The $85,000 Phone Bill > Just another...

Just another...

More like a just another salesman who scammed an unsuspecting plan buyer.

The rep may not have said anything (as is typical for Bell) but it is clearly listed on the site for mobile browsing only, additionally I believe it's in the fine print as well. The thing is, never fully trust a salesman without reading everything in writing first.

I've had both Cingular and Verizon wireless salemen flat out lie about their plans. We also saw a few weeks ago »Verizon's Dubious Math Skills the story about 50 or so calls to Verizon inquiring about per Kb charges with about 95% of the answers given by Verizon's agents being wrong. Then when wrong the real price was often 1000X the price quoted by the misinformed agent. It would mean the difference between a quoted $85 bill and an $85,000 bill.

Even with fine print, the way it's worded is often confusing. "Mobile browsing" is vague and to some people could be anything mobile including a laptop tethered to the phone.

I wonder how the actual terms of service are worded. If it's worded Mobile Browsing without specifically defining mobile browsing as through the phone's web client I could see how it could be confusing even to someone who read the 4 pt font of the contract.

reply to kalphearion
Everyone knows using iphone or cellphone for dial-up will ring the bill up

Can't tether an iPhone as far as I know (they're may be 3rd party hacks though).

reply to DotMac4
I tend to agree... there's a HUGE amount of legal paperwork to protect the carrier (TOS/AUP), and a very quick process to get you signed up/out the door.
When I wanted to 'tether' my Samsung ZX-20, AT&T wanted to put me on a MEdia plan. Since I know better, I asked her if she's _really_ sure about that, and it was the plan I should be on for using my phone as a modem. She came back and set it up as a laptop connect plan.

Many people do not know what they're getting, and many sales people do not know what they're selling. There should be some sort of 'cap' or 'warning' when these huge bills come out. $85,000 is probably more than his gross annual salary. If I went to a bank and asked for a loan to burn through $85k what do you think they would say ? The bill by the kB has to have some sort of sanity check.
--
Canada = Hollywood North

reply to DotMac4
In order to tether his his KRZR to his computer and use it as a modem, he must download an application from Bell called Mobile Connect.

Here is the link for Mobile Connect.

»www.businessonthego1.com/english···l_mc.asp

Notice that you cannot download the program without the legal stuff popping up.

And here's the important part:

"Note to subscribers of Bell Mobility's Unlimited Mobile BrowserTM: in tethering your Bell Mobility handheld device to your PC or other device, data transmission does NOT occur through the Unlimited Mobile Browser. You will be charged for data transport usage in addition to the monthly charge for the browser.

Examples of data transport charges using a rate of $12 per megabyte: send an email = $0.15; download a web page = $4.50; download a song = $123.00. Note that these examples do not include all data transmission associated with these activities, which can vary depending on user activity, software application behaviour, communications protocol and network conditions.

We encourage you to minimize these charges by subscribing to an appropriate data plan. Visit »www.businessonthego1.com/english···cing.asp or call 1 866 235-5249 (1 866 BELL-BIZ) to subscribe. Be sure to check the data usage counter on your screen to keep track of your data usage.

By clicking "I accept" below you acknowledge that you are over the age of eighteen years and are liable for and agree to pay these charges for data transport services."

reply to kalphearion
Yeah seriously! I mean it's ONLY $85 000!
What was he thinking when he read "Unlimited Browsing" and assumed that it applied to all browsing? What an idiot! Oh wait, I'm being a sarcastic jackass again.

reply to shaner
If that's the case (about the contract being in bold, plus the click through notice on the installer) he should pay the $3700 and be happy about it.

reply to james
n/m

reply to kalphearion
Hey, we're not talking about American pesos here, we're talking Canadian dollars. That's a lot of dough.

reply to DotMac4

reply to DotMac4
I agree,

reply to kalphearion

reply to Tzale
Even the "goodwill" $3700 is outrageous. They offer the "real" unlimited service for $75 per month. That should be the maximum "fine" for improper use.

Its downright criminal for big companies to demand such extoirtionate amounts from people when they are clearly able to provide the said service for a fair price.

reply to DotMac4
customer trying to scam the system. He was caught trying to cheat the system by not buy a laptop card. He is getting what he deserves. There is NOTHING free in the world.

reply to djrobx
Its outrageous, its highway robbery, and its wrong. The only one 'ripping anyone off', are the telephone companies. It smacks of Standard Oil tactics. Control the monopoly, and then rape the public with your pricing. (While technically its not a monopoly, it is once you get any one of the carriers' telephones. Its certainly not market based pricing.)

When you 'steal' (or lose) a DVD from a rental company, the most they will charge you is the price of the movie, or maybe a little more. When you 'steal' (or lose) a book from the library, the most they will charge you is the price of the book, or maybe a little more. Here they are charging you thousands of times the cost, and hundreds of times the monthly rate if you had a service plan; all for being unknowledgeable. djrobx has it right:

reply to shaner
Wow, who would have guessed that connecting a computer to the phone to use the same data-link would not basically be the same thing as far as the phone company was concerned. Obviously WE would have guessed that, but the average person out there isn't as smart as us. They need to be explicitly told that "always on" doesn't mean guaranteed uptime, or "Unlimited mobile Browser" doesn't mean you can download anything you want through the phone connection.