<![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees - Consumerist Comments]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees - Consumerist Comments]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> So what does him raising funds to help pay for medical bills have to do with doing something about defective products or getting result for being overcharged. I imagine if you were in the same shoes with similar companies you would try to draw attention to it as well. So what if he uses sucks.com to battle huge companies, evidently everything else he tried failed. LOL, you probably work for one of those companies.

Big Flicker

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Who is this Allen guy?

Allen also opened his own million dollar homepage ([www.fivemilliondots.com]) where he has photos ([www.fivemilliondots.com]) of him and his bill collection notices.

He likes to spam Reddit ([reddit.com]) with links to his flickabooger blog.

Oh and... he's done this *sucks.com thing before. ([www.citmedialaw.org]) Apparently Lowe's offered him a settlement to go away.

nevesis

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> The article has been updated (the outlink) evidently Sprint has a publicly access wholesale pricing tool, Sprint just got owned by their own tool. PDF and XLS versions of the pricing is there for download. Gouged about 1545.00 a month according to Sprints actual pricing for DS3 service from Atlanta to Statesboro (note the pricing output shows the annual costs, you'll need to do some math .

Originating costs: $1,992.00/yr
Termination costs: $8,397.00/yr

total annual cost $10,389.00 (plus taxes)

$865.75 (plus applicable taxes) a month rather then $2,400.00+ a month, net difference of a bit over $1,545.00 a month (gouged this much).

Someone at Sprint has some splainin to do....


Big Flicker

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> @cioonthego:

Would you check your consumerist.com site messaging, I sent you a message. thanks!

Big Flicker

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> I threw Sprint out of our company back in 1998 over the same issues. Interesting to see they are still up to their old games. Only after they lost our business did they 'review' the account and adjust about $25,000 in overcharges, in an effort to retain the business. Too little, too late. This is not an error, this is their SOP until they get caught. Qwest and One Communications do the same thing, so watch out.

cioonthego

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> @Big Flicker: No, it's over 2 years.

Harkleroad claims the amount he was overcharged comes up to $38,000 over two years, but we can't come up with that amount using our advanced math skills: 2 lines per month with overcharges of $700 for each one is $1400 per month, times 24 months is $33,600.

The charge per month was $950 per line, for two lines or $1900/mo. He ought to have been charged $250 per line for two lines for $500/mo. The overcharge per month is $1400 * 24 months = $33,600

Now... if you take the sales tax numbers I provided. Sales tax on $1400 at 5% = $70 and on 8% = $112.

70 * 24 = $1680
112 * 24 = $2688

Which are the numbers I gave above.

chiieddy

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Chiieddy, that overcharge is the per month not per year. Overcharged about $1,668.00 per month for the service.

Big Flicker

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> The extras might be the costs of various taxes and fees he was overcharged. For example, 5% sales tax on $950 is $47.50, while on $250 is only $12.50. This accounts for an average of $35 at that rate (which may be more or less where he's from). That's an addition $1680 or more over 2 years.

Up that to 8% sale tax and you're looking at $2688 over two years. Still less than reported, but closer.

chiieddy

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> @yikz: If you're talking about just the T1 loop, there's one fee for the entire circuit, not one for "each end". That's the "loop tariff", which what you'd pay if you ordered, say, a T1 to go between two of your offices, not from your office to Sprint's IP backbone for internet access.

What you're probably thinking of is the "port charge", which is what Sprint is charging for internet access, which would be the same fee if you have a T1 going across the city or the next rack over.

rekoil

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> @yikz:

If by two ends you mean loop and port, then you are correct. The loop is the milage charge and that comes from the LEC.

brittedward

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Bandwidth is frought with price gouging becasue most businesses don't know any better. I have been selling bandwidth for evr since T1s used to cost thousands of dollars. Now, unless you're in a remote location, most companies don't pay more than $400-$500 for the loop and port.

Shoot me an email if you want to get away from Sprint.
brittedward@gmail.com


brittedward

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> The difference is in not telling lies to the buyer.

If Sprint had just simply said "We are charging you more because we want to be paid more", I would not have had a problem with it.

When they say "We are charging you more because of ( insert blatant lie here )", they are committing fraud.

kbarrett

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> $250 sounds reasonable for the monthly recurring charge on one end of a T1. T1's have 2 ends. Who's paying for the other end? Sprint is going to pass that on to the customer, especially if they're buying local access from Frontier. Also, T1's have mileage charges. If it's frame relay, then they have some frame relay fees.
As for rates, rates are quoted in State Tariffs. You sign a 5 year contract, you get a good rate. When that contract ends, the rates go up. This guy can't check his bill more than once every 2 years, I don't sympathize with is plight. He should learn to be more diligent.
Telcos all operate the same way because they're forced to follow rules that are put in place by the Public Utilities Commission in each state.

yikz

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> What's the difference between a business making money off of a customer and gouging?

bradanomics

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Mail Fraud?

sleze69

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> We all know it's those corporations' fault. If they weren't too busy gouging their customers, their bean counters may have caught SPRINT. :D

dualityshift

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Is Sprint taking gouging customers seriously though?

jaydez

]]> <![CDATA[Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees]]> Does Consumerist get a percentage of the total recovered for helping out by posting his story?

ncboxer

]]>