Stop Phone Cramming
Margery opened her monthly long distance telephone bill, expecting to see her usual charge of about $85 for her calls. She glanced at the total and startled, looked again: The charges totaled $550, including calls to Canada and Mexico. She had never seen her telephone bill that large and had no reason to make calls out of the United States.
That was Margery’s introduction to a problem affecting more and more telephone users – cramming. If, like her, you see a charge on your phone bill that you don’t understand, it is possible you too have been “crammed.”
Cramming is the practice of placing unauthorized, misleading or deceptive charges on consumers’ telephone bills. Cramming can happen on local or long distance telephone bills. It is a growing source of consumer complaints about telephone services.
Phone bills have become more and more confusing in the past few years. This makes it easier for crammers to sneak unlawful charges on to your phone bill. After all, phone bills can legally have charges for many things other than phone calls. Charges for phone-related services like voice mail, paging and calling cards can be on your monthly phone bill. You also may charge some club memberships, Web site design services, or hospital phone rentals to your phone bill. Those charges are OK -- if you authorized them.
Some companies take advantage of the confusion about phone bills to add unauthorized charges or services to a legitimate phone bill. That’s how cramming takes place, when charges appear on your bill that you never ordered, authorized, received or used.
However, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has taken steps to make telephone bills less confusing and more easily understood. The FCC’s “truth-in-billing” guidelines require phone bills to:
- clearly organize charges
- highlight new charges
- contain full and non-misleading descriptions of all charges,
and
- explain who to contact with questions about charges on phone
bills.
Phone companies have implemented those guidelines to make it easier for you to read your phone bill and easier to spot unauthorized charges.
Points to Consider
You can protect yourself and keep your phone bills limited to the charges you’ve ordered by paying close attention to your phone bills. Review your bill carefully every month just as you do your monthly credit card and banking statements.
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Do I recognize the names of all the companies listed on my
bill?
- Did I receive the services the listed companies said they
provided?
- Does my bill include charges for calls I did not place or
services I did not authorize?
- Are the rates charged by each company the same as the rates
the company quoted to me?
- Are there any “service” charges that I
don’t recognize?
Once you have answered the questions, if you still have concerns about any of the charges on your phone bill, you need to take further action.
Start by following the instructions on your billing statement about whom to call or to contact online to dispute charges. For 900-number charges, it may be your local or long-distance telephone company, the 900-number company or the firm that provided billing services.
If you still have concerns that cannot be resolved, file a complaint with the appropriate regulatory agency. These include the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), your state regulatory commission and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
- Call the FTC (1-877-FTC-HELP) if you have charges for non-telephone-related services on your bill.
- Contact your state public utility or public service commission for any charges on your bill for telephone-related services provided within your state.
- Call the FCC (1-888-CALL-FCC) for charges on your bill related to telephone services between two states or internationally.
Many people never come in contact with cramming charges on their bills. You can join their ranks by taking the same cautious approach toward your phone bills as you do toward credit cards and bank statements.
Additional Resources
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
-
The FCC, the federal agency with responsibility to regulate
telephone services, has information about how to review your
telephone bill, how to spot cramming charges on your bill, and
other telephone consumer issues. You can file a complaint about
telephone service with the FCC online at http://www.fcc.gov/cib/ccformpage.html
or by calling the FCC's toll-free number 1-888-CALL FCC
(1-888-225-5322) or the TTY number 1-888-TELL FCC
(1-888-835-5322).
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
-
The
FTC, the federal agency that regulates unfair business
practices, has more tips on common cramming schemes and how to
avoid being crammed. You can file a complaint about unfair
business practices with the FTC at https://www.ftc.gov/ftc/complaint.htm
or by calling the FTC's toll-free number 1-877-FTC HELP
(1-877-382-4357) or the TTY number 1-202-326-2502.
- National Consumers League
-
The National Consumers League helps you understand your
telephone bill.
Books
Find these books online at Barnes & Noble.com.
1001 Computer Telephony Tips, Secrets and Shortcuts
Edwin Margulies, C M P Books, May 1996
Offers many tips on how to save money and give you peace of mind.
Communications Security SourceBook
Wilma R. Caldwell, Omnigraphics, Incorporated, January 2003
Provides basic information for general readers about telephones
and computers including security and telephone slamming and
cramming.
