(The Center Square) – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced a $10 million nationwide settlement with five cell phone carriers for deceptive advertising.
Michigan will receive $214,655 in attorneys’ fees and costs as part of the 50-jurisdiction settlements with the wireless carriers.
The settlement agreed to by AT&T Mobility, LLC, Cricket Wireless, LLC, T-Mobile USA, Inc., Cellco Partnership, Verizon Wireless and TracFone Wireless, Inc., resolves investigations into deceptive and misleading advertising practices.
The new agreement addresses “unlimited” data advertisements for products that didn’t provide unlimited data, “free” phone offers that could cost the consumer money and unclear monetary incentives for switching wireless networks.
The assurance terms will require the wireless carriers to make accurate future advertisements, refer to “unlimited” mobile data plans only to plans that don’t restrict data or speeds during a billing cycle, and appoint a dedicated employee to work with the attorneys general to address ordinary complaints filed by consumers, among other things.
“Michigan consumers have been misled by wireless companies’ deceptive offers of ‘free’ or ‘unlimited’ features in their plans,” Nessel said in a statement. “We depend on our cell phones too much to be tricked by such advertising practices. My Consumer Protection Team is committed to holding corporations accountable for their deceptive business practices and marketing that impedes informed shopping decisions by consumers. This settlement goes a long way toward achieving that goal.”
