How to Negotiate a Lower Bill With Frontier Customer Service

Frontier, like most major internet service providers, commonly increases their pricing over time.

Customers can expect their monthly bill to increase by around 16% after one year, with some plans going up as high as 20%. And this is before you add the additional fees, such as their mandatory WiFi router fee (more on that below).

What this leads to is longtime customers paying more for their service, despite the lower rates still being offered to “new” subscribers.

A brief overview of Frontier’s business model

Frontier, like many large internet providers, uses an “introductory pricing” pricing strategy in order to convince shoppers to sign up. Essentially, they’ll offer a reduced rate for the first 12 months or so, after which the rate will increase.

… and when it does, customers get confused. Which is probably why you’re here.

Another important thing to note is that this pricing model only applies to the company’s fiber internet plans. The non-fiber service options use lifetime pricing that does not fluctuate.

Frontier internet-only plans summary

Here are the current new-customer and existing-customer rates for Frontier Fios, to give you an idea of where you stand:

Call Frontier to Negotiate a Discount

As we’ve already covered, Frontier will raise your monthly rate after one year. In order to combat this, you can first try calling the company and negotiating a lower rate.

This strategy has mixed results leaning towards a firm "no" from Frontier these days, but it's worth trying first because it's easier and doesn't require changing your existing services. If you find the right agent, you stand a decent chance of reducing your bill by 10% to 20%.

Step 1: Gather your account numbers and sample bills

Before you make your call to Frontier, you should collect a few essential items first for easy reference. Be sure that you’ve paid any outstanding balances, as the company is extremely unlikely to give you a price break if you aren’t in good standing.

It also helps to have a good understanding of any competing services on offer in your neighborhood. If you can, call around and see which is available beforehand, as mentioning competing services can often be an effective way to get what you want here.

Step 2: Call Frontier customer service at (800) 921-8101

When calling Frontier, I want you to keep two things in mind throughout the entire call:

1. Your primary goal is to convince the agents that you are going to jump ship if they do not lower your rate by a substantive amount

And…

1. You have the best chance at success if you are overwhelmingly polite to everyone you speak to. This is the most important element when it comes to getting what you want.

Think about it from this perspective: if it were you who had the power to give out discounts, would you give them to the rude customers, or the friendly ones? It is also a good idea to call as early in the morning as possible. Call center agents are likely to be exhausted later in the day after dealing with upset customers for hours. They may also have a limited number of coupons to give out per day when it comes to lowering internet prices, so catching them bright and early will maximize your chances for success.

When you first get through to a human, they are likely to be a general customer service agent. This is fine, and you’ll want to try to hang on the line with them for a few minutes at minimum. That said, your eventual goal is to be transferred to Frontier’s retention department. These are the agents that ultimately have the power to do what you want.

I’ve heard rumors that regular agents will sometimes grant discounts immediately, without needing to escalate things to retention, so you never know, but chances are, you’ll need to end up in that department.

Step 3: Read this script to negotiate a lower Frontier price

I’ve prepared a simple, to-the-point script that you can follow when speaking to the various agents you will come across. Keep in mind that you will likely have to repeat this to multiple agents, and they will each have their own script they must follow as well.

Start off by simply explaining the issue directly and politely:

Hello, I am calling to see if someone can help with my internet bill. My monthly price recently went up by quite a bit, and it is now more expensive than I can afford. I’ve been a Frontier customer for a while now, and I’ve enjoyed your service – is there any way to lower my rate back to what I was paying before?

The response to this will likely be the agent initiating their script about upgrading you to an even bigger package – perhaps one including TV service. Frustrating! I know. But stay calm here, and in a friendly tone, decline any additional offers the agent makes that doesn’t amount to a direct rate reduction.

I appreciate you taking the time to explain the options to me. To be honest, I am really calling because another provider in my neighborhood is offering me a promotional rate to switch over to them. As I mentioned, I’ve enjoyed my Frontier service, and I’d like to avoid switching if possible. Is there any way to renew my promotional pricing so that I can stay onboard with you guys?

This is a crucial fork in the road, and one of two things will happen next:

1. The agent will offer to reduce your rate back to its prior discount
2. They will tell you that there isn’t anything they can do

If they offer you the discount, congrats, take it and enjoy your victory! However, if they say you’re out of luck, don’t give up.

Step 4: Politely ask for a manager to plead your case to

If the agent has reached the limit with you, ask to speak to a manager in a friendly tone. When you get one on the phone, repeat the entire script above, keeping in mind that you do not need to act angry in order to achieve your goals.

Killing them with kindness is still the best strategy.

You might be able to make the manager provide the requested discount if you calmly suggest you weren’t aware the price would be going up when you first signed up – they are often wary that consumers will file a complaint with the FCC, and as such may be more incentivized to play nice.

Step 5: Request to cancel your service

If the manager still can’t help you, it’s time to ask them to cancel your internet service. Stay calm! After spending a few minutes on the line with the manager, asking to cancel should trigger them to route your call to Frontier’s retention line. These agents can cancel your service, and this is the part of the process that will come down to luck.

You will likely be pitched once more on additional services and bundles, and if you decline yet again, some agents may just give up here and start the cancellation process. Others, however, could offer you the discount you’re looking for. It all comes down to who you get.

Cut down recurring equipment fees

Frontier, like many other providers, notoriously charges an equipment rental fee to use their branded Wi-Fi router. This 10$ monthly fee is mandatory, regardless if you decide to use the thing or not, which has long been a key complaint about the company’s service offerings. There is no real way to get around this.

Despite this, the Television Viewer Protection Act (TVPA) that passed in 2019 went into effect on December 20th, 2020, meaning internet providers are now legally prohibited from charging equipment rental fees to customers who aren’t using their equipment.

Unfortunately, it seems likely that Frontier will simply find an alternate method or fee to replace the revenue lost by the current router rental fee. What exactly this will look like is unclear, as the company wording currently reads that the Wi-Fi service fee “Applies in all instances to better service your account including interfacing with non-Frontier equipment.” You could potentially try to call and make a case that the fee they are charging you is now illegal, but chances are, the representative would lean on this wording as an excuse for why the fee remains in place on your monthly bill.

However, TV service does come with a variety of equipment like receivers that you can remove if you don’t use them much, so consider this if you’re already on one of their bundled TV plans.

Remove extra services

If you are currently enrolled in one of Frontier’s bundle packages, one of the easiest ways to reduce your price is to cancel this in favor of an internet-only plan.

If you look closely at your Frontier bills, you’ll see that these bundles add loads of additional fees to your tab – DVR, receivers, additional premium packages – these can sometimes cost hundreds of dollars a month. If you can go without, it honestly makes sense to get rid of these.

However, it is important to note that you should generally avoid doing this during your first year with Frontier. Doing so will void your promotional rate, as you will not be classified as a “new” customer if you change your plan type.

Qualify for new customer deals

If none of the above tactics have worked for you, you can try to re-qualify yourself as a new customer in order to get Frontier’s lower rate again. There are several methods you can potentially use to accomplish this.

Cancel your entire service for 30 days

This one only works if you have the ability to go without your home internet connection for an entire month, and as such, it may not be feasible for those who work from home. All the same, if you can get by on a hotspot or alternative method for staying connected, canceling for 30 days will reset your account, allowing you to sign up as a new customer with the same phone number and email address.

Sign up under a roommate or spouses name

If you live with someone else who is willing to sign up for a new Frontier service in their own name instead of yours, this will be the simplest option to get back to the promotional pricing you had before.

All you need to do is follow through with cancelling your exciting service, and when it has expired, have the other person call and set up another service at your address using their name, phone number and email address.

You will need to return your existing Frontier router and have a new one sent to you (counterintuitive, I know), but the process is worth it if you’re looking to save some money.

Sign up through a reseller

Frontier will sometimes stop you from trying the above strategies if they notice you have the same name as the previous account associated with your address. However, you can get around this by signing up for new service through one of the many Frontier “authorized resellers” on the market today. The trick is, you’ll need to use a new phone number and email address.

Making a new email address is very easy, but if you don’t have someone else’s phone number you can use, you’ll need to get creative there. There are services like MySudo that can help you out in a pinch, allowing you to get a free, virtual phone number.

If you want to go this route, just Google “Frontier authorized reseller” and pick a company. Be sure you’ve canceled your existing service already before giving them a call.

Apply for a low-income assistance plan

Frontier has a low-income assistance plan called “Frontier Fundamentals” that offers basic internet-only service for less than $20/month. Here are the details:

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I lower my Frontier monthly bill?

It is sometimes possible to lower your Frontier bill by canceling unneeded services, or bundling other services to bring down the overall cost. You can also potentially qualify for low-income subsidies through Frontier’s Fundamental Internet program.

Does Frontier offer military or senior discounts?

No, Frontier does not currently offer any discounts for veterans or senior citizens. That said, they might be more inclined to provide discounts when calling to lower your bill. The key is staying calm and polite when attempting to lower your rate.

Does Frontier offer deals for existing customers?

Frontier does have a variety of bundle deals for existing customers, yes. These are only potentially going to amount to savings, though, if you already pay for separate TV services elsewhere. The lowest rates are reserved for “new” customers.