IP: another from Telecom Digest -- $20 for an 800 call

[Dave Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

From: Michael Dillon <michael () memra com>
Subject: $20 Bill For 800Nnumber Phone Call
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1998 11:29:42 -0700
Organization: Memra Software Inc.




[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: This was forwarded to the Digest by
Mr. Dillon. It is an old, old story told here many times in the
past. I cannot imagine any regular Digest reader who has not heard
about this. I've also published the phone numbers to be called at
each telco to ask for a permanent block against these charges; it
is known as 'Billed Number Screening'. Go through the back issues
in the archives if you want to see that list again.   PAT]


---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1998 13:06:52 -0400
From: Barry Shein <bzs () world std com>
To: Multiple recipients of list <com-priv () lists psi com>
Subject: Since it's such a slow week on com-priv...


Did you know that you can incur a $20 or more charge on your phone
bill by just dialing a 1-800 (or 888 etc, "toll-free") number?


And, if you don't pay it (or resolve it) you'll be in default on your
phone bill.


There seems to be this racket run by companies such as Integretel
where someone can set up an 800 number and if you call it, wham,
there'll be some large charge on your phone bill in the 3rd party
section.


You don't have to agree to anything, the other party just has to
capture your number (which they always can do with toll-free dialing)
and bill it.


Do you expect a $20 or more charge to appear on your bill as the
result of calling an 800 number?


I found this out first-hand when not only did I get such a charge, but
it kept re-appearing anew month after month!


I kept calling my local telco and they kept removing it (warning me
each time that the other party could pursue collections by other
means), but it became enough of a nuisance that I began to
investigate.


I was particularly disturbed that a call to Integretel to try to clear
this up appeared on my bill as another $20 charge! Not only didn't
they remove the call, they tried to bill me for calling them to tell
them they made a mistake.


A call to the PUC here indicates this is completely legal and they
even defended the practice, but did get this month's new charges
removed for me and said they called Integretel and asked them to stop
adding these charges.


This is relevant to com-priv because I believe this started when I
called an 800 number during the investigation of a spam message to our
system.


I think this is crooked, a full-employment act for criminals, and it
undermines the utility of 800 numbers for honest people.


I know I'll think twice now before dialing any toll-free number and
would advise the same hesitation in others. Although it's not that
difficult to get the specific charge removed from your bill (yet):


        A) It's a nuisance to have to call every month to get
        charges removed. And what right does this company have
        to add new charges month after month? Why did I have to
        to spend my time calling the PUC to get them to stop this,
        and why isn't there any (apparent) sanction against the
        company for doing this? Even if they claimed I called
        this 800 number once, I certainly didn't call it every


        month since August 1997!


        B) It assumes you carefully check your bill every month,
        which you should, but I bet that's what these slimebags live
        off of; people who don't check or just don't understand that
        they've been ripped-off and assume it must be something they owe.


        C) The PUC was so certain that this was a legitimate form
        of business that I wouldn't bet on getting these charges
        removed politely in the future. I think we're going to
        find ourselves in a position of "hey, you want your phone
        service, pay what it says, otherwise we'll shut you off".


I realize most people think their shock and outrage at what they'd
view as a ridiculous charge should save the day, but believe me that
wasn't what the PUC was saying. They were basically saying to me
"that's right, that's how it works, we'll remove it this time but get
used to it!"


Apparently the FCC also thinks this rip-off is a swell idea.


SUGGESTIONS:


1. You should be able to block the ability to dial these numbers from
your phone, just like you can block 900 numbers. If the telco finds
that too complex then they should dump this whole service.


2. Such companies should be required to give a clear message that if
you proceed you will be charged, and how much, and give you a chance
to hang up before any charges are incurred.


3. The telcos should be required to spend some money informing their
customers that they can be liable for large charges on their bills as
the result of dialing what appear to be toll-free numbers.


Because right now this is just a fraud, plain and simple.


I don't believe you could find one person out of a 100 on the street
who would know that they can be charged $20 or more for dialing a
TOLL-FREE number.




        -Barry Shein


Software Tool & Die    | bzs () world std com          | http://www.world.com
Purveyors to the Trade | Voice: 617-739-0202        | Login: 617-739-WRLD
The World              | Public Access Internet     | Since 1989     *oo*




[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Only a twenty dollar charge? Wow, did
you get off cheap. Fifty or sixty dollar charges are quite common. Legally
they are in the clear because they *do mot* charge you for the trans-
port of the call itself -- it is a toll-free number -- but rather, they 
charge for the alleged *telecom-related service* performed as part of
the call. Under the present law, telecom-related services can be 
billed to your phone bill. It has always been this way, since nearly
a century ago when Western Union first started accepting telegrams by
phone and charging them to your phone bill. Now sometimes the defin-
ition of 'telecom-related service' gets stretched rather thin, and
certainly the prices charged are seldom if ever a bargain, but they
are legal as long as they inform you that a charge of X dollars will
be levied per minute or call as a result. They can inform you of that
with a *tiny* one line message on the bottom of the television screen,
or a tiny message printed in very small type at the bottom of an
advertising flyer, etc. They can say it verbally using about twenty
words pronounced very fast at the start of their conversation with


you. But they informed you, you chose not to break the connection, 
and that makes it legal. Left unstated are whether you completely
understood the extent of the charges, or if indeed you have the
authority to impose additional charges on the subscriber to the
telephone line, i.e. an extension user on a PBX. 


The ONLY way to assure that it does not happen to you is to get
the list of companies which engage in this practice from the 
Telecom Archives; call each and every one, and provide them with
*all* of your telephone numbers -- not just your first, or main
listed number -- and insist that each number be placed on their
negative list; what the legit, established telcos refer to as
'Billed Number Screening'.  Like I said at the beginning, an old
story that comes to life about once a month, each time telco has
a billing cycle and a few new people get swept up in it.   PAT]