Wrongful Billing Earns Comcast 'Biggest Cable Fine Ever'

Comcast has just been hit with what CNNMoney calls the "FCC's biggest cable fine ever." The company must pay a $2.3 million penalty after federal regulators found it charged customers for services and equipment they never requested. Customers had registered more than 1,000 complaints in 2014 claiming they were charged for cable boxes, DVRs, and premium channels, even after outright rejecting Comcast's offers for those items, reports NPR. Comcast, which notes "our customer service should have been better and our bills clearer," blames "isolated errors or customer confusion." The FCC "found no problematic policy or intentional wrongdoing," Comcast says in a statement.

"It is basic that a cable bill should include charges only for services and equipment ordered by the customer—nothing more and nothing less," says the chief of the FCC's Enforcement Bureau. "We expect all cable and phone companies to take responsibility for the accuracy of their bills and to ensure their customers have authorized any charges." Comcast says it has made changes so customers now receive an order confirmation that "clearly and conspicuously describes newly added products and their associated charges," reports Variety. Customers can also choose to have no new services ever added to their account. (Comcast is capping internet usage.)