Verizon takes yet more evasive action as ‘thousands’ of customers refuse to give up their Note 7

It was understandably difficult for Note 7 owners to abandon their device. After all, it was a well-received handset, save for…that one thing

Still, as Samsung has routinely reported, return rates have been high for the device. At last count, the electronics giant touted a 96 percent return rate on the phone (tied to a bit of news about the FAA no longer having to announce its ban on flights). But, as anyone with a basic understanding of math will happily tell you, 96 is not 100.

So, what’s to be done about all of those Note fans unable to give up the dream? Apparently Verizon [which owns the company that owns TechCrunch] still has a glut of them on the order of “thousands,” who are still holding on in spite of the carrier’s recent software update that stopped the phone from charging.

The company told Fortune that it will be taking things a step further, prohibiting the handsets from making any non-emergency outgoing calls by rerouting them to Verizon customer service.

The move comes as Samsung attempts to finally put the whole saga behind it by issuing the results of its official investigation into Note 7 explosions, most likely later this month. We’ve reached out for additional comment.