The carrier is sending out text messages to notify users about the $20 credit, which will be applied to a future bill. Some, however, say it’s not enough to cover a lost day of work.<\/b>
\nVerizon is now distributing the $20 credit it promised following Wednesday\u2019s outage. You’ll need to redeem it proactively, though the process seems easy.
The carrier will send a text when the credit is available. As you can see in the message received this morning by a PCMag staffer, Verizon apologizes for the outage and says: «We would like to extend you a $20 account credit that can be easily redeemed via the link below.»
Clicking the link takes you to the Verizon app, where you’ll see a «Redeem Now» button. If you’re wary of clicking links in random text messages (as you should be), a Verizon user told PCMag that the $20 credit was also available when they logged into their account on Verizon’s website.
But not everyone has been able to easily redeem the credit. One user tweeted a screenshot showing the link failing. «The irony of trying to redeem my Verizon credit for the outage and it keeps not being able to connect,\u201d the customer tweeted.
The credit will be applied to the customer\u2019s next monthly bill «in 1-2 bill cycles», Verizon says, so it may not happen immediately.
Verizon has also told us it\u2019s only issuing $20 per customer, rather than $20 per line. The carrier settled on the amount, saying it\u2019s meant to cover \u201cmultiple days of service,\u201d even though the outage itself only lasted about 10 hours. Still, some customers argue that $20 isn\u2019t enough to compensate for a lost day of work when the outage prevented users from making phone calls, texting, or using mobile data, which is especially crucial for Uber and DoorDash drivers. Others struggled to reach their loved ones for help.
A few users have reported securing higher compensation from Verizon after contacting customer support. \u201cIf you call, you\u2019re able to request more. I was able to get an additional $50, but I know some people were getting $20 per line or even more than $59,\u201d wrote one user on Reddit. That said, others say reaching Verizon customer support has been a struggle.<\/p>\n