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February 20, 2004
Customer Hell redux
SBC, the second-largest local phone company in the United States with 57 million lines in 13 states, produces oceans of evidence why monopolies are never customer-friendly. According to the Chicago Tribune:
Looking back, Judy Leach realizes that her mistake was thinking that SBC's unlimited calling plan meant just that."They have limits, but they don't tell you about them," the Marengo resident says.
Leach's phone line was cut off after she rang up a monthly bill of more than $2,500. She had signed up for a flat-rate long-distance plan advertised for less than $50 a month.
She never saw the fine print that said Internet use was not part of the deal. Nor did she anticipate such a rule since she had been dialing her Internet service provider through SBC's local service for four years.
Leach is not alone in her frustration. As SBC battles other phone companies for new long-distance customers, bills are getting more complex and new fees, while not hidden, are easy to miss.
Sadly, SBC's customer trickery is standard practice among most phone companies and wireless providers when it comes to monthly bills. Forget "trusted brand names" for any consumer-based phone company; their continued contempt for customers helps spur rising demand for Internet-based telephony.
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