carols@world.std.com (Carol Springs) (11/07/90)
The other day I received a new bill from Sprint for the work-number FONCARD account that I had opened under the infamous WD-40 offer. Right away I knew something was amiss. Background: I had made a total of one call on the account, at a cost of 90 cents including surcharge and tax, and had immediately written to have the card canceled after receiving a "FONCARD Non-recurring Charge" of $10 (the first of three such *nonrecurring* charges). My first two attempts at canceling the card had failed, despite Sprint's calling me to assure me that the account would be canceled as requested. However, during a mostly polite phone call a few months ago, I seemed finally to get the point through to the helpful service rep -- who initially kept assuring me that the billing software was fixed, that I wouldn't be charged if there was no account activity during a given month, etc. -- that I had returned the FONCARD months earlier and I *just wanted the blasted thing canceled once and for all*. I had arranged with Sprint for credit on all the bad charges and had a balance of zero in my defunct account. This latest invoice was somewhat mystifying since it contained two $30.81 credits, each labeled "FONCARD fee adjustment," applied 10/9/90 and 9/23/90 for a total of $61.62 credit. Unfortunately, just below these lines were two "FONCARD fee adjustment" *charges* of $30.81 each, for the same dates, bringing the balance back to zero in The Account that Would Not Die. I phoned Sprint customer service to ask why I was receiving strange charges and credits for a defunct account. The rep assured me that her records showed the account as having been canceled in July. The charges were a result of "computer account sweeps" that had resulted in erroneous billing info. The problems had been corrected and I shouldn't be receiving any more invoices. Today, a few days later, I was reminded of all this when I received in the mail at work a mysterious "Customer Refund" check from Sprint in the amount of $10.68. I deposited the check this evening. After all, I wouldn't want to foul up Sprint's books. And didn't they "owe" me a free hour somewhere in there? I confess that when I saw the "To the Order of" in the address window, I had sorta hoped that the check would be for $30.81... Carol Springs carols@world.std.com