Local

Customer says Spectrum charged him more than he was expecting after he cut cord

CHARLOTTE — A lot of cable customers are choosing to switch providers or stream their programming now that many neighborhoods have fiber. But some who dropped Spectrum told Channel 9 that the company charged them more money than they were expecting.

Tom Edwards liked Spectrum’s equipment and service, but not the price, so he canceled his cable service. He thought that was all he needed to do, so he was surprised when the company billed him for more than $100.

“I feel like I’ve been cheated,” he told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke.

Edwards said he complained and found out that the date he canceled was three days into his billing cycle. Spectrum does not prorate, so he had to pay the full amount for one more month.

“They basically would not budge,” he said.

Spectrum spells out its policy in multiple places, including the bill, but Edwards said he didn’t see it. He asked Stoogenke to warn others.

“Read the fine print. I was an engineer, and I’m used to being very precise, but this went right past me,” he said.

Edwards could have kept using Spectrum the rest of that final month since he was paying for it, but he went ahead and turned in his equipment to get it off his hands.

The company told Stoogenke it offered Edwards a discount to stay, which he turned down, and it reminds customers it does not prorate.

Stoogenke suggests that no matter what company you use for TV and internet:

- Read the fine print.

- Know the termination policy.

- Remember, there are a lot of channels you can watch over the air for free.

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