Fair Point problems

[Seeker]

Anyone in the area lost phone service today? We've been out most all day and when we finally reached Fair Point the lady said only "widespread outage". Unfortunately we have no cell service in my area.

[tummyman]

Something strange is going on with Fairpoint. Every month, I have it set up that Fairpoint goes into my checking account and deducts the actual bill amount on their predetermined date. I get two different phone bills for two separate phones. Well, recently, the amount they say they are going to deduct is different than the actual amount printed on the bill. I checked the last two months....both deducted amounts were different than the bills but if I add the two months together, it ties to the total billed for the two months combined. Seems crazy. Anyone else notice that things don't balance ?? I have to call them Monday..

[gokart-mozart]

Originally Posted by tummyman

Something strange is going on with Fairpoint. Every month, I have it set up that Fairpoint goes into my checking account and deducts the actual bill amount on their predetermined date. I get two different phone bills for two separate phones. Well, recently, the amount they say they are going to deduct is different than the actual amount printed on the bill. I checked the last two months....both deducted amounts were different than the bills but if I add the two months together, it ties to the total billed for the two months combined. Seems crazy. Anyone else notice that things don't balance ?? I have to call them Monday..

Fairpoint sends out new bills several days to a week BEFORE the last bill was due. SO, if your November bill was due November 28, and you paid it on November 27, you will get a December bill showing a past due balance because that new bill was mailed out on November 21.

I wonder how many suckers pay twice for the same service? I can't believe this form of billing is legal.

If you have a job, or really, anything important to do during the day, you really can't call them to correct it because of the wait time involved.

[MJM]

Originally Posted by tummyman

Something strange is going on with Fairpoint. Every month, I have it set up that Fairpoint goes into my checking account and deducts the actual bill amount on their predetermined date. I get two different phone bills for two separate phones. Well, recently, the amount they say they are going to deduct is different than the actual amount printed on the bill. I checked the last two months....both deducted amounts were different than the bills but if I add the two months together, it ties to the total billed for the two months combined. Seems crazy. Anyone else notice that things don't balance ?? I have to call them Monday..

A word of caution - giving any company your bank information and authorizing autopay via your account is VERY dangerous.
~ You run the risk of your information being compromised if their security is breached.
~ There are numerous instances where companies continue to take withdrawals after the transactions should have ended (e.g. loan paid off, account closed). Getting this stopped, then getting YOUR money back can be very difficult.
Instead of allowing companies access to your bank accounts, set up your autopay to charge a credit card. You are then covered by all the consumer protection laws and policies through that card.

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by MJM

Instead of allowing companies access to your bank accounts, set up your autopay to charge a credit card. You are then covered by all the consumer protection laws and policies through that card.

I do an autopay from my local bank that issued my Visa debit/check card for that exact reason.

[MDoug]

Crazy billing for our phone, also. We have autopay, yet Fairpoint says we have a past due balance. This has been ongoing for about a year now. I have called to complain each month--to no avail.

[Seeker]

We got phone service back after 2 days. Biggest problem was you couldn't get an answer from anyone at FailPoint as to what the problem was. Found out someone knocked down a fibre optic cable 6 miles from me.
Decided to switch to Time Warner if my equipment will work on their digital service.

[Island-Ho]

Fairpoint has engaged a new billing service for the area and as a consequence many billing dates will change. Check your bills carefully to be sure you don't pay for the same period twice. The transition hickups seem to be par for this company!

[Slickcraft]

I complained to the NH PUC about the Fair Point deceptive billing practice that results in many "past due" bills when in fact the bill had been paid by the due date. I received this reply:

Quote "Your complaint was received, documented here at the Public Utilities Commission and forwarded to the FairPoint Customer Advocacy office. I want to thank-you for your input and feeling on this matter.

The NH Administrative Rules allow the due date of the bill to be 25 days from the bill date. That is what Verizon used. FairPoint has chosen to extend the due date for customers to 33 days. With a 30 day billing cycle, if the bill is paid on or after that date but before the 33 day due date, the payment is not late but will not be reflected on the new bill. FairPoint is working on changing the past due verbiage on the bill". UnQuote

I also complained several times to Fair Point and in the end voted with my wallet. We signed-up for Metrocast digital phone service and pulled the plug on Fair Point. We save $$ and get a bunch of new features.

[TomC]

..on my two accounts. But I have to ask: Who cares? there's no late fee and I certainly dont forget that I paid them..

[MJM]

Same issue here....bills show Past Due amount that really isn't.
The first time I noticed it, I let it slide, and made sure they didn't try to collect any penalties or interest (they didn't). After a few months, I called, and was told "yeah, we continue to have bad bill processing problems. Just ignore what the bill says - we'll charge you the correct amount, and over time it all balances out." WOW, what an answer!

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by TomC

..on my two accounts. But I have to ask: Who cares? there's no late fee and I certainly dont forget that I paid them..

Do they report to a credit bureau?

You may have no late fee but it might "cost" you in other ways you hadn't considered....

[jmen24]

I have never noticed a utility company on any of our credit reports. I would think no, otherwise it would be listed. If you have an account that allows you a certain amount of credit then I would say yes, but simply having an account with a company does not mean it is a part of your credit report.

General cost of living expenses are not used by most companies that issue credit when determing your buying power. That is another reason people have backed themselves into corners regarding credit and over spending their means. If you default on a utility, they simply shut you off and flag your account.