee associated with upgrading more than one service at a time. These days, so many providers bundle television and Internet together. But if you want to upgrade your cable package and your Internet speed at the same time, you may run into issues. During your initial call with a provider, ask about these types of conditional fees. If you’re not comfortable paying them, there are many providers out there who don’t force you to deal with these types of things.
Key Takeaways:
- Hidden fees exist in many Internet service provider contracts and, sadly, they are often cleverly disguised.
- At the very least, make sure you don’t have to pay a fee every time you need to make a call to customer service.
- Likewise, verify that there are no conditional fees – like overage charges for using too much bandwidth. Just because this isn’t a problem right now doesn’t mean that it won’t become one for you in the future, which is especially worrisome if you’re locking yourself into a multi-year contract with these terms.
If you’d like to find out more information on how to best watch out for hidden fees in your Internet service provider’s contract, or if you’re just eager to learn about our industry leading personal and business Internet options that come with absolutely no hidden fees to speak of — no data caps and truly unlimited data! — don’t delay; contact Phoenix Internet today.