The Federal Communications Commission has proposed new rules that would require wireless carriers to notify customers when they are about to exceed their plan limits and incur extra charges.

The proposed rules would empower consumers with simple alerts and easy-to-find tools and information so they can make smart decisions about their mobile plans. Unexpected increases in the monthly mobile bill are a growing challenge for consumers, per the FCC.

?Educating mobile subscribers about where to locate their up-to-date usage information ? which all major wireless providers make available ? is a far better solution to bill shock than prescriptive federal regulation,? said Ryan Radia, associate director of technology studies at Competitive Enterprise Institute, Washington.

Data proves it
According to an April-May 2010 FCC survey, 30 million Americans ? one in six mobile users ? have experienced bill shock.

More than half those consumers saw an increase of $50 or more, but many were not alerted by their provider before they incurred the charges.  

The tools in place to eliminate bill shock vary widely between service providers and type of service, and can be difficult to find.

Most of the alerts that are offered do not cover all services or are not sent before the overage charges are incurred. 

FCC steps in
To address this challenge the FCC is proposing and seeking comment on rules that would prevent bill shock.

In today?s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the commission proposes that consumers be provided with baseline information that would allow them to control their mobile costs, including: 

Over-the-Limit Alerts: The FCC?s proposed rules would require customer notification, such as voice or text alerts, when the customer approaches and reaches monthly limits that will result in overage charges.

Out-of-the-Country Alerts: The FCC?s proposed rules would require mobile providers to notify customers when they are about to incur international or other roaming charges that are not covered by their monthly plans, and if they will be charged at higher-than-normal rates.

Easy-to-Find Tools: The FCC?s proposed rules would require clear disclosure of any tools offered by mobile providers to set usage limits or review usage balances. The FCC is also asking for comment on whether all carriers should be required to offer the option of capping usage based on limits set by the consumer.   

The notice also seeks comment on whether smaller providers and/or prepaid services should be exempt from these requirements or allowed extra time to implement them.

Comments are due 30 days after publication of the NPRM in the Federal Register and reply comments 30 days thereafter.

?Consumers are suffering to the tune of billions of dollars each year on account of the FCC?s failure to free up radio spectrum for mobile communications,? Mr. Radia said. ?Economists Thomas Hazlett and Roberto Munoz recently published a study finding that U.S. wireless prices would decline by 8 percent if the FCC were to allocate an additional 60mhz of spectrum to mobile telephony.?