Long Distance Charges

[telesleuth]

On my land line I just signed up for the International Choice Plan in order to talk with relatives in Africa.  The Choice Plan costs $4.99 a month.  Fine and good.  I'm irked that the quoted rate to Kenya under this plan, $0.66 per minute, is increased to $0.77 because I'm talking to a "premium" service, ie. a cell phone.  This increase is referenced in VERY fine print in the verification agreement which I received after contracting for the service.  This is example #1 of billing charges that are not transparent when the contract is entered.

Secondly, after receiving my first bill including Long Distance service under this plan, I see a "Prorated monthly Recurring Charge" of $4.82 tacked on to my long distance charges.  Whoa!  What is this?  Is this a reincarnation of the "Shortfall Charge" of $5.00 per month I used to pay when I made no long distance calls on my land line?  This is example # 2 of billing charges that are not transparent.  I tried calling Verizon customer service but the automated lady had no answers about long distance.  I was informed I'd have to call during business hours (and spend how long on the phone?) to get my question about "prorated..." answered.

So, here I am on this Forum.  Can anyone help me understand what this charge is?  I'd also like any help on navigating and economizing within the Verizon system. 

One final question: Is there an economical way to drop international service on the land line and use my cell for international calls?

Thanks for your help.

Telesleuth in Pennsylvania

[vztelecom]

Sorry to hear about this. The only thing you can really do is call 1-800-837-4966 between 8-5:30pm M-F and go into the billing department and they will explain all of this to you and if credit happens to be due, they will apply it. ( I don't believe the $4.82 has anything to do with the $5 shortfall charge though)

[MagicMan]

---

@telesleuth wrote:

Secondly, after receiving my first bill including Long Distance service under this plan, I see a "Prorated monthly Recurring Charge" of $4.82 tacked on to my long distance charges. 

One final question: Is there an economical way to drop international service on the land line and use my cell for international calls?

Thanks for your help.

Telesleuth in Pennsylvania

---

Can't help with your fine print problem....that's why it's called the fine print.

Pro-rated service workes like this.

- All verizon telephone services are billed for 1 month in advance.  You pay for may's usage in april.

-When you start a new service, mid-billing service, they charge you a pro-rated amount for time from when the service starts until the next bill date.

So, if you start in the middle of a billing cycle, you pay 1/2 of a months service charge plus a full month for the following month.

Re-low cost ways of making phone calls, if you both have internet service, you could try skype.  That works well for my nephew in south africa and his mom in the states.

Hope this explains it for you.