Reader Sean writes:

Hi Ben –

I see your name attached to stories regarding Sprint…and I really appreciate your site posting the executive customer service number! It actually got me past the inner circle of hell that is general customer service.

I received a $10k bill from them for one month of service for what I learned to be ‘premium texting’ done by my disabled 18 year-old daughter. This whole ‘service’ is such a huge scam, yet Sprint acts as if they’ve done nothing wrong. In fact, one of their finance people actually asked me last week why I would give my disabled daughter a phone!!

So, thanks to the number you guys posted, I reached someone that I could actually talk to civilly. They have offered a 50% reduction, which still borders on criminal, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to do much about it. If you have thoughts to the contrary, I sure would love to hear from you or anyone else at your site!! J

You all are doing great work!!

Regards,

-Sean

Ahh, premium text messaging. According to the Seattle P-I there are some parents in California who are suing Jamster for misleading their children with their advertising.

Meanwhile, parents in California are suing Jamster, alleging that it targets children on Nickelodeon and MTV with misleading advertising, said Robert Thompson, the parents’ attorney. Kids who texted a number in the ad thought they were getting free ringtones, but later discovered they had signed up for subscription plans, he said. Once enrolled, it was very difficult to cancel, Thompson said.

Since it’s not really “Sprint” that’s billing you, you’re probably going to have a difficult time with this dispute. It might be a good idea to talk to an attorney.

Anyone had any success disputing a text messaging bill of this magnitude?

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