Function of Early Termination Fees

• Early Termination Fees, often referred to as ETF's, are the charges a customer must pay to leave their contract before it has expired. Typically ETF's will be charged on one and two year contracts. ETF fees typically range from $150 to $250. These fees help supplement the carriers for loses they suffer after having provided their users with phones at greatly discounted rates. Many carriers, such as Verizon and AT&T, are now prorating ETF's based on the time left on a users contract.
  
  

Length of Service

• As the name would suggest, the length of service is the amount of time you will be held under contract. Typically in the United States only one- and two-year contracts are offered, although Canadian carriers offer three-year service agreements. The contract will typically explain when your contract begins and how many days must past for the contract to end. Typically the length of service ends at midnight on the last day of the contract.
  
  

Data Usage Clauses

• This section of the contract explains how much data the user will receive, along with any fees for using more data than originally purchased. Overages are often based on cost per megabyte, for example $.20/mb. This part of the contract will also often include the type of devices allowed with the carriers data plan. For example you may not be permitted to tether your laptop to your device while using certain plans. Data clauses may also include throttling clauses where your speed is cut drastically if you go over your usage limit. Users should also consider if their "unlimited data plan" is truly unlimited, many of these plans offer 5GB of usage at which point data is still available but is throttled to much slower speeds.
  
  

Roaming/Coverage Area Fees

• Frequent travelers will particularly want to pay attention to voice calling and data clauses when examining roaming fees. These are fees charged when a user leaves their calling area. Typically contracts offer calling only in the Continental United States without roaming fees being assessed. Notice that this does not include Alaska or Hawaii. Fees for roaming can be found on the carrier's website and vary based on each company's own policies.
  
  

Plan Change Fees

• While this name can vary based on the contract, some carriers charge a fee if you change to a new minute plan, add data to your phone, remove certain services such as three-way calling, etc. This section is often called "service changes" or "plan changes" although the section name can change.
  
  

Minute Usage Clauses to Consider

• Cell phone contracts often include various types of minute usage. Mobile-to-mobile minutes for most contracts include any phones called within the carriers own network, for example from one T-Mobile customer to another T-Mobile customer. Night and Weekend minutes, often referred to as off-peak minutes also vary but typically start at 6 or 7 p.m and extended through to the early morning hours, often 7 a.m. Users should be aware that not all carriers include weekend minutes in their plans; this fact will be located within the users contract. Standard minutes tend to be all other minutes consumed. Prospective customers should also check for holiday hour clauses as many contracts provide "off peak" minute usage during major holidays.