June 21, 2002

Consumer Alert

“THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY. YOUR BILL IS 700 DOLLARS.”

(Oklahoma City) Oklahoma Corporation Commission Chairman Denise Bode is concerned many Americans who are serving, or are about to serve, their country overseas are not aware of the potential perils and pitfalls of overseas calls.

“I am very concerned about the standard long distance rates being charged for calls from our men and women serving in the military overseas. Many families have chosen specific providers as their carriers and are unaware that the phones on the military base may be programmed for a specific carrier and are then shocked when they receive a $600 or $700 phone bill.”

This came to the Commission’s attention when an elderly woman in Talihina contacted us regarding a $771.32 phone bill she received for 184 minutes of collect calls from her son stationed at a base close to the border of Iraq. In her case, AT&T charged $6.50 for the first minute, a $4.50 surcharge and then $2.76 for each additional minute. This was the standard rate unless the customer had chosen AT&T as their long distance carrier and had an AT&T calling card. She was surprised when AT&T billed her because she was not an AT&T customer and had given her son a calling card to use from another long distance carrier.

Chairman Bode stated, “Our citizens should not be put under additional hardships while their family members are serving our country overseas. I want to encourage our long distance carriers to be sure that our military families are charged the lowest possible rate to talk with their families while they are serving our country overseas and to make sure families know to contact their long distance carrier in advance to request special arrangements to ensure they are paying the lowest possible rates. My staff is working with the companies to address these concerns.”

At any time, if you have concerns with your telephone, electric or natural gas service, please contact the Consumer Services Division of the Commission at 1-800-522-8154.