Ziply Fiber Military: No ETF, but a $300 Router Fee After 45 Days

Ziply Fiber offers no military discount and charges no fee to leave residential internet, so orders do not erase a fee here. They protect two other amounts. The first is a $300 charge for its HB810 router if it is not back within 45 days. The second is the prepaid month, which Ziply’s own pages describe two different ways. Every Ziply fact below was read on ziplyfiber.com on October 10, 2026.

Ziply’s pages beside the statute

Section 3956 reaches an internet or phone contract you signed before getting orders that relocate you for 90 days or more “to a location that does not support the contract,” or, after PCS orders, a stop-movement order of 30 days or more, or with no end date, that blocks you from using it. You end it with written or electronic notice, a copy of the orders, and the date service stops. The phone, cable, and internet guide covers every part; this page covers Ziply’s terms.

All rows checked October 10, 2026.

The router and the last month, in dollars

Ziply’s pricing article (March 12, 2026) says plans start at $35 a month and that the router is now included with all plans up to 5 Gig, so there is no rental line on the bill. Included is not owned. Take a $35 plan (the advertised price with autopay and paperless billing) and a stop date six days into a 30-day cycle.

• Help-page reading: you owe the full $35 for that cycle.
• Agreement reading: Section 9(c) refunds “all prepaid monthly fees charged for Services after the date of termination.” 24 of 30 days x $35 = $28.00 back.
• Statute: § 3956(f) lets Ziply keep the cycle you cancel in, so the $28 depends on the agreement, not on federal law. Cite Section 9(c) by number.
• Autopay: Ziply’s final-bill article says autopay “is NOT de-enrolled” at disconnection. If it has already pulled the next cycle’s $35, that payment covers a period after the cycle you cancelled in, and § 3956(f) requires it back within 60 days.
• Router: $300 if the HB810 is not back within 45 days, or under Section 3(d) of the agreement, “the full manufacturer’s suggested retail price” plus incidental costs. If the installer added an HB610 extender, that is a second $300 item.

Worst case on a $35 plan: $335 or more. Best case on qualifying orders: $35 for the current cycle, $28 back if Ziply honors Section 9(c), and $0 for the router.

How Ziply pays you back

Ziply’s final-bill article says refunds between $5 and $500 come as a prepaid Mastercard that “may take up to 2-3 billing cycles to arrive,” and other amounts come by check within up to 60 days. Two or three 30-day cycles can run past 60 days. When the refund is one § 3956(f) covers, the statute’s deadline is 60 days after the effective date of termination, whatever form the money takes. Put the termination date and the 60-day date in your notice, and give a mailing address that will reach you after the move.

Equipment comes back before the account closes

Section 9(d) of Ziply’s agreement says you cannot terminate by “making a disconnect appointment that does not result in Ziply Fiber’s physical recovery of the Ziply Equipment,” and Section 3(f) lets Ziply enter the premises to retrieve gear and charge you for the retrieval. The statute works differently: your notice and orders end the contract on your date, and the 10-day return rule in § 3956(e)(3) is a separate duty. Meet both by shipping early. Ziply’s returns page has you fill out its online return form for a free UPS label or QR code, pack the gear in your own box, and drop it at a UPS location. Ziply’s list also prices converters at $150 each, so ask the agent which boxes in your home count as Ziply Equipment and return every one of them.

Orders inside the Northwest

Ziply serves Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana, and its fiber location pages include Oak Harbor, Lacey, Spokane, and Cheney in Washington and Great Falls in Montana. Orders between two Ziply addresses may not meet the statute’s “does not support the contract” test. Ziply’s moving page says a transfer to a new address is free for fiber, that you keep your current equipment until the installer checks it, and that your bill stays the same unless you change service. Its agreement says service is tied to the address on your work order and may not be transferred to a new residence on your own, so call Ziply rather than carrying the router to the new house. State-level rules are on the Washington page.

Cancel Ziply Fiber on military orders

1. Test the orders first: at least 90 days, to an address outside Ziply’s network, dated after your signup. Run them through the eligibility checker; reserve duty is covered in the Guard and Reserve guide.
2. Note your bill cycle dates and your router and extender models from My Account or the bill.
3. Chat with a live agent or call 1.866.699.4759, give a stop date, and ask Ziply to confirm the Section 9(c) refund of prepaid fees after that date.
4. Follow the chat with a written notice: orders attached, stop date stated, 50 U.S.C. § 3956 cited. The letter generator fills in the wording.
5. Fill out Ziply’s online return form, ship the router and extenders by UPS within 10 days of disconnection, and keep the tracking receipt.
6. Turn off autopay after the final bill posts, and mark day 60 after your stop date in the deadline checker for any refund owed.

The other contracts the same orders reach are listed in PCS money moves and the deployment money stack.

The law behind this: 50 U.S.C. § 3956

Termination of certain consumer contracts: internet, phone, TV, mobile, gym, and home security: read the statute , or read § 3956 in plain English, with its enforcement record .