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Cell-phone users’ bill of rights
A year ago in this column, we detailed the growing problems that consumers face in the wireless phone industry. Billing mistakes,
dropped calls, poor reception, indifferent customer service, exorbitant contract-termination fees--a long list of complaints
eclipsed only by consumers’ frustration that they weren’t being heard.
But you didn’t give up, and neither did we. More than 20,000 of you took action at EscapeCellHell.org, Consumers Union’s Web site dedicated to improving cell-phone service, sending letters to federal regulators and your elected
representatives asking them to fix the problems. You wrote to your cell-phone companies to demand better service. You asked
the industry and legislators a simple question: Can you hear us now?
Apparently they are beginning to listen. Thanks to consumer pressure, cell- phone users can now take their phone number with
them when switching companies, helping them to shop around for the best deal and service. And in response to a request from
Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, the Federal Communications Commission recently released the number and type of customer complaints filed against the top
cellular-service providers during 2003. Public complaint statistics help consumers make an informed choice when buying a cell-phone
service and put pressure on the companies to shape up.
Most recently, California became the first state to pass a Telecommunications Bill of Rights, designed to make it easier
for consumers to shop for a service, understand their bill, and get complaints handled. While the rule falls short in some
areas, it is an important starting point in giving all cell-phone users basic protections against marketing and billing abuses.
Among the provisions:
• A risk-free 30-day trial period, during which a customer can cancel any new service contract without penalty. It gives
the user time to see whether a phone works where the company says it will.
• Clearly organized bills that contain only the charges for products and services authorized by the consumer. Bills must
indicate the nature and origin of all fees; companies must not describe nongovernment fees in a way that makes them appear
to be required by law.
• Written confirmation of a cell-phone order, including rates and terms for each service ordered, in easy-to-read form.
Public sentiment is overwhelming for extending those rights to all. A national survey conducted by CU in May found that more
than 70 percent of consumers think that the federal government should enact a cell-phone users’ bill of rights.
Extending these rights is even more important now that the Bush administration has refused to appeal a court ruling that
is expected to dry up competition and drive up local phone prices. As consumers’ budgets are squeezed, more people might drop
their home phone and go totally wireless, but they won’t enjoy anywhere near the same level of service quality and consumer
rights that we take for granted with our home phones.
Wireless-industry lobbyists spent more than a half-million dollars fighting the California measure and have stymied similar
proposals in three other states. The industry’s trade group has vowed to overturn the California bill of rights and is expected
to ask Congress to prohibit states from passing similar laws.
Consumers don’t have millions of dollars for lobbyists, but we do have millions of voices. Your voices can continue to make
a difference.
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Ironing out the kinks
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