Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request
From: thomas%mvac23.uucp@udel.edu (Thomas Lapp)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Wiring Maintainence Fee
Message-ID: <3563@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 6 Feb 90 01:48:12 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 79, message 6 of 7


I've seen a few messages recently talking about the charges that the
telephone companies levy for "insurance" against a problem with
in-house wiring.

As many people do, I live in an apartment building which has been
pre-wired for at least one pair.  Since the phone co.'s service ends
at the enterance point to the building (an assumption), and I do not
have access to the internal wiring of the building, who is responsible
if there is a problem between the point the pair enters the building
and the outlet jack in my apartment?  The landlord?  Me?  The other
question deals with the wire maintenance charge.  Does it make sense
at all for me to sign up for inside wiring maintenance since I don't
really have control over the wiring within the building?

And, no, I haven't checked with my landlord about this (yet!).  I'll
let you know what the landlord's policy is when I find out.

                         - tom

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Location: Newark, DE, USA                          
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[Moderator's Note: One of the dumbest parts of divestiture was this
problem of who handles the wire beyond what point. In large older
urban areas like Chicago, we have hundreds of old (1920-30-ish) high
rise buildings, formerly hotels with switchboards, with jumbles of
wire coming in from the street. Multiples abound; a pair terminating
in my building not in use will show up in the basement of the building
down the block. The cable opens up three or four places, and I can go
in the basement of my building and get on fifty different pairs all in
use either in my building or the buildings across the street.  You
don't want to pay IBT to install, so your boyfriend says he can do the
job; or maybe its the building janitor....then tomorrow my second line
does not work. Fist fights have broken out in Chicago between people
who accused each other of stealing their pairs and their service. But
the judge, in his wisdom, and all that rot.... well, you know the
story.  Illinois Bell now handles the wiring literally to the front
door of your apartment. They take care of the apartment building
basements and the internal house-pair boxes; but at first, they
literally stopped where the wires went in the building, until it got
too ridiculous.  PT]