Phone Bills--UGH

[miss_thenorth]

Recently(since hubby and Istarted budgeting), we cut our phone to the basic. It's $23.75ish (Bell lite) Long distance plan is about $20(primus) Internet is $17.95 (Bell WiMax.)

But, this is Canadian, so I know it won't apply to you. Before we were paying close to $50 for just local service--this included call waiting, call display etc. I don't miss it. I owuld like to get rid of the long distance plan, but all of our family is long distance, and so is my dh's work., so I guess it stays for now.

Yup good old Bell...my story is exactly the same...and a few weeks ago I cut it all off as well. Gotta love that $5 networking charge they ding you with even on basic service

Have you actually gotten a bill yet? Because it is still $54.89 on my bill even with Home Phone lite...they told me 24.95 but charged me 42.95...plus all the crazy other charges they add on there...service area charge, network charge, 911 access charge, and touch tone service charge...Grrrrr!

Oh I see what you did, you have Primus as a long distance provider...

yeah, I got one bill: Home phone lite: $22.95, area charge $3.00,911 emergency service access $0.19 , touchtone service $2.80, $28.94 total.

Have you looked into Bell Wimax? If you are within 5 km of a cell phone tower-you should be able to get it. 9 times faster than dialup for $17.95. Its as fast as the airnet we had that we paid ~ $50 for.

I hate Bell with a passion, (just an expression--don't really hate) although the internet is pretty good. AS soon as someone else comes out with this technology, we will have no problem switching. I will definitely be looking into skype.

 

[poppycat]

If anyone can find a real workable solution to the ever-rising phone bill I would love to hear about it. We have the cable-phone-internet bundle and it's over $100 a month including long distance, but I can't find a better deal. I would get rid of the phone all together but I'm afraid my kids will have to call 911 sometime and not be able to.

 

[enjoy the ride]

911 can be dialed from any cell phone even if it is not serviced by any plan at all.
ATT just bought out my cell phone provider and I was not surprised to get a notice from them this week that my low cost, hardly ever used cell phone plan is being discontinued soon. I hardly ever use the cell and was thinking of buying a prepaid phone from some one now- I will lbe researching it.
Bell has always had a shark mentality to its service and sales. With them, it's always buyer beware. I remember many years ago they sold me a phone with the pitch I would no longer pay rental to them, Then the bill came and I found I had paid a huge amount for the plastic case- they were renting me the insides at the same old price. There are still poor little old ladies out there renting a phone from bell at $10 per month year after year because these ladies do not know that they can buy a great phone for $50. If they call bell, they will be told that Bell will service their phone for only a small charge and they are on their own with a non-bell tel phone-like they couldn't buy 3 new phones a year for what they pay to bell for one year.
I really in my heart of heart believe that some of the fees adden to my bill are not connected to the government requirements but simply tacked on by Bell for their own profit whenever they think they can get away with it.
But try to get an explanation from them- it takes days of waiting on hold, being cut off and buck passed til you give up.
Any good way to avoid Bell Tel, I do it just on principle.

 

[FarmerChick]

Poppcat that is me. I have directtv at about $50 a month, then DSL at about $24, and phone about $50.

I don't want to get rid of my land line so I guess I am screwed cause I just can't find a way to lower this other than get rid of directtv and Tony ain't going for that..LOL

I just see this as alot of money per month and can't seem to reduce it but I guess if I want it like this I have to pay for it..HA HA

always lookin' for options! LOL

 

[MorelCabin]

We have FTA satelite for TV...5000 channels...5 different dishes all on one, and after you buy the equipment it's FREE! Yup we set that up this summer and said goodbye to Bell on that one. Right now we are in the process of changing over to satellite internet. Our neighbor GAVE us everything we need to set it up, we just have to encourage the satelite guys to get over here to instal it.

 

[hsm6kids]

I recently decided to go over all my phone charges with the phone company myself. I just really wanted to know exactly what I was being charged for. What I found out was that for the last year I have been paying for my DSL and someone else's dial up. That's an extra 18.95 a month. They are still deciding what they plan to do about it. They said it would take at least 12 days to go over my account and decided how they would go about making it right. Good thing I called and asked what all the extra charges where.

 

[reinbeau]

I've got the Comcast cable-internet-phone bundle. It's no big savings to have the bundle, but the phone part is the least of it. I hate the cable company, but I won't go to Verizon because of what they did to me when I got divorced - I paid all the bills, always, the checking account was my original one that I added him to, the phone listing had MY NAME first!!! It was my credit that got the phone. But they would not take his name off the phone listing without written permission from him. Idiots. I told them to shove it and I was going to Comcast, and I've been there since. My cable bill is about $140 a month for all three. I have to say I wouldn't give up the internet, and Greg watches the TV, so we're going to put up with it for now. Once Verizon actually can offer TV to their customers we'll have true competition around here, I can always threaten Comcast with Verizon to bargain a bit

 

[ams3651]

if you have a low income you may be able to get a discount on your service, I have Verizon and they will even allow you to have a couple services with it like call waiting. I have just basic service. I make all long distance calls with my cell phone which is Net10 at 10 cents a minute, I pay $30 every 2 months but Im not a big cell phone user so that usually lasts me ok and I dont have many people that are long distance. My Verizon DSL I got a deal on last year for $15. My mom has Vonage for their long distance but they have problems with it and Ive heard that before.

 

[FarmerChick]

hsm6kids

yikes on paying someone else's bill on yours. pays literally to check your own bills and be sure it is fair. That would surprise me if I heard that one...paying for someone else. YOW!

 

[user251]

out here in the sticks of bama, we have only one choice in carrier, and it is junk. EVERY WHERE we call (that has anything) is long distance, and area calling package is 40 bucks which is near what the basic bill is and DSL is also 40 bucks. Not to mention 2 bucks for 911 and our wonderful government charging the fcc taxes. un