A: Your first bill may have the connection fees and it will be for more than one month of service since your local service charges are billed in advance.

A: Some long distance phone companies are placing charges on their bills that are associated with their support of Universal Service (a Federal Government Program that provides funding for telecommunications services and products associated with connecting schools, libraries and rural health care facilities to the Internet and for telecommunications services in parts of the country that are expensive to serve.)  Some states may also have a Universal Service surcharge that may appear on you bill.

A: A fee assessed by the state and sent to the county to pay for 911 emergency services for the state of Minnesota. 

A: This is a state mandated surcharge that enables a program to lower the cost of local phone service for persons who have a disability and meet income guidelines or who are at least 65 years of age and meet income guidelines.

Top of Page

A: This is a state mandated surcharge to help fund the cost of "translation" service for calls between people who have hearing or speech disabilities and voice telephone customers.

A: This is a fee that the Federal Communications Commission allows local phone companies to charge for recovery of a portion of the costs of completing long distance calls on their local networks.  This is sent to a Federal pool and then distributed.

A: Slamming is a practice in which your long distance service provider is switched without your consent or knowledge.  You may have signed the back of a check sent to you by a carrier and submitted it with your local telephone bill.  The small print on the back gives permission to change carriers.

Customers that have been slammed should:

• Call the company that slammed their service and inform them that you will not pay any charges incurred.
• Contact your local phone company, explain that you did not authorize any changes and request to be switched back to your preferred carrier.  Ask for a PIC freeze to be added to your account. *Note: There may be a charge to change carriers.
• Contact your preferred long distance company and ask to be reconnected and refunded for the switch fee that your local company may charge you.
• In the event that a customer is unable to resolve a slamming problem, a complaint should be filed with the FCC. A letter should be sent to: Federal Communications Commission, Consumer Complaints, Mail Stop Code 1600A2, Washington, D.C. 20554.

Top of Page

A: Cramming is any charge added to your telephone bill by third parties for products and services that you may have not consented to or received.  If you have been crammed, you will see an unfamiliar name or charges on your local telephone bill.  Sometimes the crammer will not provide an explanation for the charge.

Customer that have been crammed should:

• Call the company that placed the unauthorized charges on the bill, and let them know that you will not pay for the charges incurred.  Their number will be listed near the charges.
• Contact your local phone company, explain that you did not authorize these services, and request that the charges be sent back to the originating company.
• In the event that a customer is unable to resolve a cramming problem, a complaint should be filed with the FCC. A letter should be sent to: Federal Communications Commission, Consumer Complaints, Mail Stop Code 1600A2, Washington, D.C. 20554.

Top of Page