An r/ATT Reddit user said a written AT&T offer for the company's Premium 2.0 wireless plan promised a monthly price of $48 before taxes and fees, but the first bill they received came to $163.81.
After AT&T allegedly told them it couldn't honor the pricing, the customer said they filed complaints.
Here's what to know
The original quote included $52 in monthly discounts, but eight days after starting service, none of those discounts were applied.
The OP said AT&T told them the discounts could not be combined. They said one representative added, "I don't know why the salesperson gave you that quote," and that the company's proposed fix was to move them from its highest-tier plan to its lowest-tier option, which still cost more than the original promise.
The OP said the company emailed the quote while they were on the phone with a representative. Even so, they said, "When I called back today, they wouldn't even look at the quote I was given. I have it in writing."
Among the replies, one comment captured the broader skepticism in the thread: "$48 on premium is impossible. There was miscommunication."
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More background
Several users tried to break down the $163.81 total, pointing to possible activation fees, insurance, device payments, and other add-ons that can drive a first invoice much higher even when the quoted monthly rate sounds far lower.
Users also drew a distinction between a high first bill and the OP's broader complaint: that the quoted discounts never appeared at all.
A user describing "a similar experience" with a 12-month promotion said the outcome was not a restoration of the original deal. In that case, they said, the company "could not honor the original discount" and instead offered "a lesser discount plus a lump sum one time credit to cover the remaining total discount for the term."
Even a written quote and reference number may not be enough to settle a dispute if the sales offer, account setup, and billing system don't align.
According to the OP, having the quote in writing still didn't help because no one they spoke with "even attempted to look it up."
What can be done?
The OP said they had already taken the matter to the FCC, the BBB, and AT&T's dispute department.
Another user said that after an FCC complaint, "someone from ATT should contact you within 48 hours."
Users also pointed to AT&T's Notice of Dispute process as a more formal next step.
Another user said that filing that notice gives AT&T 60 days to resolve the issue before arbitration becomes an option.
They added: "You'll likely get a one time lump sum credit for the value of what you were promised so they can avoid arbitration if they can't actually match what you were offered."
Other practical suggestions in the thread were more limited. One user said that if the quoted price truly could not be applied, the most realistic store-level option might be to "return and cancel everything."
Another urged the customer to calculate the full value of the promised discount over its entire term so they could measure any replacement offer against the original deal.
"It's frustrating being 'the little guy' and trying to deal with such a large corporation that has all the power," the OP said.
Where can I learn more?
Disputes over promised pricing often turn into broader fights over billing, add-ons, and what companies will actually honor. Related coverage examines carrier shutdowns, Samsung trade-ins, insurance spikes, and a dispute over strange insurer evidence.
• As carriers retire older networks, some families say 2G and 3G shutdowns are making simple phones harder to keep.
• Samsung customers said trade-in rules left them fighting surprise costs and unclear decisions.
• In Colorado, homeowners said annual insurance bills skyrocketed so sharply they called to ask if it was a mistake.
• An Assurant customer said allegedly misleading tactics were backed up by bizarre evidence in the mail.
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