Customer Provided Router
Dhatch1986
Enthusiast - Level 1

Hello, I brought my own router to my account. Same as the rental unit I had. A friend who moved to Japan for the military gave me his router. I called tech support,  he removed the old unit and added the new unit. He told me to return it to the store. I did so. When I got to the store they told me I would continue to be charged for the rental because it was previously someone else's. But how can that be? He bought it and gave it to me as a gift? He paid for it outright and owned it. I was given the router and turned in my rental. Can someone help me get the rental costs removed? I no longer have a rental modem or router.

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Re: Customer Provided Router
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

There shouldn't be a problem with using your friend's router. If they bought it, the router shouldn't be coming with a rental fee just to use it. The same would apply to routers that were actually given out free (Verizon did do this for a while prior to the rental scheme). Now, if the router was truly rented and was never returned, your friend probably paid an unreturned equipment fee for the router. This, technically, buys the router and again, shoudn't cause you to get charged for it, but I don't know whether Verizon accounts for that scenario.

Likely you received some bad information here. If you're ordering FIOS and already have a G1100, just select the option to use your own router. When the tech shows up, show them the G1100 and they'll take care of getting it connected.

Now, the only exception here is if you happen to be in a Frontier FiOS area, not a Verizon FiOS area. Frontier charges a rental fee whether or not you use their router.

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Re: Customer Provided Router
jonjones1
Legend

I may be incorrect on this assumption, but either your friend didn’t actually pay for it outright or it was never removed from his/her account when they cancelled fios.

there are many such stories where former customers who received free routers with their service simply sold or gave them away and the person who acquired the router gets dinged for a rental.

you could ask your states Public Utilities Commission or Public Service Commission to intervene. However if verizon lists it as still there unit and there is no receipt showing the paid purchase you are stuck.

i would just purchase a asus or netgear or tp link router, buy two splitters if you have tv and a MOCA adapter to bypass verizon completely.

best of luck

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Re: Customer Provided Router
LawrenceC
Moderator Emeritus

Hi Dhatch1986,

It looks like your issue may require a Verizon representative to review your account details. Please visit our Support page for a variety of ways to contact Verizon.

Re: Customer Provided Router
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

There shouldn't be a problem with using your friend's router. If they bought it, the router shouldn't be coming with a rental fee just to use it. The same would apply to routers that were actually given out free (Verizon did do this for a while prior to the rental scheme). Now, if the router was truly rented and was never returned, your friend probably paid an unreturned equipment fee for the router. This, technically, buys the router and again, shoudn't cause you to get charged for it, but I don't know whether Verizon accounts for that scenario.

Likely you received some bad information here. If you're ordering FIOS and already have a G1100, just select the option to use your own router. When the tech shows up, show them the G1100 and they'll take care of getting it connected.

Now, the only exception here is if you happen to be in a Frontier FiOS area, not a Verizon FiOS area. Frontier charges a rental fee whether or not you use their router.

Re: Customer Provided Router
Dhatch1986
Enthusiast - Level 1

Thanks! I had to go over it like 20x with the rep on the phone. They kept going back to "well the serial is a Fios rental unit." Ultimately it was fixed but it was really difficult to get the phone reps to comprehend that I had returned the rental unit and got an outside unit. I finally got someone who got it done but it took like 3 calls, 1 chat and 2 store visits. 

Thank you!