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Equipment Installment Plans | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2019
Receivables [Abstract] |
Equipment Installment Plans | Note 4 Equipment Installment Plans U.S. Cellular sells devices to customers under equipment installment plans over a specified time period. For certain equipment installment plans, after a specified period of time or amount of payments, the customer may have the right to upgrade to a new device and have the remaining unpaid equipment installment contract balance waived, subject to certain conditions, including trading in the original device in good working condition and signing a new equipment installment contract. The following table summarizes equipment installment plan receivables as of December 31, 2019 and 2018.
December 31, | 2019 |  | 2018
(Dollars in millions) |  |  |
Equipment installment plan receivables, gross | $ | 1,008 |  |  | $ | 974 |
Allowance for credit losses | (84 | ) |  | (77 | )
Equipment installment plan receivables, net | $ | 924 |  |  | $ | 897 |
Net balance presented in the Consolidated Balance Sheet as: |  |  |
Accounts receivable — Customers and agents (Current portion) | $ | 587 |  |  | $ | 560 |
Other assets and deferred charges (Non-current portion) | 337 |  |  | 337 |
Equipment installment plan receivables, net | $ | 924 |  |  | $ | 897 |
U.S. Cellular uses various inputs, including internal data, information from credit bureaus and other sources, to evaluate the credit profiles of its customers. From this evaluation, a credit class is assigned to the customer that determines the number of eligible lines, the amount of credit available, and the down payment requirement, if any. Customers assigned to credit classes requiring no down payment represent a lower risk category, whereas those assigned to credit classes requiring a down payment represent a higher risk category. A customer's assigned credit class is reviewed periodically and a change is made, if appropriate. The balance and aging of the equipment installment plan receivables on a gross basis by current credit category were as follows:
| December 31, 2019 |  | December 31, 2018
| Lower Risk |  | Higher Risk |  | Total |  | Lower Risk |  | Higher Risk |  | Total
(Dollars in millions) |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Unbilled | $ | 931 |  |  | $ | 11 |  |  | $ | 942 |  |  | $ | 904 |  |  | $ | 17 |  |  | $ | 921 |
Billed — current | 44 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 45 |  |  | 35 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 36 |
Billed — past due | 20 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 21 |  |  | 15 |  |  | 2 |  |  | 17 |
Equipment installment plan receivables, gross | $ | 995 |  |  | $ | 13 |  |  | $ | 1,008 |  |  | $ | 954 |  |  | $ | 20 |  |  | $ | 974 |
The activity in the allowance for credit losses for equipment installment plan receivables was as follows:
| 2019 |  | 2018
(Dollars in millions) |  |  |
Allowance for credit losses, beginning of year | $ | 77 |  |  | $ | 65 |
Bad debts expense | 82 |  |  | 71 |
Write-offs, net of recoveries | (75 | ) |  | (59 | )
Allowance for credit losses, end of year | $ | 84 |  |  | $ | 77 |

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- Definition The entire disclosure for financing receivable. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 310 -SubTopic 10 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2196772 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 310 -SubTopic 20 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2196816 + Details
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