Complaint Review: Everdial.com

My guess, is that perhaps the FCC rules
were changed, in regulars to DAR (Dial Around).

For example, the FCC (Federal Communications
Commissions) may have decided that a network
fee was applicable to DAR as well as regular
plans. If this was the case, then the government
is to blame for this so-call network tax or network fee.

Otherwise, I would go right ahead and cancel
the 10-10-xx service. I know that many telcoms
willingly grandfather their old customers, into
the previous plans, when they change plans,
for example.

Good luck

Maybe if I sent you my documentation from everdial.com who I selected for my dial around service, you could better understand why I feel that I have been deceived as far as "any" fees are concerned. I hear what you are saying, too, but so what?

You are very knowledgeable about how the system works, but this is not what I was told. I have had dial around numbers for years, and very satisfied until they honestly proclaimed that as of Feb. 1st, there would be a monthly fee....that is why I chose everdial...they assured me there was none, period.

No one said the billing company, who is a part of everdial, (Primus), would be getting a fee from the consumer for doing everdial's billing...Deception with a capitol "D".

I can utilize my own Bell Company, pay 15 cents a minute, and not pay any additional billing fee. In the long run, I might as well stay with Bell....or better yet....just use my cell phone.

I hear what you say. You are convinced
that Primus charged everyone $4.95
for being a customer of their's for
anything, including Everdial.

That may or may not be true. I won't
debate that.

But, strictly speaking from my experience
as a customer service representative,
for a telcom company, that handles these
situations, and as a customer of Primus
currently, here is the deal:

1 - there are a variety of plans with Primus.
I know that many telcoms, have a $1.99
minimum monthly charge, for being signed up
as their long distance customer, and another
$2.95 for signing up for an additional option,
in long distance. For example, there are plans
to call Canada, plans to call Internationally,
plans to call within the USA. Each option,
is $2.95, and is a monthly recurring charge,
so even if you use it, the $2.95 will still
be charged. However, the $1.99 is waived if
you make $1.99 or more of LD calls.

Example: you signed up for Primus, $1,99 and
then you added an option, such as USA even
lower rates plan, which is $2.95. Add those
2 plans, (basic + 1 option) and it's about $4.95.

When I read your rip-off report, you said Primus
is billing you $4.95 for the 10-10-xxx service,
which is free in every single telcom company,
to my knowledge. Coincidence ?! I leave that up
to you.

Obviously, you still do not understand that Primus is the billing company for everdial.com, and they are the ones charging the$4.95 monthly fee to bill me for using the 10-10 number.

Everdial says this is not true, there will be no charge, and Primus says there is a charge regardless what kind of customer I am.

I an not a long distance customer, and Primus is aware of that according to their records, but they are still charging a $4.95 service charge for the use of 10-10 from everdial.

I don't want to keep this conversation going....I have filed what is needed with the proper authorities, and they have all of the details that you are missing. thanks anyway.

You said "I have no long distance company, so none can be slammed."

Actually, that's false. Every single person
in the world, has a long distance carrier. By
default, the LD provider, is the LEC, such as
Bell South, etc.

For example, you move into a dwelling, you
ask for a phone number, and automatically you
can place calls locally and internationally.

What this means, is that the LD calls, can
be routed through a number of other companies,
than the local phone service provider company.

For example, if you sign up your long distance
with Primus, Sprint, Excel, Vartec, AT&T, Verizon
and similar, then you have to call them, and
authorize explicitly to have your LD calls routed
to them. Usually there's a $2 monthly charge
for the LD service, although it varies from
a monthly minimum to a monthly recurring charge,
so it may or may not be waived.

Slamming in the telcom world, means that a rep
forced you onto a LD carrier's LD plan, without
your explicit authorization. This is illegal,
unethical, but like everything, it does happen
from time to time, as sales reps makes mistakes,
and decide to risk losing their license to sell
products. There is that odd daredevil out there,
I guess, who does a slamming. But this jeopardizes
the telcom's license, if nothing is done, so
usually those sales reps get fired after a few
complaints to the FCC or to their telcom, they
reap commissions from, for example.

Next, when you said you agreed to become a customer of everdial's 10-10-xxx service,
this means you should not be charged any monthly
fee, obviously. So, what you were told is true,
from what is the industry norm.

However, in your original posting, you wrote
something about Primus billing you now, or how
you were now on Primus's LD plan. If you are
on Primus, and were not before, and never asked
to be changed to Primus, never authorized the
switch to Primus, then as said earlier, you are
likely a victim of slamming. Usually, Primus
and similar LD telcoms have LD plans requiring
a monthly charge of $1.95 + taxes, even if you
don't make any LD calls whatsoever.

The solution, as I wrote before, is to call your
local phone company, and ask to become their
LD customer again. This is free, and as I said,
it takes 10 days to be handled at the telcom
switch level.

Therefore, as I wrote, and as you seem to understand, there is no relation between a company's 10-10-xxx service and being slammed
to another carrier's LD plan!

You can fix this problem, simply by calling
your local phone company, and asking to be put
on their LD plan. The local carrier has a no
monthly fee plan, for LD service. So that should
be suitable.

Hope this helps.

I read the rebuttal to my complaint, and it is a lot of "words" without context to my complaint! I know what I was told and that was there were no fees of any kind. Period!

Slamming, etc., has nothing to do with the everdial10-10 that I contacted and was contacted by, and for which I have secure confirmation of what is promised in my mail saver.

I have no long distance company, so none can be slammed.

I'm not interested in becoming a lawyer to have to find the hidden messages in a simple commodity that may lead to something I did not agree to. Furthermore, the rebuttal I received did not come from the company my complaint was registered against, so therefore, the details are unknown from the writer.

Let me start by telling you that the knowledge
that I will impart on you, comes from working
at Vartec Telcom, which is a long distance
provider, similar to Primus.

First, the 10-10-811 Vartec long distance service or similar 10-10-xxx number if you're on Primus lonf distance, is almost always completely independent of any changes made with your LEC or CLEC! Therefore, to use the very low long distance rates offerred by a LD carrier, through 10-10-xxx there is no need to ask to subscribe to their LD service, no need to switch carrier, no monthly minimum or recurring charges and no complications involved.

By contrast, if you were signing up permanently,
with a LD carrier (Primus, Vartec, Sprint, etc.)
on a permanent basis, then there would be no
prefix telephone number to dial, every single time.

You would pick up the phone, dial Miami, or Colorado, and it would go through. With 10-10-xxx service, you first dial 10-10-xxx, and then you indicate the long distance number you want to call, and then it goes through. Billing is done separately by that company, usually.

Second, only a few select high density cities are
eligible for 10-10-xxx service, as it requires
expensive telcom switching equipment to be hooked
up to a LEC or CLEC in your city. A LEC is a local
exchange carrier. A CLEC is a competitive LEC. One
or the other is the case. Most often the LEC is
Bell ...the CLEC is Sprint, or Primus, etc.

Third, therefore, if you were slammed by a LD carrier, then the LD service was permanently switched over to them. You revert to your original company, all you need to do, is call the LEC, and ask them to signup as their LD customer. It takes 7 to 10 days to go back.

Finally, as I said, the fact that perhaps you
were slammed (changed over to another Long Distance telcom company) in no way has any relation to the fact that you can use 10-10-xxx service. In fact, even if you're on Primus LD, if you dial 10-10-xxx before a call, it will be associated with the company whose 10-10-xxx number you are dialing.

For example, if Primus rep slammed you, and you're now on Primus LD, if you dial 10-10-811, your long distance call will go through Vartec Telcom, and not Primus. If you don't dial 10-10-xxx anything, Primus handles the long distance calls. If you call customer service at Bell
tomorrow, to be their customer, in 10 days Primus will be gone, and your LD calls will again be with Bell, for example. If you dial Everdial's 10-10-xxx number, Everdial will route the call, and bill you.

There are no fees to switch from one to the other. And as said, 10-10-xxx can be used by anyone, as long as the 10-10-xxx equipment is installed in your city. You would have to check. In isolated areas or small cities, it is not profitable for telcom players to install that
switching equipment, therefore if people try to dial 10-10-xxx they will get a busy signal, or a wrong number dialed error.

P.S. there is no way for anyone here to determine if you were slammed, or not by Primus alespeople. The FCC has strict laws on sales ethics and practices, and carriers can lose their licenses or pay big fines, with slamming or misconduct.

Just so you would know.