Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
T-Mobile has started charging customers who pay phone bills in-store a new $5 “Payment Support Charge,” plus tax. According to The Mobile Report, the new fee went into effect on July 19th, though prepaid customers will be charged the fee later on.
In a flier shared with The Mobile Report announcing the change to its employees, T-Mobile implies the reason behind the fee is to help “enable a digital-enabled future.” Yet, as Droid Life points out, employee time spent processing payments may mean less time for more profitable endeavors — like selling phones or add-ons to plans.
Plus, it’s a sneaky way to encourage more customers to sign up for AutoPay, which conveniently also offers a $5 per line discount if you pay your bill online — and…