Orcon customers beware!!!

Forums › 2degrees (including Slingshot, Orcon, Flip, Stuff Fibre, MyRepublic, 2talk and Vocus) › Orcon customers beware!!!

simonh200

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#105711 9-Jul-2012 10:03

If you use an area code from your land line for a local call Orcon will charge you a toll call- quite possibly a breach of the Fair Trading Act, even though they state this in their terms & conditions. This information is by no means obvious, nor do they notify customers of this policy at the time of joining. They have flat out refused to give back the money they charged me for local calls- don't want to set a precedent I suspect. Short of taking them to the Disputes Tribunal which just isn't worth my time, there's not much I can do other than warn other Orcon customers this highly suspect policy. I'd love to know how much they are netting from this practice nationally per year. Fine behavior for a SOE, don't you think? I have since left them & went back to Telecom, very smooth, no down time and they seem to have lifted their game due to some healthy (or not so healthy in Orcons case) competition.

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201 posts

Master Geek

#652777 9-Jul-2012 10:18

Thanks for the heads up, didn't know that. Will have to have a look through my old invoices to see if I have been charged too.

xpd

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#652781 9-Jul-2012 10:24

I doubt theyre doing it on purpose, probably just a mix up with the number allocation......

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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ankit816

147 posts

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#652784 9-Jul-2012 10:28

I think they have always done this. They charge you for local calls if you use area code. Like if you make an AKL to AKL call but use 09 prefix then your call is charged as national call.
Quite a non sense but sadly that's the truth with them.

bameron

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#652789 9-Jul-2012 10:36

Hi team,

As mentioned above it is in our Terms and Conditions that if you dial the area code in front of a local number the toll switches may interpret that as a national call. The reason for this is not because it is a policy we've put in place just because we can, but because this is actually how the technology works.

My understanding is that this typically only happens when you are on a resold Telecom line and that other providers who sell Telecom Wholesale services have exactly the same issue from time-to-time, so this is not just Orcon-related.

Cheers,

Cam

simonh200

14 posts

Geek

#652794 9-Jul-2012 10:42

From the consumers perspective a local call is a local call, period. How the technology works is Orcon's issue, not the customer. Why should we pay for the inefficiencies of the technology Orcon are using? This practice is focused entirely on Orcons profit levels, rather than the consumer. A very unfair practice and one which can be simply avoided, by switching ISP.

MurrayM

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#652805 9-Jul-2012 10:59

I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

xpd

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#652816 9-Jul-2012 11:12

Interesting... never noticed it myself :)

Im on a national calling plan and live out of Auckland (apparently, but pay their rates) so add 09 to everything anyway....

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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MurrayM

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#652827 9-Jul-2012 11:23

I haven't done it for a while, so I don't know if Telecom still charge.

Behodar

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#652843 9-Jul-2012 11:45

MurrayM: I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

My parents are on TelstraClear and dial 07 before all local numbers (due to a limitation with their cordless phones and caller ID) and never get charged for these calls (unless calling Waikato which is still 07 but not free).

bameron

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#652863 9-Jul-2012 12:02

Behodar:
MurrayM: I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

My parents are on TelstraClear and dial 07 before all local numbers (due to a limitation with their cordless phones and caller ID) and never get charged for these calls (unless calling Waikato which is still 07 but not free).

Again, it's entirely dependent on what equipment you're on. I understand that resold Telecom lines are more prone to this issue. For example, if you're on Orcon's LLU network or Genius where we use our own equipment for voice you shouldn't encounter this issue.

Most ISPs have the exact same issue - this isn't anything new or Orcon-specific.

simonh200

14 posts

Geek

#652866 9-Jul-2012 12:05

After I discovered this was happening with Orcon I checked around- Telecom, Vodafone & Telstra Clear assure me that they don't engage in this practice. I am now with telecom and they definitely don't do this, as it was one of my requirements before joining them. And once again Cam, the fact that the line is "resold" is not only irrelevant to the consumer, we are not privy to this information anyway. So not only is the practice unfair, it is inconsistent.

old3eyes

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#652877 9-Jul-2012 12:29

MurrayM: I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

Telecom doesn't bill you if you put an area code infront of a local number.

Regards,

Old3eyes

OptimizerHQ

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

#652895 9-Jul-2012 13:13

Please add Vodafone to this list as well. I am not sure whether our line is resold one or not
but it charge us if we add 09 while calling within Auckland.

As a user point of view I feel it should not happen and there must be some advancements
in the existing technology to fix the issue.

mattwnz

20155 posts

Uber Geek

#652900 9-Jul-2012 13:41

MurrayM: I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

Are you sure? With caller display it will put the area code in front of the number, so if you do a redial off that caller display number, then you are essentially dialing the number with the area code. However I have never been charged by telecom for doing this. However when I signed up and switched to 'clear' many years ago, they did charg you for putting the area code in front of the number, but got a refund. So maybe it only applies to resellers. Don't know how you can get around dialing the area code if you have caller display.

MurrayM

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#652949 9-Jul-2012 14:44

old3eyes:
MurrayM: I believe that all phone companies do this. I'm on Telecom and I've accidentally added the area code when making a local call and they've charged me. Had this happen several times over the last 20 years or so. So definitely not something new or specific to Orcon!

Telecom doesn't bill you if you put an area code infront of a local number.

Like I said, this hasn't happened to me for at least a couple of years but I have definitely been charged prior to this by Telecom for putting the area code in, and they refused to refund me. I would hope that with the advancements made within the last few years that this would no longer happen, so maybe they fixed it a few years ago.

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