Why charged almost $600 for international calls I received???

[ccn1]

I've been with Fido for years no problem and I switched to a long-distance plan in July because I often receive calls from my mom in France. I chose this plan because it’s specifically labeled for long-distance, and according to the FIDO website, receiving international calls shouldn’t incur fees. Initially, I made a few calls myself but noticed my bill got higher, so I stopped and only received calls.

Despite this, my current bill is $600, which is extremely high. I haven’t made any calls just received calls from France. 

I'm on medical leave right now so have less income and have been spending time on the phone with family just to get a 'surprise' $600 bill, I hope this is something that can be refunded? Has anyone dealt with that? 

[Cawtau]

Hello Ccn1,

  Welcome to the community!

  Sorry to hear you've incurred unexpected charges on your bill. However, you should note that this forum is community-driven and not intended as a venue for customer services. We do not have access to customers' accounts nor would we know the details of your particular plan and situation. Have you had a chance to view the detailed billing? You should be able to access those details via your My Account --> My Bill. From your Bill Overview, you should be able to Save and/or Print a PDF copy of your bill. Alternatively. you should also be able to view the details online by clicking your Usage summary.

  As mentioned, we would not know the details of your particular plan. Unfortunately, I am not aware of any current plans labeled as for long-distance. There is a plan including calling to certain Countries. As well, Fido also offered promotional add-ons with calling to certain Countries on select plans (ie 1000 International minutes or 200 International minutes). However, all of those options were to specific Countries. As far as I am aware, calling to France is only included in the 200 International minute promotional add-on (see here).

  That said, if you are incurring charges for receiving calls, is it possible your plan only includes a limited number of included calling minutes (ie airtime)? While many plans might include unlimited calling minutes (ie unlimited Canada-wide minutes), it's possible your plan might only include a limited number. If that is the case, it should be noted that all calls using mobile services incur Airtime charges plus long-distance charges, if applicable. Those 1000 International minutes (or other International calling minutes) are only for the long-distance portion of calls. That is, airtime charges would still apply. If you have a plan with a limited number of airtime calling minutes, excess airtime usage would incur additional costs -- even though there may be available International minutes remaining. For example, if you had a plan with 500 Canada-wide minutes (airtime minutes), making 600 minutes of calls to Countries included in those 1000 International minutes would require an excess usage of 100 airtime minutes. As well, it should also be noted that received calls would also count as airtime against those included minutes. Exceeding a limited airtime minute could account for charges for incoming calls.

  Yes, in general, receiving calls (domestic or International) while in Canada does not incur long-distance charges. However, if your plan does not include Canada-wide calling, it is possible to incur long-distance charges for receiving calls if you are outside of your incoming local calling area (see here). I do not know how many of Fido's newer plans include local or Provincial calling.

  Do you live close to the US border? If you do, it's also possible your phone regularly connects to a US cellular tower making that usage roaming. Making and receiving calls while connected to a foreign tower would incur roaming charges. That said, Fido is supposed to have an accidental roaming solution in place for those who live or travel to areas near the US border (see here and here).

  If you wished to discuss your situation, you would need to contact customer service. In addition, they can also be contacted via Live Chat, Facebook, or Twitter. Those methods can be accessed via the contact page posted above.

Hope this helps 😀

Cheers

[Cawtau]

Hello again,

  Alternatively, do you use Wifi-calling? If you have any VPN or other services which can alter the perceived location of your device, it's possible those Wifi-calls could be considered roaming and incur Fido Roam charges (see here). However, incoming calls should not incur those charges.

Hope this helps 😀

Cheers

[Original_Lucy]

Hello @ccn1 , that would be a horrible shock to get a $600 bill. I think you should call customer support to see what is incurring the charges. If you're not calling long distance, this doesn't make sense. Is France included in your long distance plan? Incoming calls should never incurring charges. Something is not right, perhaps the long distance plan you have doesn't include France. You should definitely have this discussion with customer support. You can call *611 from your device to speak with someone. Or you can use any of the methods mentioned Here to contact Fido customer service. I hopecyou get a resolution