CRAMMING
Unauthorized, Misleading, or Deceptive Charges Placed on Your Telephone Bill
Background
"Cramming" is the practice of placing unauthorized, misleading, or deceptive charges on your telephone bill. Entities that fraudulently cram people appear to rely largely on confusing telephone bills in order to mislead consumers into paying for services that they did not authorize or receive.
In addition to providing local telephone service, local telephone companies often bill their customers for long distance and other services that other companies provide. When the local company, the long distance telephone company, or another type of service provider either accidentally or intentionally sends inaccurate billing data to be included on the consumer’s local telephone bill, cramming can occur.
Cramming also occurs when a local or long distance company or another type of service provider does not clearly or accurately describe all of the relevant charges to the consumer when marketing the service. Although the consumer did authorize the service, the charge is still considered "cramming" because the consumer was misled.
Cramming Charges: What They Look Like
Cramming comes in many forms and is often hard to detect unless you closely review your telephone bill. The following charges would be legitimate if a consumer had authorized them but, if unauthorized, these charges could constitute cramming:
Charges for services that are explained on a consumer’s telephone bill in general terms – such as "service fee," "service charge," "other fees," "voicemail," "mail server," "calling plan," "psychic," and "membership;"
Charges that are added to a consumer’s telephone bill every month without a clear explanation of the services provided – such as a "monthly fee" or "minimum monthly usage fee;" and
Other charges from a local or long distance company for a service that it provides but, like the other examples, could be cramming if unauthorized. While cramming charges typically appear on consumers’ local telephone bills, they may also be included with bills issued by long distance telephone companies and companies providing other types of services, including cellular telephone, digital telephone, beeper and pager services.
The FCC's Truth-in-Billing Rules
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has rules that require telephone companies to make their phone bills more consumer-friendly. These rules enable consumers to more easily determine, when reading their bills, what services have been provided, by whom, and the charges assessed for these services. Telephone companies must also list a toll-free number on their bills for customers with billing inquiries.
Such basic information empowers consumers to protect themselves from cramming and other types of telecommunications fraud. It also helps consumers make informed choices when they shop around to find the best telephone service to meet their needs.
How to Protect Yourself and Save Money
Carefully review your phone bill every month. Treat your telephone service like any other major consumer purchase or service. Review your monthly bills just as closely as you review your monthly credit card and bank statements.
Ask yourself the following questions as you review your telephone bill:
Do I recognize the names of all the companies listed on my bill?
What services were provided by the listed companies?
Does my bill include charges for calls I did not place and services I did not authorize?
Are the rates and line items consistent with the rates and line items that the company quoted to me?
You may be billed for a call you placed or a service you used, but the description listed on your telephone bill for the call or service may be unclear. If you don't know what service was provided for a charge listed on your bill, ask the company that billed the charge to explain the service provided before paying the charge.
Make sure you know what service was provided, even for small charges. Crammers often try to go undetected by submitting $2.00 or $3.00 charges to thousands of consumers.
Keep a record of the telephone services you have authorized and used – including calls placed to 900 numbers and other types of telephone information services. These records can be helpful when billing descriptions are unclear.
Carefully read all forms and promotional materials – including the fine print – before signing up for telephone services or other services to be billed on your phone bill.
Companies compete for your telephone business. Use your buying power wisely and shop around. If you think that a company’s charges are too high or that their services do not meet your needs, contact other companies and try to get a better deal.
Actions You Can Take if You Think You've Been Crammed
Take the following actions to dispute the unauthorized charges listed on your telephone bill:
Immediately call the company that charged you for calls you did not place, or charged you for services you did not authorize or use. Ask the company to explain the charges. Request an adjustment to your bill for any incorrect charges.
Call your own local telephone company. FCC rules require telephone companies to place a toll-free number on their bills for customers to contact with billing inquiries. Explain your concerns about the charges and ask your local telephone company the procedure for removing incorrect charges from your bill.
If neither the local phone company nor the company in question will remove incorrect charges from your telephone bill, you can file a complaint with the regulatory agency that handles your particular area of concern:
For charges on your telephone bill for non-telephone-related services, your complaint should be filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or use the FTC's online complaint form at https://rn.ftc.gov/dod/wsolcq$.startup. (An example of non-telephone related services is "content" services such as psychic hotlines.)
For charges for telephone-related services provided within your state, you should contact your state regulatory commission. This information may be listed in the government section of your telephone directory.
For charges related to telephone services between two states or internationally, you should contact the FCC. Complaints about these issues may be filed with the FCC in writing, by phone or by e-mail. You may contact the FCC at:
Federal Communications Commission
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau
Consumer Complaints
445 12th Street, SW
Washington, D.C. 20554
Phone: 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322)
TTY: 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322)
Fax: (202) 418-0232
E-mail: fccinfo@fcc.gov
Information provided by the Federal Communications
Cramming: What to do about unauthorized charges on your phone bill
ReplyDeleteCramming is the practice of placing unauthorized charges on your phone bill. Companies that cram
consumers hope that you will not notice these charges slipped into the middle of your lengthy and
complicated phone bill. Cramming comes in many forms. The unauthorized charge might be a one-time
charge or it could be a monthly recurring charge. The charge might be for a club membership (such as a
psychic or travel club), a telecommunications service (such as voice mail or paging) or even a web page
design service.
Sometimes crammers fraudulently place charges on a consumer’s phone bill without ever contacting the
consumer. Other times, consumers are deceived into signing up for the service. For instance, a
telemarketer might falsely claim that a consumer can try the service for free and then cancel it at any time
without being charged.
What can you do to prevent cramming?
• Read your phone bill carefully every month. Review it like you would your credit card or
bank statement.
• Use caution if you speak with telemarketers. Make sure you fully understand the nature of
the offer they are describing. Also, pay close attention to anything a “third party verifier”
says to you after you have spoken with the telemarketer. Ask questions if you are confused.
If you answer “yes” to questions you don’t fully understand, the company may later claim
that you authorized the service.
• Read the fine print if you fill out contest entry forms or if you sign and deposit
promotional “rebate” checks. Sometimes these documents state that you are authorizing a
service that will be billed to your phone bill.
• Dispute unauthorized charges on your phone bill. Ask your local telephone company to
remove the charge from the bill. Your local phone service may not be disconnected if you
fail to pay a charge from a company that is not your local carrier. In addition, contact the
company responsible for the charge. There should be a toll-free number listed on the phone
bill for you to call. If the matter is not resolved to your satisfaction, contact the Consumer
Protection Division of the Attorney General’s Office.
• Check your credit card bills, too. Unauthorized telephone charges may be billed to your
credit card. If you see any such charges on your bill, dispute the charge in writing as soon as
possible.
For More Information:
See also tips on Slamming: When your telephone carrier is switched without your permission.
Unwanted Charges on Your Local Phone Bill?
ReplyDeleteHow to Find Them, Eliminate Them & Get Your Money Back!
If your business still gets its phone service through the old "Ma Bell" local phone company (as opposed to
one of the newer competitive phone providers) then you need to double check your phone bill each and
every month for charges you did not authorize. You may not know it but the local phone company allows
other companies to bill you through your local phone bill. And while the local phone company allows other
businesses to bill you through your local phone bill, the local phone company does not verify that the
charges being billed to you by the other company are valid. When these unauthorized charges fraudulently
appear on your phone bill it's called "cramming". Unfortunately you as the business owner or manager are
the only one that can spot the unauthorized charges and if you don't comb over your bill every month to
spot these unauthorized charges - you'll pay for them.
Why does the local phone company allow other companies to pass charges onto your phone bill? "Thirdparty
billing" is supposedly a great convenience in that you only have to pay one bill instead of separate bills
for obvious authorized phone related charges like yellow-page advertising in the "real yellow pages", 411
information calls and long-distance calls from your chosen long distance carrier. Over the years though,some less-than-scrupulous companies have realized that most businesses rarely scrutinize their local phone bills. To take advantage of this, these companies have come up with elaborate schemes to place unauthorized charges on your phone bill that you'll end up paying for without even thinking.
Unauthorized charges you can end up paying for include charges for unwanted (and unused) email accounts, web sites,
ReplyDeletedirectory information calls, directory advertising in obscure publications, voice mail accounts and other
services.
In theory, before these charges can be placed on your phone bill, the company that is originating the thirdparty
billed charges is supposed to have a verification of the order like a voice recording. In reality though,
all the company needs to do to initiate the charge is submit your name and phone number to the billing entity. The verifications are only required to be produced if a complaint is filed.
To prevent these charges from appearing on you business phone bill it's helpful to understand the four
parties that make unauthorized third party phone charges a costly reality. Party number one is any
employee who can answer your business phones. The unauthorized charge is rarely random and it usually
happens after one of your company employees gets a telemarketing call. Employees should be instructed to
document and report any overly aggressive telemarketing calls they receive. Party number two is the
telemarketing company that originates the unauthorized charges by trying to get your employee to accept
some service for which you'll be billed through your local phone bill. Party number three is the third-party
billing company that has billing agreements with your local phone company. The name of the third-party
billing is the one that is prominently displayed on your phone bill. After the third-party billing company's
name is the name of the company that is originating the unwanted charges. Party number four is your "Ma
Bell" local phone company that collects the unwanted charges (keeps a share for "Ma") and then passes the
rest to the third-party billing company (who keeps a big share) and then passes the balance on to the
company that initiated the unwanted charge.
Following are some of the top third-party billing names and unauthorized charge originators you'll find on
your phone bill. If you see these names on your phone bill you'll want to call the toll free number listed next
to the charge to confirm it's a charge that's been properly authorized to be placed on your bill. Following are
actual examples that we've recently found while auditing business phone bills.
Important note: Third-party billing companies like the ones listed below simply bill you for the products of
ReplyDeleteothers. As such, it's not the third-party billing company that initiated the charge you did not authorize -
they simply pass on the charge from the initiating company to your phone bill.
1. VOICE MAIL - Enhance Services Billing Inc. (ESBI), VoiceXpress & CoolSavings.com
We found a $12.95 per month charge on a client's local AT&T phone bill for non-AT&T "VoiceXpress" voice
mail service. When we called the listed phone number for VoiceXpress of 800-367-8006 we spoke to a
VoiceXpress customer service rep who said a specific person "ordered" the voicemail service almost 15
months ago. When I asked that he give me detailed information about what kind of voicemail service was
ordered he quickly stated that the voicemail service was ordered through the website www.CoolSavings.com.
He stated that when people go to that website to download free grocery coupons that some of the fine print
states that they will be charged $12.95 per month for the voicemail. Before I could even begin to take issue
with the whole situation he said that I would be refunded all the money - at total of $194.25 on the phone
bill within the next bill or so.
I was actually kind of surprised that they were so anxious to refund all our money without a fight until I
started Googling ESBI, VoiceXpress & CoolSavings.com. I quickly found that my client was not the first to
end up being billed for a service they did not want. Click the following links for more information.
Check your bill
ReplyDeleteDIRECTORY ASSISTANCE - ILD Teleservices, "10 15 15 800", Calling10.com & TelSeven.com
We found ILD billed our client $21.42 for three separate "directory information calls to the phone number
10-15-15-800. Unlike with ESBI above, ILD was a little stingier before finally relenting to a credit. They were
quite insistent that an employee did indeed dial 10-15-15-800 for directory assistance at a cost of over $5
per call. I quickly challenged them by asking, "Who in the world even knows to dial 10-15-15-800 for
directly information unless they were mislead to do so?". The customer service person I complained to
issued a one time $21.42 "courtesy credit" and said a check will be mailed out right away. Surprisingly, the
check arrived just a few days later.
Click one of the following links to read Internet posts from others about unauthorized 10-15-15-800
directory assistance calls.
Unfortunately, unless you are able to block your phone system from dialing 10-15-15-800 or other
ReplyDelete101xxxxx "bypass codes", t hese unauthorized charges can be very difficult to stamp out. While an employee
my indeed be tricked into dialing the number as is alleged on some of the web links above, it's likely that an
employee is dialing these numbers out of ignorance or malice. Tell them that if they want free directory
assistance to dial 800-GOOG-411
Check your bills
ReplyDeleteINTERNET DIRECTORY LISTING - OAN Services, Inc., USdirectory.com, & Xacti We found $49.95
per month being charged for a non-AT&T online yellow page listings at www.USdirectory.com. When we
contacted the customer service number for US Directory we were assured that someone at the business did
indeed place the order. The business disputes that the charge was authorized. US Directory said a credit of
$149.85 for three months of the charges would be issued.
Click the following links to view information about others who feel they did not authorize what was charged
or to get additional background information about US Directory.
The only way to stop this sort of unauthorized billing would be to contact your local phone company and ask them what your options are to block all third-party billing. You may or may not want to pursue this
option depending on how many authorized third-party billing vendors you are already paying through your
phone bill. Many of these vendors (like the real yellow pages) will only do business with you if you allow
them to bill you through your phone bill.
DIAL AROUND - USBI & MCI We found a total of $84.31 billed by USBI on behalf of for MCI long
ReplyDeletedistance calls. When we called the listed customer service number the rep assured me that either the line
was PICed to MCI or that someone was using an MCI dial-around code to make the calls. I assured the
representative that the line in questions was confirmed to be PICd to Sprint and that no employee needed to
dial any long distance bypass code on the line because the line had a working long distance carrier. After a
couple minutes the representative granted the "one-time courtesy credit".
Like the "10 15 15 800" directory assistance dial around problem noted above, other than blocking your
whole system from being able to connect dial around attempted calls there is not a good way to block these sort of calls.
UNAUTHORIZED PHONE LINE - Sprint We found about $35 worth of long distance charges for a
ReplyDeletephone number that no one seemed to think belonged to the company. In going back through many back
bills it seemed the number had been added to the companies Sprint long distance phone bill over a year
and a half ago. We called Sprint to ask them who added the phone number to the account and why. Sprint
responded that their records didn't go back that far. We then stated that we wanted to initiate a fraud
investigation. Sprint issues a credit of $304.80 for all the billing on the phone line since it was added to the
account. They also blocked the phone line from the Sprint network. I called the line in question and it was
some residential phone customer who had no relation to my client.
The obvious way to stop this sort or unauthorized phone line problem is to check the list of all phone
numbers billing to the account every month to make sure every number is authorized to be billing on the account.
HOW TO ELIMINATE & ACTIVELY PREVENT UNAUTHORIZED PHONE CHARGES
ReplyDelete1. Switch to a Competitive Local Phone Company - Only "Ma Bell", the old local phone company allows
other companies to add charges to your phone bill. If you switch your local phone lines to one of the new
competitive local phone companies, the only charges that will ever appear on your local phone bill are the
charges you have authorized in a signed contract. How refreshing!
2. Have a "Phone Cop" Review Every Bill Every Month - Designate an inside employee or an outside
consultant with the responsibility of knowing what phone services you're subscribed to and why. Then have
that person scrutinize every phone bill every month to ensure that only contracted prices are being charges
to authorized services. Have them report and track all discrepancies. Have them keep detailed records of all
promised refunds so it can be confirmed when the refunds have been received. Have them Google the
customer service contact phone number of any company that unexpectedly places charges on your phone
bill. You may quickly find that the company has many Internet complaints published against it.
3. Have a Phone Service Inventory & Expansion Plan - Every year the local phone company sends their
customers a "customer service record" or CSR for every phone bill they get that explains in layman's terms
what they're being billed for. Since the annual CSR is not an invoice, many businesses simply discard them
- don't! Use the annual CSRs to bounce against the service inventory that you create in house to make sure
the phone company is correctly billing you for what you think you have.
In theory, the phone services you currently have are the result of some well thought out plan. Who's the
ReplyDeleteoriginator of that phone plan and where is it now? It's important to understand the original "phone plan"
and to constantly be updating it so as to properly plan for inevitable expansion. More money is wasted
because often anyone in a business is allowed to order phone services. In every business, only one person
should be authorized to order phone services - the keeper of the phone service "expansion plan".
4. Keep a Phone Order Diary - If a phone service is important enough to order, it's important enough to
document. Most every phone order is followed up by the phone company with a written confirmation (which
you may or may not ever see). Immediately follow up every "MAC" (move, add or change) order with an email
to yourself documenting what was ordered, what was the quoted price and all other relevant details. by
emailing yourself a note you create a "breadcrumb trail" that you can follow up on later if something goes
wrong by simply running a search on your email.
5. Just Say "No" and Hang Up - Many unauthorized phone charges originate with a telemarketer calling
into the business. If the telemarketer is able to keep you on the line for any period of time they are going to
naturally think you want the service and then contrive some reason to place the order for you. Just say, "No
thanks & good luck with your next call." Then hang up.
Summary
If you don't know what a charge is on your local phone bill, you probably don't want or need it. Outside of
long distance charges from your chosen long distance carrier, yellow page advertising charges in the "real
yellow pages" and 411 directory information charges, most other third-party billed charges are likely
unauthorized. Only scrupulous monthly vigilance or switching to a competitive local phone company that
disallows third party billing can keep you from paying these charges. And it's not just small businesses that
fall victim to these charges. Medium-sized businesses with dozens of local phone bills are the companies that have the greatest trouble with unauthorized third party billing.
Consumer Protection
ReplyDeleteToll Fraud
Toll fraud can occur in many forms and under numerous circumstances. Calling card fraud, PBX fraud, wireless fraud and identity-theft are all types of fraud that can and do occur with great frequency. NTS Communications continuously works with private and governmental organizations to combat toll fraud and protect our customers. If you observe or believe you are a victim of toll fraud, please contact NTS Communications and report it. We want to help.
Slamming
Telephone companies are prohibited by law from switching you from one telephone service provider to another without your permission, a practice commonly known as “slamming”.
If you are slammed, the law requires the telephone company that slammed you to do the following: pay all charges associated with returning you to your original telephone company within 5 business days of your request; provide all billing records to your original telephone company within 10 business days of your request; pay your original telephone company the amount you would have paid if you had not been slammed; and refund to you within 30 business days any amount you paid for charges during the first 30 days after the slam and any amount more than what you would have paid your original telephone company for charges after the first 30 days following the slam. Your original telephone company is required to provide you with all the benefits, such as frequent flyer miles, you would have normally received for your telephone use during the period in which you were slammed.
If you have been slammed, you can change your service immediately back to your original provider by calling your local telephone company. You should report the slam by writing or calling the Office of Consumer Protection, You can prevent slamming by requesting your local dial tone provider to place a “pic” freeze on your account. With a freeze in place, you must give formal consent to “lift” the freeze before your phone service can be changed. A freeze may apply to local toll service, long distance or both. The public Utility Commission of Texas can give you more information about freezes and your rights as a customer.
Cramming
Placing charges on your phone bill for products or services without your authorization is known as “cramming” and is prohibited by law. If you believe you were crammed, you should contact NTS and request that we take corrective action. The Public Utility Commission of Texas requires the billing telephone company to do the following within 45 days of when it learns of the unauthorized charge: cease charging you for the unauthorized product or service; remove any unauthorized charge from your bill; refund or credit all money to you that you have paid for an unauthorized charge; and on your request, provide you with all billing records related to any unauthorized charge within 15 business days after the charge is removed from your telephone bill.
Telephone Solicitors
ReplyDeleteWhat You Can Do
The law provides certain protections for a person who receives a telephone solicitation at their residence.
A telephone solicitor must identify himself or herself by name; identify the business on whose behalf he or she is calling; identify the purpose of the call and identify the telephone number at which the person, company or organization making the call may be reached.
A telephone solicitor may not call your residence before 9:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. on a weekday or Saturday or before noon or after 9:00 p.m. on a Sunday. If a telephone solicitor uses an automatic dialing/announcing device, the machine must disconnect from your line within 30 seconds after termination of the call.
Exceptions: The requirements above do not apply to telephone solicitations made at your request, or solicitations made in connection with an existing debt or contract, or calls from a telephone solicitor with whom you have a prior or existing business relationship.
If you use a credit card to purchase consumer goods or a service from a telephone solicitor other than a public charity (an organization exempt from federal income tax under the Internal Revenue Code section 501 ( c ) (3) ), the seller must: offer a full refund for the return of undamaged and unused goods within seven days after you receive the goods or service (the seller must process the refund within 30 days after you return the merchandise or cancel your order for undelivered goods or service); or provide you with a written contract fully describing the goods or service being offered, the total price charged, the name, address, and business phone of the seller, and any terms and conditions affecting the sale.
Customer Propreitary Network Information (CPNI)
ReplyDeleteIt is your right under federal law to restrict the use of your NTS customer information. Protecting the confidentiality of your customer information and how it is used is important to us. Your customer information includes the type of services you purchase, how you use them and the billing of those services you may find useful.
NTS does not release your CPNI to any third party without your written consent unless required to do so by law. NTS may use your CPNI to offer you products and services you may find useful.
Inter-exchange Carrier Contact List
Who to call for unauthorized changes
Sprint Long Distance
Residential 1-800-877-4646
Business 1-800-877-4020
MCI Long Distance
Residential 1-800-444-3333
Small Business 1-800-444-2222
Excel Telecommunications
Residential 1-800-875-9235
Business 1-800-875-9235 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 1-800-875-9235
Verizon | Residential and Local Telephone Bill Complaints | Unauthorized Third Party Phone Charges?
ReplyDeleteIf you were charged on your Verizon residential or local phone bill for third party services and subscriptions (i.e., voicemail, internet access, web hosting, email, caller-id services or other premium services “billed on behalf of” third party merchants, etc.) that you never authorized Verizon to bill you for, tell us your story!
–Report Unauthorized Verizon Phone Bill Charges–
Verizon Residential and Local Website:
www.verizon.com
How To Cancel or Stop Third Party Billing From Verizon: Stopping Unauthorized Charges
According to Verizon’s website “Cramming is a term for unauthorized charges on your phone bill such as a monthly charge for voice mail or any charges for services that you have not requested.”
According to Verizon’s website “Inspect your monthly telephone bill to ensure that it correctly reflects the services you have ordered. If anything looks suspicious, investigate and contact Verizon immediately to resolve cramming issues.”
Protecting yourself against unauthorized charges: Verizon’s Bill Block
According to Verizon’s website, “Bill Block prevents companies from “cramming” or adding services or charges to your bill without your knowledge or permission. Verizon provides Bill Block for your protection at no charge.”
According to Verizon’s website, Bill Block, however, does not prevent associated toll charges, operator service charges, monthly fees, 900/976 calls, or dial-around charges from your long distance provider.
Contact Verizon By Mail, Email or Telephone:
www22.verizon.com/CustomerSupport/ContactUs/Index
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If you were charged on your local residential telephone bill from Verizon for third party services and subscriptions that you never authorized Verizon to charge you for, tell us your story!
–Contact A Class Action Attorney–