Joe Maring / Android Authority
TL;DR Verizon retroactively applied a new 60-day paid service requirement to a phone that was purchased under older FCC-mandated unlocking rules.
A Kansas customer sued after Verizon refused to unlock the device, and the court ruled the policy change violated state consumer protection law.
Verizon was ordered to refund the phone and service costs, raising concerns that it is ignoring current unlocking rules while its FCC appeal is still pending.
For years now, Verizon has had the burden of being the only carrier that is required to unlock all fully paid-off devices within 60 days of purchase as a result of an earlier agreement with the FCC. While Verizon has since appealed to the FCC to remove this limitation, it is still obligated to follow it until the measure is ruled on. Of course, that doesn’t mean it always plays by the rules without a little pushing. As first reported by Ars Technica, that’s exactly the situation in which Kansas resident Patrick Roach found himself in earlier this year.
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In February of 2025, the person in question purchased an iPhone 16e from the Verizon-owned Straight Talk brand. This isn’t an uncommon practice, as I’ve actually done this to buy my son’s phone at a discount as well. At the time, the user in question’s intention was to pay for the phone and a month’s service to activate the device. After that, he planned to shelve it and then switch it to US Mobile after the 60-day unlocking period hit.
Soon after the 60-day period, it was discovered that Verizon had changed its unlocking policy back in April so that you must have continuous service during the 60-day period to qualify. Even though the phone was purchased before this, Verizon said his phone fell under the new policy retroactively.
This is completely in contrast to the FCC’s current rules, which state Verizon phones should unlock automatically 60-days after activation, with no conditions that service must be kept for the full period. Despite complaining to the FCC, nothing happened, and so the user escalated the matter by taking Verizon to court.
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