Consumer Advocates Lodge Complaint Against T-Mobile

[cdmagurus.com]

Several consumer protection advocates are asking the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to investigate T-Mobile's business practices. In particular, the groups believe T-Mobile's "no-contract" advertising is deceptive, and its debt-collection policies are predatory. The groups say T-Mobile links month-to-month service with two-year equipment financing plans, which are, in effect, contracts that result in financial penalties if broken. Moreover, the groups say T-Mobile engages in an abusive pattern of debt-collection practices by providing customers with little or no warning before sending debt to collection agencies, and by providing inaccurate information to collection agencies. The groups also believe T-Mobile's arbitration clause exacerbates the issue by placing legal barriers in consumers' way when seeking redress. The groups include Change to Win, Color of Change, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), U.S. Action, and Consumer Federation of California. "T-Mobile's unethical behavior is particularly troubling because the company's customer base is disproportionately made up of people of color, and Latino and African American consumers are more reliant on mobile for phone service and internet access," said Brent Wilkes, Executive Director of LULAC. T-Mobile CEO John Legere responded to the accusations via Twitter. In a since-deleted Tweet, Legere said, "We stand by our ads! We haven't been accused of false advertising by any regulatory body." The CFPB has not responded publicly to the groups' request.


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