Foreign Esim Provider While Traveling / Wi-Fi Calling & Texting

@sandblaster OK, next question: I'm out and about in some small village in Italy.  Need to use Google or apple maps. I have an Airelo eSIM which is currently activated and using (Airelo is only data, not cell).  What do I do with ATT settings?  

OK, next question: I'm out and about in some small village in Italy.  Need to use Google or apple maps. I have an Airelo eSIM which is currently activated and using (Airelo is only data, not cell).  What do I do with ATT settings?

Again your choice. You can leave the ATT sim active for calls or texts or you can deactivate the ATT sim if you want to ensure no roaming charges from ATT.

<<...deactivate the ATT sim if you want to ensure no roaming>>. Yes this is what has not been clear. No charges from ATT while abroad.  I think I have it - Thanks @sandblaster 

Yes, actually you'll have no charges till such time you turn on your ATT SIM. Sometimes people make mistake and receive calls, send SMS and use data inadvertently while on roaming and incur undesired charges. These days with social media apps and data eSIMs like Airalo, Holafly, Ubigi etc you actually don't need to activate your ATT SIM while travelling abroad. However for  SMS from friends, family and banks you need to keep your ATT SIM active which is free.

I recently returned from the UK and while there the whole family used eSIMs from Orange. We use iphones and turned the ATT SIM off in settings, also turning data roaming off just in case. During our trip we periodically received the ATT International Plan notifications but there was no rhyme or reason to it, I would received the notification one day, a different family member another day. We were concerned and double checked that the SIM was turned off and went about our business. My bill just arrived and I find International Day plan charges on each phone for sporadic days but amounting to $135 in excess charges. The charges are related to a handful of text messages from each phone, again without rhyme or reason. When I look at my text history I can identify the specific text messages as they are in green vs the usual blue for the ones immediately before and immediately after.

Upon disputing these charges with ATT they tell me that I must have used my phone because their system says I did. They could not explain why I would receive charges when my SIM was turned off and tried to tell me that any app that I use that is associated with my number will incur international charges even if used on WIFI. I think we all know this is nonsense. I feel these fees are fraudulent and ATT. Can anyone here confirm that if the SIM is set to OFF, and a local SIM is set to on and set to primary for text, phone, etc... there should be no ATT fees?

The charges are related to a handful of text messages from each phone, again without rhyme or reason. When I look at my text history I can identify the specific text messages as they are in green vs the usual blue for the ones immediately before and immediately after.

Those green bubbles were sent SMS messages from the att SIM?  

Yes?  That would trigger day pass.   

Incoming text doesn't trigger day pass. 

Att wouldn't even know you were outside the USA if your phone didn't use a foreign network.    

Sounds like each of you occasionally had your att SIM in use.  

That is the explanation the ATT folks gave me but we had the ATT SIM off in settings the entire time, from the moment we departed the US. We were very vigilant about that. I have now noticed that my wife’s texts that incurred the Intl fee were all to one phone number of our dog sitter who had an Android phone. It appears that those texts that could not be sent as an iMessage are the ones that somehow triggered ATT billing even though the SIM was turned off.

@feesforall 

So your wife texted the dog sitter from the ATT number.  That triggers a day pass charge.

   Valid charge, not fraudulent as you claimed.  

     So who else SENT text from their ATT SIM?   Probably should have reviewed your text logs before you disputed charges with AT&T.    Would have saved you some aggravation and you wouldn't be so annoyed when you realize the charges were incurred.  

When you turn on your ATT eSIM abroad to check your text messages using hotel’s Wi-Fi and do Wi-Fi calling that’s perfectly alright. But the moment you step out of your hotel’s WiFi range you start incurring charges for sending texts and calling. People sometimes forget to turn of the  ATT eSIM and pay the penalty.