September 10
I have used X in place of actual names and verification numbers. I have retained them to support any claims that I may need to file regarding this issue.
SNET for phone bill for (203) XXX-XXXX reflecting charges from ILD Teleservices,
Inc. On behalf of World Voice Link, Inc.
I was solicited by phone for voice mail services in February or March this year. I accepted the offer for services and was told that I would receive a welcome package in the mail, explaining how the service works, numbers to call for service, etc. I completely forgot about the offer until I received the first charges (with charges from World Voice Link dated 3/28) on my phone bill for April 27th.
On May 20th, I was able to reach World voice Link after several attempts at their customer service number, 800-228-0452. At that time, I called to acknowledge that I did recall accepting the offer and to inform them that I had never received the welcome package. The representative, X, promised to send out the package and to reduce my monthly fee to $17.95 (verification #XXXXXXX). By the time the May 27th phone bill arrived (with charges from World Voice Link dated 4/25), I still had not received the welcome package or the reduced fee.
I called the World Voice Link customer service number several times before I reached a representative, X. The number is often busy and the wait times often exceed 30 minutes per call. I finally reached them on June 20th and requested cancellation of all services immediately and a refund of all charges after the first charges since I was paying for services that I could not even use. X told me that she would issue a credit for $19.95 (verification #XXXXXXX). She also told me to call back on June 24th to cancel the service, explaining that the credit needed to get processed before I could cancel the account. I did as instructed.
I have received my June 27th phone bill and the charge for $17.95 appears, indicating to me that the credit was not issued and I am still being billed for the service. I called the World Voice Link customer service number again, but got no answer.
I requested assistance from their billing agent, ILD Services, but they could only give me the customer service number. I called my local phone company SNET (spoke with X), but was told that I had to call the State of Connecticut of Public Utilities. She gave me a number to call: 1-800-382-4586.
On July 12th, I called the State of Connecticut of Public Utilities. Their representative, X, said that SNET was wrong instructing me to call her agency. She put me on hold while she called someone at SNET. When she came back on the phone she told me to tell SNET that I wanted the billing to stop immediately, going forward.
I reached the customer service at World Voice Link on July 12th at 1:22 pm. Without disconnecting, I terminated the call at 2:44 pm. During the call, I spoke with X who put me on hold twice (long ones) while she accessed my account information the first time and got her supervisor (X X) the second time. X confirmed that the service would be cancelled, and that a refund for $79.60 would be processed through the normal billing process (from World Voice Link, to ILD Teleservices, to SNET).
While I feel that X was professional and courteous, I had no guarantee that the issue would be resolved to my satisfaction (Cancellation code X). I also feel compelled to fully document occurrences to date. I want to be able to recall as much detail as possible should this issue happen to arise again.
To date, I have been charged as follows:
Date SNET bill World Link
date Fees
28-Mar 27-Apr $ 49.90
25-Apr 27-May $ 19.95
30-May 27-Jun $ 17.95
30-June 27-Jul $ 17.95
As far as I am concerned, there remains a discrepancy of $26.15 after the refund as promised above. While I will not refuse the refund being promised, I would like the entire amount refunded to me for inconveniences caused.
Update (9/10/02): I have received no refunds to date and repeated calls to the WorldLink Customer service number get me only a busy signal.
Is anyone able to actually get a refund from these guys?
Cornelia
New Fairfield, Connecticut
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