Ways to save

Tame your long-distance bills with these suggestions

Do you cringe every time you see the phone bill in the mailbox?  Do your monthly payments create your own personal version of  “national debt?”  It may be time to look at some tips and suggestions for pruning your costs, not your talk time, with some creative management.

“Many people can save money on phone calls by using a mix of services,” comments Rosemary Kimball, director of media relations for the FCC’s Consumer and Government Affairs Bureau. “They use the traditional wire-line phone service, wireless phone service and prepaid calling cards for different types of calls.”

The first step in saving money on your phone bill is to negotiate for the best possible rates on your traditional long-distance service. Consider these tips:

• Know your calling pattern – where and when you call.   If you make a lot of long-distance calls, look for a plan with a monthly fee, but a relatively low per-minute charge. If you make the bulk of your long-distance calls in the evenings or weekends, choose a plan whose rates cater to these times. If you make most of your long-distance calls within your own area code, look for a plan that offers the lowest rates for interstate toll calls.
• Shop around periodically. It’s up to you to stay informed. Keep up-to-date on the newest calling plans and compare rates among companies. You can find information on the various calling plans on long-distance telephone company Web sites. Another source for information is through free sites, such as www.ABToll.com, www.smartprice.com or www.saveonphone.com. For people who do not have Internet access, you can call or write your long-distance company to learn how to obtain information. Many companies also insert statement stuffers to promote new plans or promotions.
• Be aware of the scams and fine print. Among these are “slamming,” where a person’s phone service is switched to another carrier without permission. It is also important to understand the fine print. If you are at all uncertain about a plan being offered via a telemarketer, ask to have information outlining the plan sent to you or ask for a Web address that can help you out. If the sales representative is hesitant to do either, you can figure the offer is probably too good to be true.
• Offers of free phone cards or limited-time, super-low rates should also ring a warning signal. There is nothing illegal about these kinds of offers; they can just be confusing to a consumer who does not carefully read or fully understand the details. Another legal plan, but often misunderstood, is calling circles. To insure the cheap rate, the people you call must not only be on your specified list but also utilize the same carrier service. If you call someone outside that limited circle, you may be hit with higher-than-usual rates.

Getting creative: Cell phones and phone cards

In today’s world, nobody says all your phone contact has to be through the traditional, direct-dial, long-distance service.

With the improved quality and lower cost of cell phones, many people are choosing to use them for personal communications instead of or to complement standard long distance. Many cell phone plans offer free, unlimited weekend and late evening minutes and a set amount of free minutes during the week. If you are a frequent user and you can contain your calls to those times, you could save substantial money over standard long-distance serv