Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!casbah.acns.nwu.edu!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: IZZYAS1@oac.ucla.edu (Andy Jacobson) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Non-Payment Disconnects Message-ID: <15562@accuvax.nwu.edu> Date: 20 Dec 90 11:50:00 GMT Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu Organization: TELECOM Digest Lines: 42 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 895, Message 7 of 11 Just a brief addendum to my note in Vol. 10, #883: I had a chance to play with this non-payment disconnect a little further with a friend's line. It seems that calls are not limited to one number, but to two 800 prefixes. You can call to 800-223, and 800-482, which are both used as far as I can tell only by GTE for various customer service type lines (local in NPA 213). From what I surmise from talking to reps at the residential service office, the customer service numbers are and handled by some kind of ACD, and translated to regular seven digit numbers at the locations of their various service centers. For West L.A./Santa Monica, its in prefix 310, (which is definitely used only by GTE, kind of like 312-727 with IBT). You can not call these directly as 310- XXXX, only as the 800 numbers. You can get ring back (195n-nnnn), and as mentioned previously, you can get your number read back to you (1223) and call 611, 911 (supposedly), but not 411, or any operator. Our esteemed Moderator writes: >intercept message. For a credit disconnect the message says, "The >number you dialed, ABC-DEFG has been temporarily disconnected." If the >temporary disconnect is due to a customer request, then the phrase "at >the customer's request" is prepended to the above message. PAT Not that I need to reinforce the sleaziness of GTE's image, but when you disconnect, move, or change your number they will _not_ put a "The number you dialed, ABC-DEFG has been ... " type message on your line at all unless you beg and plead with them, (They strongly discourage this sort of thing), and then you only get thirty days. If you raise absolute hell, you might get sixty days, but that's only for the extremely persistent. You can get more of course, but they charge you a price comparable to regular service! When your time is up, no matter how long, you get the "I'm sorry, the number you have dialed is not in service, please check the number and dial again... " recording. When I left Evanston, Il. (IBT) I had a forwarding message on my line (312-492) for _4_years_! I never asked for it, but I sure appreciated it! Andy Jacobson or