By Samantha Vercellino
Arlene proudly shows her appreciation to CUB with a homemade sign!
Arlene Cleary will admit she’s not tech-savvy, which is why she’s stuck with AT&T and the same long distance calling plan the past 58 years. However, a new laptop, courtesy of her grandchildren a few years ago, finally forced her to welcome a different type of service into her life.
The Mokena-area resident didn’t mind the $15 cost that the Internet added to her monthly phone bill—until she received her latest statement and saw she owed $81, instead of $64.
“For the past three years, I have been paying $64 for telephone and Internet service,” Arlene said. “So, I had no idea why it would suddenly shoot up.”
Hoping to get to the bottom of it, the 76-year old retired special education teacher immediately called AT&T. She said a representative explained that her Internet rates had gone up—but not to worry. The rep promised to keep her rates the same because of her loyalty to AT&T.
One week later, though, another bill arrived with the same $81 total.
“I tried calling back but couldn’t get anyone on the line and even went up to a store with my daughter,” Arlene said. “But I couldn’t get any answers…it was so frustrating.”
Not wanting to waste anymore time, she called CUB and told the whole story to staffer Ivonne Ortiz, who immediately processed the complaint.
Within days of CUB’s inquiry, Arlene received the best news she had heard in weeks: AT&T planned to renew her current rates for another year—and keep her bill at $64 a month!
“What I loved [about CUB} was there was no messing around,” Arlene said. “[Ivonne] got to the heart of the issue and got something accomplished.”
If you have questions regarding your utility, phone or cable service, call CUB’s Consumer Hotline like Arlene did, at 1-800-669-5556, for guidance on your rights.
