Jaunted

We called the company that runs the pay phone service. Turns out it’s called Network Operator Services, Inc., and is a “Foreign Corporation” registered in North Dakota, though its call center is in Longview, Texas. We decided we were going to investigate the strange charge, 60 Minutes style. That’s right, Andy Rooney, we said it. When we called Network Operator Services, their customer service agent tried to explain the charge by saying that they have a 3-minute minimum call length, and that’s what we were being charged for. But that works out to nearly $17 per minute, and it still didn’t seem right.

We then asked our credit card company whether we could dispute the charge since the rates were not listed on the phone, nor disclosed at any point during the process of placing the call, but they told us that since we had effectively authorized the call by providing our credit card number, there was no way to dispute it through them.

So now we’re out $50…for the moment. We’re going to contact the Federal Communications Commission, as well as the Better Business Bureaus in both North Dakota and Texas to see if we can get some answers there. We’re disappointed that the credit card company wasn’t willing to go to bat for us, so thanks for nothing, Bank of America. But look out, NOS, we’ve got a lot of time on our hands, and we’re willing to use it to shed some light on your shady practices!

What can you learn from our bad luck? If you ever get stuck in a bind at a foreign airport like we did and need to use the phone, run into one of the convenience stores or newsstands and buy a small-denomination prepaid phone card, and use that to make your call. Even international calls will cost just a fraction of what we’ve been fleeced.

Related Stories:
· Les 'Hidden Charges' With International Car Rentals[Jaunted]

[Photo: TravelinLibrarian]