Katie to Joshua, about a play gift card:
This card only has five dollars, and after that you can’t buy anything anymore. # But Daddy’s card is plugged into the bank, so he *always* has money! #
If only, Katie… if only. 
Well, I fell victim to what the telephone industry calls a “crammer”: basically, due to deregulation phone companies are required (by the FCC, or the FTC… something like that) to add other companies’ bills to your phone bill if those companies tell them to. It’s supposed to make it easier to get your long-distance bill from Company B tacked onto the end of your local bill from Company A. The problem is it’s rife with abuse. #
Case in point: someone set up an account with “Email Discount Network, LLC” using my phone number, so their $15/month membership fee was charged to me on my phone bill. # I didn’t pay attention last month and paid it; this month I noticed how high the bill was and discovered this little gem.
So I followed the instructions on my phone bill, and I called “Enhanced Services Billing, Inc,” who then redirected me to EDN. The EDN representative apologized, and agreed to issue a credit to my AT&T account. # Apparently someone named “Donna Osmond” (yeah, right) set up an account through their web site and entered my phone number by mistake (uh huh). Supposedly this happens from time to time… and given the fact that no effort was made to call that number and verify account creation before billing it, I’m not surprised in the least.
I made sure to get a reference number (which came in handy later).
Once that was all done, I called AT&T for a few reasons: first, to make sure it was in their records that I was “officially” disputing the EDN charges; second, to let them know why I wasn’t going to pay that portion of my bill this month; third, to make sure they wouldn’t penalize me with a late fee if I didn’t pay the disputed charge on my bill. # The AT&T representative (Hector) asked if I had a reference number from EDN (so it’s a good thing I got one—the EDN rep didn’t volunteer it, so it would have been my word against theirs if I’d failed to get it). I gave it to him, he filed a report and said there would be no late fees for the unpaid portion of my bill. #
Then after a brief sales pitch (which I turned down, because a family without a TV doesn’t need Digital TV service), he offered me a free 4-month DSL upgrade and told me he’d send along a $5 Starbucks card, too. # WIN!
And that, dear friends, is what a little kindness & patience (and a calm voice) can get you in frustrating situations like this! #
“A good name is more desirable than great riches” (Prov. 22:1). So when people feel wronged by you, do what AT&T did here: more than make it up to them. #
Good advice on this. Email Discount Networks and Laurentel have both billed my AT&T bill for charges for services for which I never signed up and which I never authorized. I called OAN and ESBI billing services to get them to agree to remove the charges and then called AT&T.
AT&T tells me that they do have a form now that they can fill out at a consumer’s request, to block billing from those companies and others. I hope that at least puts a crimp in this kind of thing. I’m also filing a report with my state attorney general’s office, just to have it on record.