I’m specifically referring to cell phone contracts, but I’m sure this can be applied to any service contract. Several years ago, I got so mad at my cell phone company that I refused to pay them another dime. But the early termination fee was RIDICULOUS! $300+. So, why didn’t I think of this then?!?!
There has since been new legislation passed that doesn’t allow these outrageous fees. One of the components of this legislation is allowing you to change your plan (including reducing it) for the duration of your contract without penalty. Another part is prorating the penalty fee. So, the fee may start out at that high price, but is then reduced each month you pay.
That being said: If you wish to get out of your contract, instead of paying a high early termination fee, check to see if you can reduce your plan to the absolute lowest monthly plan. You may save money in the long run!
I mentioned this last week when referring to switching ISPs, but I thought it was worthy of a separate post. As a refresher, our early termination fee would have been $85, but we instead switched it to a $9.99/month plan, saving us $45!
You know how they occasionally send out random little changes to terms in contracts? Like… they raise the price of text messages or they change the privacy policy or whatever? You can get out of your contracts with no penalty whenever you get those. Call in and tell them that you do not agree with the change..even if it’s completely something you don’t care about or use.. and eventually they have to let you out of your contract with no penalty. . though I’m sure they’ll try to argue with you about it. But they’re the ones that changed the terms to something you didn’t sign up for, so they don’t have much choice. Just something to keep in mind! in some internet circles, I have even seen people posting about obscure terms changes for cell phone companies as they come up so people can take advantage of them if they need to.. haha. 🙂