CWA, Public Knowledge Say Verizon Forcing Fiber Upgrades
Union workers and consumer groups claimed Verizon deceived customers under a policy known as “Fiber is the Only Fix.” Verizon engaged in unjust and unreasonable practices related to its copper facilities in violation of Section 201(b) of the Communications Act,…
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and is failing to give sufficient advance notice of copper retirement actions in violation of Section 51.325(a)(4) for FCC rules, said an informal complaint at the agency signed by Communications Workers of America, Common Cause, Public Knowledge and others. Under the alleged Verizon policy, when a customer calls in about a copper-related complaint, the company creates a “ghost” service order to transfer the customer to fiber, without the customer's knowledge, the complainants said. Then, Verizon technicians inform customers with copper-related complaints that the company no longer repairs copper lines and the customer must upgrade to fiber; if the customer refuses to upgrade, Verizon cuts the line, they said. A company spokesman described the process differently. “When a copper customer with chronic service issues calls for a repair, we create two tickets in parallel -- a repair ticket, and the ghost service order. When the technician is dispatched, if he finds there’s a simple fix for the copper, we fix the copper. If not and we determine fiber is the only fix, we already have the parallel service order in place. The technician then explains to the customer why we need to upgrade them to fiber and no work is performed without the customer’s consent.” The Verizon spokesman dismissed the complaint as another bargaining chip in its standoff with union workers in the East Coast strike (see 1605030050). “There is nothing at all deceptive about this practice and the fact that we’ve never heard a peep from the unions about it until now -- in the middle of a work stoppage -- tells you everything you need to know about what their real motivation is with this complaint.” The complaint is the first alleging a violation of FCC copper retirement rules, which took effect on March 24, and covers seven states served by Verizon: Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia. Regulators in New York (see 1604250046) and Pennsylvania (see 1604210047) have investigated Verizon service quality, while CWA has a request for investigation pending in Maryland. "Copper still has plenty to offer, so an orderly transition to new platforms, with adequate notice and respect for the rules is essential,” said ex-FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, special adviser to Common Cause. “We expect the FCC to take prompt action to protect consumer rights and keep all Americans connected.”