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Understanding Optimum Early Termination Fees

Is Optimum charging you a bogus Early Termination Fee? FairShake can help.

"What you should know about early termination fees"

If you are trying to switch ISP or cable providers and leave Optimum, you might be hit with a high early termination fee. What is this fee and is it legal?

Why does Optimum charge early termination fees?

When you agree to use Optimum services, you enter into a legally binding contract or a user agreement. The fine print explains that Optimum will provide you with telecommunications services and you will pay for those services and exchange. If at any point you need to cancel your contract you are well within your legal rights to do so. But that is when you can get charged an early termination fee… so that Optimum can ensure their profit even if you don’t want their services.

Early termination fees are usually divided into two categories:

  • Flat fees: Flat fees are a fixed, flat rate applied to your account no matter when during the course of your contract you cancel.
  • Prorated fees: Prorated fees start at a specific amount and they decrease throughout the lifespan of your contract at a set rate each month.

Are early termination fees legal?

Yes, early termination fees are most of the time considered completely legal so long as they are included in the contract and you were made aware of them when you sign up for a new service. Problem is, most people don’t know where they are hidden in the fine print of the terms and conditions.

How do I know if my contract with Optimum has an early termination fee?

Read the customer service agreement as well as the terms and policies. This is where you will find information on early termination fees. 

How much is Optimum’s early termination fees?

If you have to cancel your contract before its expiration, most companies charge between $100 and $500 for an early termination. But this is entirely contingent upon what your individual contract is. You might even face additional fees for unreturned equipment or outstanding balances.

How can I avoid Optimum early termination fees?

You do have options to avoid these high termination fees. 

Firstly, you want to make sure that you read the fine print and you ask about these fees before you sign up for a new service, take advantage of a promotion or special offer, or sign any contract. Sales staff are not required to tell you about early termination fees. You can’t rely on an Optimum customer service representative to give you all of that information. Early termination fees are buried in the fine print very far down your contract and you have to find it. 

Secondly, you want to make sure that you ask about potential discounts, waivers. If you sign up for a new service you might be able to talk to customer service about paying a flat rate now, potentially less than what your early termination fee would be, in exchange for a signed contract that waives the early termination fee whenever you have to cancel your contract should it arise. You can also try to negotiate from a flat fee to a prorated fee.

Can Optimum charge an early termination when I don’t owe it?

There might be situations wherein early termination charge makes its way into your account even though you shouldn’t owe it. This could happen where a sales representative misled you about whether a fee would be owed, or even an error in the company’s billing system. 

Customers of all sorts of companies complain regularly about problems trying to cancel their account and getting refunds on early termination fees that they shouldn’t have been charged. One Optimum customer explained:

I have sent requested documentation to Optimum’s EARLY TERMINATION REFUND TEAM, twice by fax (516-803-6214) and twice by USPS mail to their Jericho NY office and by email to (proofconfirmation@cablevision.com) and have not received a response from anyone. Each time I contact Customer Service, their system only shows their initial request for a Verizon form with my “name and address” on it. All documents that I have been sending these past four months have contained all the required information for me to get remimbursed for the Early Termination fee that I was charged by Verizon, when I switched my service to Optimum. In addition, I have sent copies of everything to the sales lady (Fran Becker) who sold me the Optimun service. After receiving them, she told me to call Customer Service again and ask to speak to a supervisor. I did that several days ago and the agent said a supervisor would get back to me. No one ever called.” 

What if I get a contract buyout?

You can sometimes find promotional deals from other companies that offer a contract buyout. This is an option that allows you to cancel your existing service with Optimum and have the company you are switching to pay the remaining balance. Usually, however, they require that you sign a contract with them which means you might find yourself in the same place if you have to cancel that particular contract prematurely. Knowing what you know, you can always try to negotiate your new contract while also taking advantage of a contract buyout. 

I’m being charged an early termination fee but I shouldn’t be, what can I do?

If you are charged an early termination fee but shouldn’t be, you have options for fighting back. FairShake can help you get the refund you deserve. 

We work hard to help you get your money back. Get started now…








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