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garrycouch

Aug 26, 2003, 8:26 PM

Post #1 of 4 (530 views)

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Current Telmex Scam

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At times, Telmex will put out masterfully misleading info to it's customers. The latest is about the buzon, a commonly avalaible service in the U.S. to provide a voice-mail-type service when you're on-line, talking on the phone, or just don't answer. Their advertisement states that there is no charge for installation or monthly fees. When I asked the local Telmex manager, he said that "It is totally and completely free". A call to the Telmex number given on the flyer enclosed with the monthly bill resulted in exactly the same statement. However, three local folks told us that when they signed up and realized that the number of calls on their bill doubled or tripled due to this service, they tried to cancel but were told that they could not unless they paid the two month minimum fee of 50 pesos per month. NIce service, but VERY misleading advertising typical of TElmex

johanson

Aug 26, 2003, 10:45 PM

Post #2 of 4 (518 views)

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Re: [garrycouch] Current Telmex Scam

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Hey Gary: I'm trying to understand here. I thought that you were only charged when you completed a phone call from your phone. If someone calls you and leaves a message, they don't count that as a phone call you completed do they? How are you charged for more phone calls?

What am I missing here?

Guess who bought out GuaTel (Guatemala telephone Co) and renamed it TelGua? Yep, TelMex. In Mexico we get the first 100 COMPLETED calls for free, after that we pay about 16 cents US per completed call. I was impressed when I heard the number was 200 in Guatemala. Then I learned that they count every call in Guatemala, whether the person at the other end answers or not.

And as far as high speed internet is concerned, prodigy/telmex slowest speed is 256 Kb/sec in Mexico, sadly in guatemala, they offer half the speed or 128Kb/sec for about the same price as the faster speed in Mexico.

Am I defending TelMex? No. I would just like to say that telephone service is better in Mexico than in Guatemala.

One further comment. The next country south of Guatemala is Honduras. And their telephone system is even worse. I'm told that they are looking for buyers and that TelMex might buy the Honduras telephone company too.

SO AS MUCH AS I HATE TO SAY THIS, our telephone system in Ajijic is better than that which I have experienced in either Guatemala or Honduras. That's hard for me to admit, because I have always hated my Latin American telephone provider, no matter where I have lived.

esperanza

Aug 27, 2003, 6:25 AM

Post #3 of 4 (504 views)

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Re: [johanson] Current Telmex Scam

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TelMex considers a completed call to be one in which the telephone being called is answered. If you subscribe to the 'buzón' service, you have contracted to use TelMex as your telephone answering service. Hence, your telephone is answered by the 'buzón' and the call is completed and is billed as such to the calling party.

My understanding of the 'buzón' service is that it is free to the subscriber UNTIL he/she starts retrieving calls from it. Then there are per-retrieval costs, although I don't remember exactly how much. So it's free to get the service, but not free to use it.

How do you get around this? When they ask you if you want it added to your telephone service, tell them no.

http://www.mexicocooks.typepad.com

(This post was edited by esperanza on Aug 27, 2003, 6:27 AM)

Guapo Gabacho

Aug 27, 2003, 9:31 AM

Post #4 of 4 (477 views)

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Re: [garrycouch] Current Telmex Scam

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I don't see why you use the word scam. They probably used the same "terms of service" that Verizon Wireless uses here in the US. The service is totally free; you just pay to use it with your normal use charges. They count the time the announcement is playing and your caller's message as normal airtime, nothing more. When you retrieve your messages the time is simply standard airtime. Nothing is charged above your now increased airtime usage.

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