A prepaid phone card allows you to call almost anywhere from almost any phone simply by dialing a toll-free access number, entering your personal identification number (PIN), and dialing the number you want to reach. (Some cards even allow you to speed dial.) That is, you can call from a pay phone without having to insert coins, or from someone else's non-pay phone without having the charge appear on their phone bill. "Almost" may restrict your call to domestic numbers, though, unless you bought a card that allows international calls. (Even if it does, you may not be able to use the card for calls to the United States should you travel outside the U.S.)
Otherwise, you can talk till you drop, or rather, until your minute or money bank runs dry. How do you know when that will be? When you buy the card, your PIN number and amount of time are loaded into a computer. The computer keeps track of the time you use and, with most cards, tells you each time you call how many minutes or how much money you have left. When you're within one minute of running out of time completely, you'll be told that; you won't just be disconnected.
Since you can buy two types of prepaid phone cards, you can buy more talk time in two ways. If your card is rechargeable, you can call a toll-free number to get the card recharged, paying for the new time by credit card. If your card is one you discard when you've used all the time on it, you just buy a new one.
Prepaid phone cards have some advantages over credit calling cards. For example, credit calling cards may charge more for your long-distance call at certain times than others, whereas you usually pay a uniform price per minute if you use your prepaid phone card--at least for calls within the U.S. On the other hand, prepaid phone cards (whose per-minute rates, according to one study, varied from 9 to 57 cents) are generally more expensive than making calls from home. But if you lose your prepaid card, you've lost only the value of the time remaining on it. With a credit calling card, you risk losing an undetermined amount for the time your card may be used by someone else until you cancel it. (Of course, if you lose your prepaid phone card, you've also lost the time you've already paid for. However, some issuers provide a replacement number on a separate document when you buy the card that you can use if your card is lost or stolen to recover your unused time.)
How phone cards work has something to do with the problems that have been associated with them. Basically, the operation begins with a carrier, such as MCI or AT&T, for example. (There are about 200 carriers, of which five are the major ones.) The carrier is responsible for the telephone lines that carry your calls. They sell time in blocks of minutes, which can run into the millions of minutes. The buyer, or reseller, breaks those minutes into smaller blocks (for example, five blocks of 10 million minutes) and sells them to distributors, who break them up into even smaller blocks. Eventually, someone produces the phone card. The card issuer sets the rates and provides the toll-free customer service and access numbers. Information, including PIN numbers and amount of time, is loaded into their computer. This is the card you buy. Carriers and resellers can issue their own prepaid phone cards, but if they don't issue the cards, they're not likely to accept responsibility for any problems with them.
What are the problems for consumers? One example is the case of a phone card reseller who sells the cards at the cheapest rate possible. Then, when cardowners call the reseller's toll-free number again and again to access the computer, to inquire about the time remaining on their card, or for some other reason, the reseller incurs heavy charges he can't pay, and the carrier (who issued the 800 number in the first place) disconnects the number. While some companies will refund your money, others may leave you holding a useless card. The scenario could be the same where the operation is a scam from the start, intended only to bring in money to the perpetrator.
There are other problems, too, that occur with some cards but not others. For example, you may have to make a toll, rather than a toll-free call, should you encounter a problem with your card. Another might be in the way you incur charges. For example, some companies begin your charges as soon as you enter your PIN, rather than when your call is answered. And some companies charge in two- or even three-minute increments rather than one-minute. That would mean that if you made a 15-second call, you would pay for a two- or three-minute call.
Still other problems consumers have complained about include customer service numbers that are busy, toll-free access numbers that are constantly busy, rates higher than were advertised, hidden charges, and poor quality connections. Furthermore, some users have reported not being able to use the full value of a card or that their card somehow lost some of its value. (California law, however, now requires disclosure of all surcharges and fees to the customer at the point of purchase. Also required is the issuer's name, the network's access number and code needed to get calls connected, the card's expiration date, and a toll-free number for complaints.)
The fledgling U.S. phone card industry is served by a trade association, the International Telecard Association, that has developed industry standards. The association plans to make available a seal of approval its members will be able to use on phone cards. To the public, the seal on the phone card will mean that the company meets certain ITA standards, such as financial stability, 24-hour availability, etc. They plan to back the seal with an insurance policy so that if the company should fold, the customer would get his or her money back or a replacement card.
To get information you need in order to choose a phone card, read the company's literature and call their customer service number. Here are some things you should consider:
The cost per minute. While this may be clear with domestic long-distance calls, you should make sure you know what international calls will be, if you intend to make any. (But keep in mind that the cheapest rate is not necessarily the best, since the companies issuing the cheapest cards may have less stability.)
Whether you will have to pay for time before you reach your party, or for taxes or other charges. Also find out in what minute increments you will be charged.
Whether you will have to pay an access fee. (You may have to read the fine print to find out.)
Whether the company offers a toll-free customer service number, available 24 hours a day, should you have a problem or need assistance. If they do, call the number to make sure it's the correct number and is still in service.
How you recharge your card, if it is rechargeable--whether through a credit card or at the store where you bought it. Also, what you will be charged to recharge and whether there will be any added fees.
If you will have to pay an activation fee. Although not common, you could have to pay a one-time fee of $10 or more for a rechargeable card.
Whether the card expires, and if so, when. Most cards expire one year after first use, but if these is no expiration date, you should be able to use it until all your phone time is used.
Whether the retailer will stand behind the card if the telephone service is unsatisfactory, and whether the card issuer will replace the card if it is lost.
What the company's track record is with regard to customer satisfaction. If you don't know someone whose experience with a particular card has been satisfactory, you may wish to buy a small denomination until you become familiar with the card and the service. Or, if you know little or nothing about the card and the vendor can't answer your questions or give you written information or a toll-free number you can call for answers, you may wish to consider another card.
Whether the card comes in a sealed envelope or has a sticker covering the PIN. If not, anyone who copies the PIN can use the phone time you've already paid for. (This could explain why some cards have lost value.)
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