Legal Proceedings (Details)	0 Months Ended				1 Months Ended	0 Months Ended
	May 22, 2009 Wade L. Jones Vs Current officers defendant	Jun. 03, 2009 Corwin case defendant	Nov. 04, 2010 Former Bell retirees Vs Verizon employee benefits committee and pension plans and the Company employee benefits committee and pension plans plaintiff	Nov. 25, 2009 Former Bell retirees Vs Verizon employee benefits committee and pension plans and the Company employee benefits committee and pension plans plaintiff	Jun. 05, 2009 Securities claims plaintiff claim	Aug. 18, 2009 Securities claims Buettgen case claim court
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of separate lawsuits filed					3
Number of plaintiffs				3	3
Number of officers named as defendants	2
Number of cases consolidated						4
Number of courts in which cases were consolidated						1
Number of company directors added as party defendants		2
Number of claims for which motion was filed for dismissal			1
Number of remaining procedural ERISA claims			2