Imagine receiving the latest monthly bill from your wireless firm and seeing that you owe $19,500. This happened to an AT&T subscriber who, just before going overseas, removed the $12 per day International Day Pass (IDP) from his account. He planned on using local SIM cards and Wi-Fi when out of the U.S. in order to keep the bill down. Instead, after keeping his AT&T eSIM active for the first day after arriving at his overseas destination, he was charged over $900 every eight minutes or $6,750 an hour.
AT&T subscriber makes a blunder regarding his International Day Pass
Two lines were involved and one was charged $18,600 in one day (for nearly three hours of service based on my math). Another line racked up nearly $1,000 in charges before service was suspended. The AT&T subscriber made a huge mistake. He thought that because he had no plans to use any of AT&T's talk, text, and data when out of the country, cancelling the IDP meant that he cancelled international roaming of AT&T's talk, text, and data services. With that in mind, he agrees with those on Reddit who told him that he shouldn't have dropped the IDP.
Compare his bill to what he would have owed with the IDP. The latter works on a 10-day billing cap so you only pay $12 for a maximum of 10 days during your billing cycle, or $120. Any use during the same billing cycle that exceeds 10 days is free. By getting rid of the IDP, the one account he owes the most on has a balance of $18,600 instead of $120.
AT&T will not give in to a loyal customer
After receiving the bill, the customer spoke with AT&T customer service and some of its managers and requested that his IDP retroactively be added to his account for the two days when the charges really added up. It appears that AT&T will not agree to do this.
Imagine if this were your AT&T bill for one month. | Image credit-@Winter_Issue5940
What he would have liked to see from AT&T is an option allowing customers to opt out of international roaming services such as talk, text, data, when they opt out of the IDP. Another idea he had is that AT&T should automatically add IDP to an account if charges are running at a rate that is higher than the $12 per day cost of the International Day Pass. If that can't be done, he suggests sending a subscriber a text when charges exceed $12 per day asking whether he wants to purchase the IDP.
Filing a complaint with the FCC is often a wireless subscriber's best bet
AT&T charges $2,000 per gigabyte for international data without the IDP. The sad part is that AT&T's resolve shows that it has no feelings for someone who shows some degree of brand loyalty. The customer has been with AT&T for seven years and his account is made up of more than 10 lines. Frankly, AT&T CEO John Stankey shouldn't be surprised if this account leaves AT&T for another carrier. I know that if this happened to me and AT&T refused to budge, I'd be leaving so fast for another wireless provider.
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Is AT&T wrong for not reducing the bill?
Yes. It was a mistake by a loyal customer.
0%
No. It wasn't the carrier's fault.
0%
The AT&T customer should consider filing a complaint with the FCC. This is called the Informal Complaint Process. The FCC will "serve" your complaint to the appropriate carrier. Once the carrier is "served," it starts a 30-day countdown and you must receive a written response from the wireless firm within 30 days. A copy of that response must be sent to the FCC. Occasionally, once a complaint is raised to FCC level, the carrier's specialized executive response team will get in touch with you to settle the problem.
To file a complaint with the FCC, the fastest method is to go online to ConsumerComplaints.fcc.gov and submit your complaint. You can also call the FCC at 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322). Or you can send snail mail to: Federal Communications Commission, 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554.
When submitting a complaint with the FCC, make sure to include the following:
State exactly what you want.
Account number and the name on the account.
What steps you've taken to resolve the issue with you carrier (the FCC prefers to see you attempt this first before contacting the regulatory agency).
Upload PDF copies of bills, screenshots of chats with your carrier's customer service.
Alan, an ardent smartphone enthusiast and a veteran writer at PhoneArena since 2009, has witnessed and chronicled the transformative years of mobile technology. Owning iconic phones from the original iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, he has seen smartphones evolve into a global phenomenon. Beyond smartphones, Alan has covered the emergence of tablets, smartwatches, and smart speakers.
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