Federal Trade Commission Working to Stop Cell Phone Bill “Cramming”

We all had to deal with the do not call lists, and the incessant solicitations on our cell phones for things like after-market auto warranty insurance. And when we were over our minutes on our cell phone bills, these charged racked up. Now, there are companies who use off-shore telemarketers to call you and get you to say “Yes” to a few questions, then use those “Yes” answers to charge you for additional services on your cell phone bill.

So, if you have a smart phone or cell phone you may find that many of the calls or “extra charges” are not legitimate. Luckily the FTC or Federal Trade Commission is putting a stop to all that non-sense, as it was a real problem especially on business lines, both location based and cell phones. Looks like the cramming crooks finally got cooked.

Meanwhile, for those who have 1-800 or 1-888 numbers for their small businesses which ring on their cellular phones, you may have noticed being charged for tele-marketer calls, even if you didn’t pick up the line, and you might have as many as 25-30 of these per month. Well, there is a charge for incoming calls on toll-free numbers so, that adds a good $25-30 per month even if you do not connect the call by answering on AT&T cellular calling plans. Other carriers are different, but that is just one more abuse that the FTC and FCC are concerned about, as they look out of us consumers, and small business people.

One company, an Internet Services Company “Inc21″ has been threatened by the FTC, which will file charges against them in a lawsuit if they do not cease and desist in such activity. The FTC alleges they are engaged in malicious “cramming” and the FTC says this “cram” activity is fraudulent and the company engaged in this activity is well aware of the fraud. This company and several other phone bill cramming operators have been asked to stop or confirm their contact information, or they too will be dealt with, which is good news for all of us.

Study your cell phone plan and cell phone bill, and check it twice to make sure you are paying only what you owe. If you find problems consider switching cell phone plans, if the cell phone carrier will not remedy the situation.