Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced his office, with the offices of 50 state attorneys general, reached $10.25 million bipartisan settlements with AT&T Mobility LLC (AT&T), Cricket Wireless LLC, T-Mobile USA Inc. (T-Mobile), Cellco Partnership and Verizon Wireless (Verizon). The settlements resolve a multistate investigation Raoul and the coalition conducted into the wireless carriers’ misleading advertising practices.
The investigation focused on the wireless carriers’ advertisements offering unlimited data, free phones, wireless network switch incentives, and comparing carrier plans. In total, Illinois will receive approximately $387,000 as part of the settlements with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile.
“Wireless carriers offer deals to Illinois consumers that sound great, but it is important that people understand the fine print and limitations included in those offers,” Raoul said. “I am pleased these bipartisan settlements will hold the wireless carriers accountable, and I will continue to advocate for honest and fair business practices on behalf of the residents of Illinois.”
The settlements’ terms address the states’ concerns about the wireless carriers’ advertising practices, such as the fine print and details that apply to certain types of carrier offerings:
- Unlimited data advertisements that capped high-speed data.
- Free phone offers that required customers to remain with the carrier for a specified period of time or purchase a specific type of phone.
- Carrier-switch deals offering monetary incentives to switch wireless networks where the monetary incentives are paid in gift cards with expiration dates or worth a dollar amount lower than consumers expected compared to the maximum amounts touted in ads.
- Offers featuring wireless carrier plan comparisons that ignored certain differences in the plans being compared.
The settlements require the carriers to make specified disclosures in these types of advertising campaigns to help consumers understand all the terms, conditions and limitations of the offers. In addition, the carriers must provide a dedicated representative to work with state attorneys general to help those offices resolve complaints received from consumers in their states.
Attorney General Raoul’s office was joined in negotiating the settlements by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
