Hello Mamas,
I just have a question. As most families, I am trying to cut expenses where I can. We currently have Verizon FIOS for internet and and home phone service. At the time we signed up, we were told we had to have a home phone to have access to the internet. We rarely use our home phone and most calls we receive are solicitors. All of our friends and family call us on our cell phones. I hate paying $40+ a month for a service I don't need. Is it possible to keep the internet service and disconnect the home phone service? Please help!
I have Verizon FIOS internet and do not have a land line (I will however sign up for the package deal -- phone/tv/interenet -- when it becomes available. So unless you're tied into a contract I don't see why you would HAVE to have the phone. The only downside is that because I only have FIOS internet, they require I pay automatically via debit/credit card every month.
If you have fiber optic, you don't have to have phone service. We have Verizon FIOS and we cancelled our home phone and kept the internet. I was nervous at first, but we haven't missed having a home phone.
No, you don't have to keep the phone. If you really want a home phone service, you can get a VoIP service (like Vonage). The issue with 911 service and VoIP has been resolved because all VoIPs are required to register your number with your home address so that in the event you have to call 911, the dispatcher is given your physical address. You actually fill out an address verification when you sign up.
We had Verizon home phone service but canceled the service last year after many, many problems, incorrect charges and a problem where they actually gave our existing number to a new customer who started giving it out to everyone they knew! We still get calls for him and our number was supposed to be unlisted!! The Fios people have been in our neighborhood for over a year, pushing this new service. We finally told one salesperson that if he didn't get off our property we would call the police. There are many elderly residents on my street and most have been conned by Verizon sales people and then very, very disappointed by the Fios service and price, claiming that they aren't getting what they were told at the price they were promised. Needless to say - I am very against Verizon.
Unless your internet service uses a landline, you do not have to have one. We have wirless and with a cell tower just a block away, we both have cell phones.
However, if you do not get good and reliable cell phone service in your home, then I strongly recommend keeping the landline. My SIL lives in a "dead zone" so not one cell phone will work in their home or neighborhood. She signed up for an internet phone but when that goes down, they have no way of calling anyone for help. We keep telling her to get a landline for emergencies but they insist on keeping the internet phone..which does not work that well to begin with.
J.
If you have cable, you can sign up for broadband service to have internet on your computer. If not, then you have to keep your landline for internet. We have landline, and I pay the basic phone which is $13 just to have landline, then internet is about $25, so it ends up being $40/mo thru at&t.
FYI...keeping a landline is smart. If there's ever an emergency, 911 knows exactly where your home is immediately. With cell phones, it takes much longer to track the location of the call.
I don't know about Verizon, but we have cable modem and it doesn't require phone service. You may want to look into changing to cable modem.
I'm using Grande Communications for my internet which goes through cable so technically I don't need my phone, however, we have to keep our phone because we have an alarm system that has to be routed through a land line. Something else to think about if you use a monitored alarm system.
Call your phone company and ask.
I believe that a 'plugged into the wall' land line is a security measure. The battery never runs down just when you need it most and it keeps working long after the power has been lost.
Try canceling any extras you have like CID, call waiting etc.
Yes, you can cancel it BUT if you have a pkg deal, like most of us do, then your cost for the items you keep like FIOS and TV/Cable will go up. I was going to cancel the home or change it to cell, but when they figured out the price savings, it would end up being only a few dollars savings per month, rather than the $40.
So go to the Verizon store and ask about your options. They will be able to look up your deal and compare it and see if it'll save you money.
I have Verizon FIOS and initially signed up for phone, internet and TV - I was able to cancel the phone with no problem.
