The “Price Lock” claim appeared on T-Mobile print, television, and online advertisements. In each ad, consumers were told that they would get their last month of service paid for by T-Mobile if the carrier raised the price of their internet service. The NAD says that this disclosure contradicts the “Price Lock” claim since the company isn’t really locking in a customer’s price and is only giving a subscriber one month of free service.
The NAD has two recommendations for the carrier. One option would see T-Mobile change the claim it makes about “Price Lock” in its ads to explain better what the feature does and doesn’t do. The NAD also suggests another possible option for T-Mobile to follow which would be to stop mentioning the “Price Lock” in its advertisements.
T-Mobile will change how it presents Price Lock, or not mention it at all, in new ads. Image credit-T-Mobile
In the past, T-Mobile advertised the “Price Lock” feature when it ran ads for wireless or internet service. At the time, this was a guarantee from the company promising never to raise the monthly price that a subscriber pays for service. At the beginning of this year, the carrier changed the “Price Lock” guarantee by offering new customers one month of free service in the event of a price hike. The free month would cover a subscriber’s final month of service once he decided to leave T-Mobile because of the price hike.