Hello Jarri2020,
Sorry to hear you've received that unexpected bill. I understand you thought you had a block on long-distance calls in place. However, what you had would have been an International call block. It is not possible to block long-distance calls within Canada or to the US (and some other destinations).
@jarri2020 wrote:...if i have province wide calling package,can i make calls to other canadian provinces since whoel canada has one calling code which is +1, the answer is NO,i wouldnt be able to make calls to others canadian numbers with provincewide calling package....
Unfortunately, your reasoning is not correct. If your plan included Province-wide calling, you would be able to call numbers from other Provinces. Those calls would be considered Canadian long-distance. Since you have Canada-wide calling, your minutes include Canadian long-distance.
I understand that intuitively, it might seem possible to just block calls made to the US. However, it is not feasible for the phone companies to do so. Note that it is not just a Fido issue. The blocking outgoing International calls does not block calls to US from Canada (or to Canada from US) with all the telecommunications providers -- landline or mobile (see here).
The reason is because both Canada and the US use the same North American Numbering Plan (NANP). In fact, blocking International calls also won't block calls to the other 24 Countries either because they all use the same Country Calling code, 1. Blocking that Country code would also block calls within Canada.
While it might seem reasonable to block area codes, it's not feasible. Within the NANP, there are at least 380 area codes -- 338 outside of Canada. Significant resources would be required to scan through the area codes prior to every call. In addition, as populations grow, area codes are continually being added.
I understand that the person you called lived in Brampton, ON. Recently, there has been an increase in the number of Canadians using mobile plans from the US. They might get their roaming included with their plans, however, everyone calling them would incur long-distance fees. I also understand it's difficult to know whether a phone number is local or not. You might consider identifying the location associated with the area code of phone numbers you dial. For example, the area codes for Brampton are 289, 365, and 905 (see here). While some Canadian mobile area codes span multiple local calling areas, you should be able to call those phone numbers without issue since your plan includes Canada-wide calling. If the area code shows a location outside of Canada, that would be considered long-distance for you to call.
If you would like to discuss the details of those calls, you would need to contact customer services. Alternatively, you might consider sending @FidoSolutions a PM. Once they verify some information, they'll also be able to access your account. If you're unable to make full payment on the bill, you'll likely have to arrange a payment schedule. To make an arrangement, you'll need to contact the credit operations team.
Hope this helps 😀
Cheers
