Need Immediate DSL or Landline Assistance?

My sister and I have been assisting 81 year parents correct a billing error on their account and need a clear path outside of the call center to escalate.  This path needs to include a phone number or different mailing address for written correspondence, distinct from the standard PO box for mailing checks.  Thank you.  Below excerpt from FCC incident report filed 1 AUG:

My 81 year old mother called AT&T approximately two months to cancel her international unlimited long distance plan, which was less than $10.00 per month, since she did not use this service and retain her fixed unlimited domestic long distance plan, which was a similar reasonable rate. The call center operator who is located overseas mistakenly canceled the unlimited domestic long distance service. My mother noticed this issue following the receipt of her June 2016 bill that included approximately $585.00 in domestic long distance charges. She then solicited our help to contact AT&T and resolve the issue. Numerous calls by both my sister and me, over the past four weeks have failed to resolve the issue. I called AT&T about two weeks ago and was told that the $585.00 in long distance charges off her June (then current period) bill would be reversed. On 30 July I set up an online account with my email in order to confirm that the charges were reversed and discovered that they had not been. In fact, my parents now owe $997.61 in additional domestic long distance charges, as posted on their July 2016 billing period. My mother is a senior citizen and does not speak good English. She has been an AT&T customer since 1971 and based on her and my father's pattern of usage of long distance services, which has not changed--they talk domestic long distance for hours a month--the domestic unlimited long distance should not have been switched and is an obvious mistake in communication by AT&T and/or poor counseling and judgment by their customer center. As the most current bill has now, very recently, posted I or my sister had to explain to my mother what has happened and that we are still working to resolve this matter for her. Also, she has been in poor health and we are very concerned how seeing this bill in writing will negatively affect her. We are hopeful that this misunderstanding by AT&T can be resolved in a timely manner. In the June cycle bill we counseled her to pay only the portion that she would have owed based on the assumed credit from my conversation with AT&T in July. 

Hi @joseaoe1,

Sorry to read of this. We can help. We’ll need more details regarding your account and just sent you a private message via the community forums. Click here to reply back

-ATTU-verseCare

You can also use our AT&T Chat option to connect with one of our live representatives by clicking here.

-ATTDSLCare

This is a tough topic.

In rural areas, due to old equipment installed years ago, rather than spending the money to maintain it, or better, upgrade it, ATT is activly working to retire it's old wired phone systems.

When they can, they will try to pass them on to a local entity that might be willing to take them from them, but failing that, just shut the off, copletrely.

(No, seriously.. there are news reports of petitions to various state agnecies, where att is asking permission to just abondon their residential wired phone service customers. lok it up.)

They are hoping to replace it with cellular based home phone service. (Apparently, it is cheaper to upgrand and maintain the local cell tower, than to work on the phone lines.)

Understand, I am another att customer, sharing his personal opinion. I read a lot, and am passing on that information.. and one of the things I've heard is, att is abandoning their old copper wire services, and as part of that, will not add any new customers to it's existing services.

Even if there is no other option available locally.

My condolences, and hope you at least have cell phone service available.

Hi @NeedALandline,

We can look into this. We just sent you a private message via the community forums. Click here to reply back.

-ATTU-verseCare

Hi and thanks for reaching out to us.I am very sorry for the issues you are experiencing with your service. We are unable to assist on a landline account. Please see the following link for available options: http://soc.att.com/2b6wbdJ

Thanks
Miguel
AT&T Social Media Manager
6am-3:00pm CST(Sunday-Thursday)
www.att.com/myAT&T‎