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by Jeema101 871 days ago
Very similar thing happened to me, except with Spectrum. Called to complain after they increased my bill. The only option they gave me was to sign up for ACP, which they said I was automatically eligible for strictly based on my address. They would not let me switch to a lower-tier plan ...unless I signed up for ACP.

I didn't feel right about it, so I cancelled my service, switched to AT&T, and filed a complaint with the FCC. The FCC then forwarded my complaint to Spectrum, who more or less claimed everything was hunky dory. Nothing really came of it at all as far as I know.
3 comments
amscanne 871 days ago
A salesmen selling door-to-door for Verizon said the same thing to me. “You have kids, so you qualify.” I just told him that was not right, but kudos to you for filing a complaint with the FCC.
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gnicholas 871 days ago
IIRC Spectrum has the biggest piece of this pie, and they use an in-house eligibility verification system. There's probably a relationship between those two facts.

Unlike you, I didn't report my issues at the time, but since this whole thing has blown up in the news (and unfortunately become politicized) I have submitted letters detailing my experience. Hopefully they'll get to the bottom of things and find a way to throw out the bathwater without the baby.

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posttoken 871 days ago
You were eligible..to apply. Spectrum or any ISP doesn’t determine your eligibility. Only Affordableconnectivity.gov (federal government website determines that)
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gnicholas 871 days ago
One of the ISPs, I believe Spectrum, was using an internal eligibility verification system. They had the largest share of the ACP customers, IIRC.

Regardless, the reps make it seem like it's very easy to qualify if your kid gets free/reduced lunch. I assume that if you get handed over to a govt website an you click the "my kid gets free/reduced lunch" checkbox, that's all you have to do. This elides the detail that your kid gets free lunch because all CA schoolchildren do, which the ISP rep told you isn't a disqualifier. So at the very least, they're priming the pump for people to fill out forms incorrectly.

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