Be aware of Spectrum's new billing policy

If you’re a Spectrum customer looking to cancel your account, you need to know about a change in the way Spectrum will settle your final bill.

Customers no longer will receive refunds if service is canceled before the end of the billing cycle. In the past, bills were prorated: Customers only paid for the days they actually used. If your billing date was on the first of the month, for example, and you canceled on the third, you would be sent a refund for the unused portion of the month you paid for. If you cancel your account now, you won’t receive the unused portion: Spectrum will no longer refund service days between the cancellation date and the end of the billing cycle.

Spectrum provided written notice of the change earlier this year. Its response to customer complaints is that other suppliers who bill for monthly subscriptions do the same thing.

The billing change isn’t illegal, though it does feel like another way to stick it to consumers. The Idaho Public Utilities Commission doesn’t regulate cable TV or internet services, so it won’t be able to assist with a complaint. On the plus side, however, Spectrum notes that customers aren’t locked into long-term contracts. The best bet if you decide you want to cancel your service is to double-check your billing date.

Watch termination notices from Frontier Communications

A Coeur d’Alene reader called to warn others to be wary of a potential threat to Frontier Communication account holders. The reader recently received an email purportedly from Frontier that said her account would be terminated and her records destroyed unless she clicked on a link that would cancel the termination.

Believing that her account was in jeopardy, she clicked. Much to her surprise, a screen popped up revealing every bit of her financial information. Scared that someone had hacked her account, she called Frontier Communications technical support for assistance.

Frontier Communications was unable to detect a threat to her actual account and noted that the email saying the customer’s account was in jeopardy did not originate from its servers. What appears to have happened is that a scammer sent the email in hopes of getting the recipient to click on the link in order to infect her computer with malware and access her personal records.

She was able to get her computer up and running, though she said the experience scared her. If you receive a termination notice regarding your Frontier account via email, give them a call directly to check on your account. Do not click on any links embedded in the message.

What is the Lions Clubs International Foundation Free Grant Program?

A Coeur d’Alene reader received an “invitation” from the Lions Clubs International Foundation asking her to submit an application to a free grant program. She did and was later notified that she was granted $150,000 that would be deposited into her account once she paid a “tax-clearance” fee of $1,500.

The Lions Clubs website says it supports large-scale projects that address unmet humanitarian needs. It further says the foundation does not have a grant program for individuals. For such requests, it is more appropriate to direct support from local Lions, who often have programs that respond to individual requests in their communities.

As the Lions don’t support individuals and grants go for specific humanitarian projects, the fact that our reader received this invitation points to a scam. There’s no $1,500 tax clearance fee to receive a grant. Scammers often use legitimate organizations like the Lions to lure unsuspecting victims who think they’re dealing with trustworthy neighbors.

Bottom Line: If you’re invited to apply for a grant and then asked to pay a fee to receive the money “awarded” to you, it’s a scam.

How to take advantage of free trials

Free trials can be a great way to evaluate products and services but there are a few things to keep in mind so free trials offers don’t take advantage of you. According to a survey by Bankrate, 40% of people who have received a free sample or signed up for a trial service have been charged for failure to read the fine print on the trial offer or simply forgetting to cancel the order within the specified period of time.

Here’s some things to keep in mind when you want to sign up for a free trial.

- Use a credit card rather than a debit card if a card number is required. Credit cards offer consumers more protections.

- Read the fine print; understand the terms of the trial are and when it ends. Some trials, for example, come with a three-month minimum obligation and charge your credit card — then claim everything is legitimate because you agreed to pay the money as part of an ongoing membership.

- Set a calendar reminder to cancel the trial within the specified time period if you do not wish to be charged. By taking these few steps you can avoid unwanted charges for your “free” trial.

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If you have encountered a consumer issue that you have questions about or think our readers should know about, please send me an email at terridickersonadvocate@gmail.com or call 208-274-4458.