Cramming Rules Protect Phone Customers

Under Texas law, telephone customers have protection against unauthorized charges on their phone bills. This practice is called "cramming" and it is illegal in Texas. The Public Utility Commission (PUC) adopted rules to implement part of Senate Bill 86, passed in 1999 by the Texas Legislature and signed into law by Gov. George W. Bush.

PUC rules prohibiting cramming specify four basic requirements before a telephone provider can charge for any product or service on a customer's phone bill. The company must:

• Inform the customer about the product and all associated charges

• Get the customer’s consent to any charge and include a record of verification

• Provide contact information with customer access to a toll-free information line

• Get consent from the billing telephone company to bill for new charges

The rules also require telephone companies to make a refund or credit to customers who have paid unauthorized charges. Violations of the cramming rules are subject to enforcement action by the PUC, including administrative penalties of up to $5,000 per day per violation.

Records of a customer’s consent to charges must include written documentation, toll-free electronic authorization, voice recording, or independent third-party verification. The telephone company must keep records of disputed charges for at least 2 years, including the customers telephone number, the date the customer requested removal of unauthorized charges, the date the charge was removed from the bill, and the date a refund or credit was given to the customer.

All telecommunications providers in Texas must provide a cramming bill of rights to customers, either by mailing the notice before January 17, 2000, or by publishing the notice in the utility’s first phone directory published after January 17, 2000.

• If you receive charges on your bill for services you did not authorize, contact the phone company that bills you for your telephone service.

• Tell your local telephone company that you dispute the unauthorized charges. Request that the unauthorized charges be removed from your account.

• Do not pay the unauthorized charges, but pay the rest of your phone bill on time. Your local service cannot be disconnected for non-payment of disputed charges.

Texas phone customers who are cramming victims can file a complaint with the PUC toll-free at 1-888-782-8477.

What You Need To Know About Cramming (pdf*)

Last Updated: 01/09/04

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