Frequently asked Long
Distance Phone Service Questions ( FAQ )
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Who is PhoneRateDigest? |
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Who are the companies
you are linking to? |
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How does
PhoneRateDigest get compensated? |
| Do you
have a privacy policy? |
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How do I determine what is a good telephone deal? |
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Why not stick with "Ma Bell?" |
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What is this "cramming" I hear about? |
| What can
consumers do to protect themselves from being crammed? |
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Where do I direct complaints? |
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Grandmothers Rule!? |
| What
is slamming? |
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What are Pager Scams? |
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Who is Phone Rate Digest?
 We are telephone company customers such as you that want to make
a difference. Fed up with the high telephone rates we
were paying and our providers not forthcoming with
better offers we decided to get even and find and make
available to the general public the lowest rates we
could find.
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Who are the companies you are
linking to?
They could be all sorts of different companies, from
carriers themselves, to local bell operating companies,
to resellers, to independent distributors and/or
wholesalers. Phone Rate Digest .com acts only as agent
for some or all of the carriers listed or included on
this site.
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How does Phone Rate Digest get
compensated?
This website is the result of this effort. Countless
hours went into research. We are not employees of any
phone company. We simply ask you if and when this site
was helpful to use the links provided here. The service
provider will pay us a very small fee which we need to
defray to cost of running and maintaining this site.
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Do you have a privacy policy?
Yes, we do have a privacy policy
at this link.
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What is this "cramming"
I hear about?
Cramming brings into the 1990's an age-old abusive
practice: charging consumers without their authorization
for services they have not purchased. It is novel only
in that it uses a previously unavailable means to effect
unauthorized billing -- namely, the telephone billing
and collection system.
More Tips on
how to avoid crammming
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What can consumers do to
protect themselves from being crammed?
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First, study
your phone bills and make sure you understand each
charge on them. Be wary of charges from companies
you haven't ever heard of. If you are uncertain,
call your local phone company. |
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Second, if you
have been billed for services by someone other than
your local phone company, your bill should identify
the source of these charges and provide a telephone
number for billing inquiries. Call that number. |
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If you are being billed for services you have not
authorized, contest the charges. Don't take no for
an answer. Be persistent. |
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If you think you
have been crammed, call the FTC's cramming hotline
at 202 326-3134, or use our online complaint form
found on our website: http://www.ftc.gov.
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How do I determine what
is a good telephone deal?
Here's how to sort out what is in the ads and what is
not.
Look for all the
information related to PRICE.
Monthly Fees: When an ad promises 10 cents a
minute, look for any monthly fees or surcharges you'll
have to pay to get that rate.
Minimum Charges: Look for minimum charges for
each call. If every call has a 50-cent minimum, even a
two-minute call can cost you 50 cents. On "up to 20
minutes for a dollar" plans, a one-minute call or a
message you leave on an answering machine is a dollar.
Climbing Rates: An ad may say that all calls up
to 20 minutes are a dollar. Look for information on what
happens to the rate structure after 20 minutes. Rates
may increase dramatically.
Look for all the
information related to RESTRICTIONS on the advertised
rates.
Time Restrictions: Is the advertised rate
available when you want it? Some rates may apply only at
certain times of the day or only on certain days of the
week. What are the rates at the other times?
Geographic Restrictions: Is the advertised rate
available on all long distance calls -those that you
make to someone in another state as well as those that
you make to someone in another city in your own state?
Some plans do not include long distance calls in the
same state. Find out what those rates are and factor
them in when you make your decision.
Promotional Restrictions: Are the advertised
rates constant or an introductory offer that's good for
a limited time - like the first 60 days of your
subscription? If so, what are the rates once the
promotion is over?
Decode
COMPARATIVE CLAIMS.
Basic Rates: An ad promising "50 percent off the
basic rate" isn't a good deal because the "basic" rate
is another term for the highest rate available.
Comparable Services: When ads compare calling rates, are
the services comparable? Is the information on both
sides of the comparison as current as possible?
Look for the FINE
PRINT. Read it.
Advance Work: Offers and restrictions vary. Each
long distance provider has their own deals. Read the
details from all the companies you are considering
before you sign up. If you have questions, call the
company for an explanation.
Look at your
MONTHLY BILLS carefully.
Pay attention to your bill, checking to make sure you
are being charge exactly what you expected. If you think
there's a mistake, or if you just don't understand your
bill, call your provider for an explanation.
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Why not stick with "Ma
Bell?"
If you use one of the "Big 3" or any provider saturating
the airwaves with advertising, you probably pay more
than you have to. These huge corporations have to recoup
all that advertising cost and the infrastructure expense
that thousand of employees and stockholders bring to the
equation by charging more and making you think you are
paying less or getting better service. The smaller
companies with streamlined operations and no advertising
budget can offer a better price for their services. The
least expensive of these companies also pays less
commission to anyone selling their services, so you will
only find these deals using low cost forms of
advertising or by word of mouth from friends or
associates.
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Where do I direct
complaints?
First, if you have
problems with any of the companies you found through us,
we want to know. Please e-mail
Complaint@PhoneRateDigest.com
Second, a number of organizations and
government agencies can provide you with additional
information or assistance. They include:
National Fraud Information
Center
1-800-876-7060
http://www.fraud.org
The Council of Better Business
Bureaus
703-276-0100
http://www.bbb.org
or your local Better Business Bureau
Federal Trade Commission
6th and Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580
http://www.ftc.gov
202-276-2222
United States Postal Service
For complaints about bogus mail order
investments and purchases solicited by
telephone, call the number listed in your
telephone book under US government, Postal
Service.
Your State Attorney General
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What does Grandmother have to do with this?
Remember this advice: "If it sounds too good to be true.
. . it probably isn’t!"
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More Tips on how to avoid
cramming
The following tips will help customers detect cramming
early and avoid becoming a victim of the practice:
Early Detection
| Review your telephone bill
thoroughly for all charges. |
| Question the telecommunications
service provider (whose name and logo appear on the
page of the bill) of any unfamiliar charges. |
| Notify your local telephone
company if you do not recognize a charge, or are
unable to resolve a disputed charge with the
telecommunications service provider |
Prevention
| Do not divulge personal
information, such as telephone number, credit card
number or social security number on sweepstakes or
raffle tickets. Quite often this information is not
secure and may be used for reasons other than
intended. |
| Keep a copy of any applications
you fill out. You will have a reference in the event
of any disputes. |
| Avoid filling out entries for
contests that seem vague in nature. |
| Do not accept collect calls from
unfamiliar persons. |
| Do not return calls to unfamiliar
telephone numbers. |
| Beware of faxes, e-mail, voice
mail and pages requesting a return call to an
unfamiliar number. |
| Know the location of the area
code which you are dialing. If you are unfamiliar
with the area code consult your Bell Atlantic
directory. |
| Avoid placing calls that have an
unfamiliar dialing pattern. Local, domestic and
international dialing is explained in the front of
your Bell Atlantic directory. |
| Pay close attention to voice
prompts on a call, they may be asking you to accept
charges for the call or other services. |
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What is slamming?
The practice of switching your long distance service to
another service provider without the subscriber’s
permission or knowledge. This is totally fraudulent. The
principal is that the new rates are higher and go
unnoticed in the larger scheme of your monthly bill.
Long distance calls are normally targeted as there are
fewer and most people are not familiar with long
distance rates. Imagine you receive a call from a
telemarketer offering a great deal on telephone service.
You later pick up your telephone and make a long
distance call. When the bill arrives you find that the
name on the top of the long distance bill page is not
the company you picked as your long distance provider.
Well guess what, you’ve just been slammed!
Slamming is the unauthorized change of a
subscribers telephone service provider without
permission. The "slammers" hope the victims do not
notice the change and proceed with payment of the bill.
Often times the telephone charges are at a much higher
rate. Although slamming most frequently impacts long
distance service, it can also occur as a change to local
service.
To combat slamming, customers can
contact their local business office and request a freeze
on their selected carrier. The freeze is free of charge
and will prevent any future unauthorized carrier
changes. Once a freeze is put on an account, changes can
only be made at the customer’s request.
| Following are a few tips to
prevent becoming a victim of slamming: |
| Review your monthly telephone
bill for any unauthorized charges. |
| If unauthorized charges are
found, contact your local business office
immediately. |
| When contacted by telephone with
a service offer: |
| Ask for a call back number, so
you are sure they are, who they say they are. |
| Ask for the information in
writing. A legitimate provider will mail information
to you. |
| Call your local telephone company
and request a freeze on your selected carrier to
prevent any future problems. |
If you suspect your long distance carrier has
been changed without your permission, call
1-700-555-4141 from your home phone and a recording
will state which carrier is connected to your home line.
Its name will also be listed on your bill.
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What are Pager Scams?
Do you have a pager or an E-Mail address?....Beware!
One of the newer scams involves pagers and E-Mail. You
get a page and you notice a number with an area code
different from your own.....must be important. So you
return the call only to find it’s a recording. In
reality, you’ve just been scammed! The call probably
went to one of several new area codes in the Caribbean,
is billed at an international rate, and the longer you
stay on the line, the more it costs. What you’ll hear is
a lengthy recording, and the meter starts running as
soon as you make the connection. The page is generated
by a computer dialer, and the cost goes to the return
caller, you!
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