Why does my plan cost $40 yet my bill is $90 a month?

Question

When I got my phone just 1 week ago, I was told my plan would cost $70 plus taxes... trying to decide to keep it or not really cannot afford $90 a month. Since the 1st of the year (2013) I have had several phones 4 with a no contract company that was not workable in the area where I live... the coverage plan showed it was but was not, so I tried different phones but the same service... Net 10, just did not work for me. I had Verizon a couple of years ago, however when my father died and I canceled his contract, they charged me for early cancellation...made me mad so I dropped them... it has been a nightmare... really.
Then last week I decide because I was told by a Verizon employee that unless I bought a contract phone I would not get good coverage... so I did it again. In reading my plan here on line it says my contact is $40 a month... ok taxes and crap but now it is up to $90 a month.. I do not understand.? I only have a couple of more days to decide rather or not to stay with this company and phone, and at this rate I m sure there will even be a charge if I do return it with in the time period?? Can any body explain or advise me as to what to do.
Consistently getting screwed.
Stella in Indiana

Answer 1

Hi Stella,
We're going to need a bit more information to help you such as which Share Everything plan you're on, and what type of phone you have.
I'm assuming you have a basic phone, with a 300MB (data) share everything plan.
The plan itself is $40, the phone access charge is $30, that's $70 before taxes.
Now when you say the plan is $40 the only way that could be possible is if you have the 700 minutes pay as you go text and data plan. That plan is $10 and the device access charge is $30, so that would be your $40 a month you are stating above.
If the second is what you're on, then your $90 bill would likely be due to it being your first month. Verizon and many other service provider companies bill 1 month ahead of time, so the bill you receive a few days in your cycle isn't actually due until your current cycle is almost over. In your case you started a new account and your billing cycle was not yet established, now that it has been established and you've received your first bill your bill includes the charges that will be due at the end of this current cycle, as well as charges from the previous cycle (days you used your phone before you received your first bill). Depending on your cycle dates, your first bill could be covering almost 2 months of service which seems to be the case.
If you pull up the details on your bill, you should be able to see if you are being billed a pro-rated amount for your usage from the previous cycle (when your cycle hadn't been established yet).