Lumen To Pay $825K to WA Customers Illegally Cut Off During Pandemic

The WA State Attorney General's office announced Thursday that numerous WA customers will be receiving money from Lumen.

The State says company illegally disconnected some landlines during COVID.

During the pandemic one of the emergency orders put in place prohibited any telecommunications company from disconnecting a customer's land line, even if they were behind in payments.

According to the AG's office:

"Lumen, formerly CenturyLink, will pay a total of $825,000 to 1,099 Washington telephone customers it disconnected during the pandemic in violation of the emergency health and safety moratorium. The payment resolves two separate investigations by Ferguson’s Public Counsel Unit and his Consumer Protection Division."

Lumen, who provides telecommunications services in 18 western states, will send payments of $707.55 for each disconnection. For people who were disconnected multiple times, they will also be credited.

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Former customers will get a check, current customers will get a bill credit. The window of the disconnections was between March 23, 2020, and Sept. 30, 2021.

According to the AG's office:

" Lumen must verify to the Attorney General’s Office that it has refunded all reconnection and late fees the company charged to more than 35,000 customers during the pandemic. If it finds any customers were charged fees it has not already refunded, the company must refund those fees, with interest."