Everyone seems to have these horror stories about dealing with Verizon Wireless, but I've used Verizon Wireless for over five years without any problems. My monthly bill has been the same since I signed up with them, and that includes one new contract in the middle, where my minutes per month went up, but the bill didn't. I still haven't seen a cell phone company who has better coverage (at least in the U.S.), althouh it does appear as if Cingular/AT&T is starting to catch up. I'd actually have to say that Verizon is one of the few companies I deal with on a regular basis that I haven't had any problems with.

I had a nightmare with a Palm treo 700 W and after numerous complaints and 40 hours of telephone time, they finally admitted that the 700W did not work and I had to get a 700 WX. They wanted me to buy it for $400. I finally found a tech support person who was willing to trade in my 700 W for the 700 wx free of charge. $400/40 = $10 per hour for this when I make $150 per hour at my real job. This is a scam and they have you painted in the corner. Did you know that cel phones cause brain cancer and the bees to leave town. Use your land-line when ever possible and the cell phones only for emergencies.

If you're not having any service or billing problems, Verizon wireless is great. But gotta agree with the other comments that if you ever have to deal with the ineptitude and indifference of Verizon's customer service department, be prepared to yell, scream and repeat yourself to everyone you speak with because that's the only way you're going to get any results. Also be prepared to be put on hold a lot. Keep asking to speak with someone higher up and don't hold your breath waiting for someone to return your call. Don't expect reason or logic to work, none of the customer service representatives have any authority to step outside of the rigid rules, regulations and procedures. No one there will ever admit to any errors and they are so large, they don't care if you threaten to take your business elsewhere.

They tried to charge me a cancellation fee when I was sent overseas that they assured me I wouldn't have to pay as long as I had "Proper Military Orders." They took me to a collection agency and I told them to shove the charge up their ass and won.

Absolutely avoid doing business with these clowns. Not to be trusted ... omnipresent Can you hear me now? commercials notwithstanding. On multiple occasions during the two year contract I had with Verizon Wireless they changed the calling plan I had. No explanation, no warnings, just higher fees. On each occasion I had to deal with their brain dead/government bureaucracy-like customer service department. Each time it took me at least an hour to get back to the plan I originally signed up for and all the extra charges deleted ... a few months later it would be the same thing. F 'em! When the 2 year contract period expired, my wife and I switched over to T-Mobile and have been completely happy with their service.