Title 47, Telegraphs, Telephones, and RadiotelegraphsRelease 119-110
§258 Illegal Changes in Subscriber Carrier Selections
Title 47 › CHAPTER 5 — WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION › SUBCHAPTER II — COMMON CARRIERS › Part II — Development of Competitive Markets › § 258
Summary
Carriers must not change a customer's chosen phone service provider unless they follow verification steps the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires. States may enforce those rules for in-state service. If a carrier breaks the rules and still bills the customer, it must pay the prior carrier all charges the customer paid after the improper switch, following FCC procedures.
Full Legal Text
Title 47, §258
Telegraphs, Telephones, and Radiotelegraphs, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Prohibition
No telecommunications carrier shall submit or execute a change in a subscriber’s selection of a provider of telephone exchange service or telephone toll service except in accordance with such verification procedures as the Commission shall prescribe. Nothing in this section shall preclude any State commission from enforcing such procedures with respect to intrastate services.
(b)Liability for charges
Any telecommunications carrier that violates the verification procedures described in subsection (a) and that collects charges for telephone exchange service or telephone toll service from a subscriber shall be liable to the carrier previously selected by the subscriber in an amount equal to all charges paid by such subscriber after such violation, in accordance with such procedures as the Commission may prescribe. The remedies provided by this subsection are in addition to any other remedies available by law.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
47 U.S.C. § 258
Title 47, Telegraphs, Telephones, and Radiotelegraphs
Last Updated
Sep 22, 2026
Release point: 119-110