I was at the Jetport on February 24th attempting to depart Portland Maine for my home in Alaska. I do not carry a cell phone, and unfortunately had left my calling card at home in Alaska by mistake. My flight plans were changed with some weather issues and I was forced to reroute my travel through Boston for the following day. I needed to call my sister and ask her to pick me up. Without any other resources, I used my credit card to make a phone call. I left a message on her phone and arranged to call her back. The rates posted on the phone as. 25 cents per minute.
You can imagine my surprise when I noted charges on my credit card statement for over $21. The charges, apparently processed by a third party firm called ILD Telecommunications, were itemized as $1.05 per minute for both calls, with a $4.99 transaction fee and a $1.75 access fee per call. I also mentioned to her that I tried to get a rate quote using the system, but the call was terminated both times.
While I understand that payphones are an artifact of the past, I also feel it is truly unconscionable for this kind of fraud for a relatively simple service. I understand that there is a price for convenience, but the arrangements perpetuated by the Verizon Select Services vendor and ILD Telecommunications are outrageous.incidentally, I did contact ILD Telecommunications directly and the operator was authorized to issue a 25% credit on the calls in question.
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