Google Fi last month celebrated its fourth anniversary with 50% off the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, while iOS users this week gained visual voicemail. The Google MVNO is now dealing with customers financing their Fi purchases being charged the full price of a phone.
The Google Fi Help forum acknowledged this “Known Issue” involving the financing payment option on Saturday evening. This storefront is different from the Google Store, and allows buyers to pay for the cost of the phone over a 24 month period. There is $0 down with no interest, but a credit check is required.
For the May payment, users are getting charged the full price of the device instead of the agreed upon monthly increment. The Pixel 3 starts at $799 and goes to $999 for the 128GB 3 XL. The Moto G7 is $249, while the Moto G6 is $99.
There is currently an issue where users who purchased a device from fi.google.com are now getting charged the full price of their device after selecting the financing option.
The Google Fi team is “aware of the issue and is actively working on a fix,” with the tread being updated “as more information is available.”
We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience.
Fi apologized for the issue, with 59 replies on the official thread as of Sunday morning, and more on Twitter. For some, this is an inconvenience, but for others this is a “huge misstep,” with the company subtracting a sizable amount from their accounts.
Google does not appear to have reached out to those impacted yesterday, with most finding the problem after checking their card or bank account.
Errors happen, but it is unacceptable that there is no communication to the customers who were hit by this. I saw the charge on my credit card, but did not find anything in my Fi app nor did I get any e-mail about this issue. I only found this article by tracing the charge through Google Pay and trying to contact support about that transaction.
Update: As of May 6th, “this issue should now be resolved.” Google Fi is sending refunds within 1-2 business days, and is reaching out directly to impacted subscribers by email with more details.
This issue should now be resolved and you should see a refund posted to your account within 1–2 business days. Look out for an email from us soon with additional information. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Thanks Joyce
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