Alabama has joined a recent 50-state lawsuit filed against several major telephone companies for engaging in false and misleading advertising.

The lawsuits have been settled for a total of $10.25 million, according to Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall. Alabama's share of the settlement will cover attorneys' fees and costs as part of a nationwide jurisdiction settlement with the carriers.

“Mobile phones have become an essential part of our daily lives, so it's only natural that consumers will be concerned when a product advertises unlimited data or free calls. But companies have an obligation to clearly disclose any limits, additional fees and terms, which is why this settlement was necessary,” Marshall said.

“Our 50-state coalition will establish a settlement that includes guarantees that will greatly benefit consumers across our states.”

The companies allegedly promoted “unlimited” data ads that failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose material limitations, “free” phone offers that failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose material terms, and financial incentives for “switching” wireless networks that failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose how the financial incentives were provided.

The settlement terms impose obligations on the companies to:

• Ensure that all future advertising and representations are truthful, accurate and not misleading
• If you refer to “unlimited” mobile data plans in your marketing, only do so if such plans do not impose numerical limits on the amount of data allowed during a billing cycle and clearly and conspicuously disclose any data speed limits and what triggers those limits.
• If you offer to pay for a consumer to “switch” carriers, you must clearly and conspicuously disclose to the consumer the type and amount of the charges to be paid, the form and schedule of payments, and any material requirements the consumer must meet to qualify for the payments.
• You will offer a wireless device or service “free” or on similar terms only if you clearly and conspicuously disclose all of the material conditions that consumers must meet to receive the “free” device or service.
• We will only make an offer to lease a wireless device if the consumer clearly indicates that they wish to enter into a lease agreement.
• Make any representation that consumers will save money by purchasing your goods or services only if there is a reasonable basis for that representation based on a comparison of the prices of comparable goods or services from other providers, or if the material differences between those goods or services are clearly and conspicuously disclosed.
• Appoint a dedicated employee to work with the Attorney General to address general complaints submitted by consumers.
• Train customer service representatives who speak with consumers to comply with these terms, and implement and implement programs to ensure compliance with these terms.

Austin Shipley is a staff writer for Yellow Hammer News. You can follow him on X. @ShipleyAusten