Frontier Communications has agreed to stop charging its sneaky $7-per-month "Internet Infrastructure Surcharge" as part of a settlement with Connecticut Attorney General William Tong. Frontier also agreed to spend $42.5 million to expand fiber deployment in Connecticut, make a payment to the state, and improve customer service.

Unfortunately for most Frontier Internet users in the US, the pending settlement only requires changes in Connecticut. We asked Frontier if it will continue charging the $7 monthly Internet Infrastructure Surcharge in other states and will update this article if we get an answer.

Frontier claims the $7 fee, which isn't included in advertised rates, is necessary to cover "maintenance and other costs associated with our network infrastructure and your continued access to high-speed Internet service." One might assume the cost of maintaining the network would be covered by the standard price users pay for Internet service, but Frontier has used the fee to raise its actual prices above advertised rates.

The settlement with Connecticut "forces Frontier to stop collecting a hidden $6.99 monthly 'Internet Infrastructure Surcharge' which cost those customers levied the surcharge about $84 per year and an estimated $16 million statewide last year," Tong's announcement said yesterday.

Frontier’s history of hidden fees

Frontier doesn't have to give the fees back to customers. The settlement does require it to provide at least $200,000 in credits or refunds to customers who filed complaints starting in 2019. Those refunds could cover a variety of customer problems. Frontier must also make a $1 million payment to the state.

Frontier has a history of charging fees that don't make much if any sense. As we wrote in July 2019, Frontier customers who used routers they owned themselves had to pay a $10 monthly "Wi-Fi Router" fee, even if the router they used was fully compatible with the service and required no additional work on Frontier's part. Eventually, a new US law prohibited broadband and TV providers from charging "rental" fees for equipment that customers provided themselves.

Despite that law, hidden broadband fees have remained a major annoyance for US telecom users. Frontier raised the price of its Internet Infrastructure Surcharge from $4 to $7 in early 2021.

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The settlement says that once the state Superior Court approves the agreement, Frontier shall not charge any new customer the Internet Infrastructure Surcharge "or any other similarly described fee or charge." Within 60 days of the settlement's effective date, Frontier will have to stop charging the fee to existing customers.

Wide-ranging investigation

The settlement resolves a state investigation "into whether Frontier deceived or misled consumers in the marketing and sales of Internet services," the state said. The investigation by the attorney general's office and Department of Consumer Protection involved a review of more than 1,400 consumer complaints.

"Frontier failed Connecticut consumers," Tong said. "Their DSL Internet quality was slow and unreliable, and their customer service was unacceptable. They tacked on hidden fees, charged families for returned equipment, and kept charging customers even after services had been canceled. That ends now."

State officials alleged that Frontier violated the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act and other laws, but Frontier did not admit any wrongdoing in the settlement. One of the state's allegations is that Frontier "misrepresent[ed] the nature and purpose of the Internet Infrastructure Surcharge."

The settlement requires Frontier to spend $42.5 million over the next 3.5 years to upgrade DSL to fiber, with at least half the upgrades to be made in economically distressed areas. The deal will bring "more reliable Internet to as many as 40,000 families in need," Tong's announcement said.

The settlement also "imposes a comprehensive list of accountability measures for the next six years, including new price and billing disclosures, advertisement disclosures that address the company's DSL representations, requirements that the company deliver promised speeds or provide options for consumers who do not receive promised speeds, assurances that the company will implement transparent and fair cancellation and equipment return processes, and more," Connecticut said. The state can seek another $6 million in penalties if Frontier doesn't comply with the requirements.

Frontier problems in many states

Frontier provides service in 25 states, down from 29 after the May 2020 sale of its Northwest US operations to an entity now known as Ziply Fiber. Ziply had to settle a Washington state investigation related to Frontier's pre-sale business practices.

Frontier also agreed to a settlement in May 2022 with the Federal Trade Commission and district attorneys in parts of California, with the FTC saying Frontier had been "lying to consumers and charging them for high-speed Internet speeds it fails to deliver."

The company exited bankruptcy in May 2021, promising to expand fiber service after years of underinvestment. Frontier previously faced investigations and complaints of chronic outages in New York, Minnesota, Ohio, and West Virginia.