I've been using FlowRoute for about 1.5 years for termination. To be fair, I have not had any issues with call quality or service interruptions.
This month, they changed to "Intrado" and also initiated a "regulatory admin fee."
I am a low volume customer - just a simple professional office with under 10 employees. My average monthly usage is about $45.
The monthly fee is $15. Thus, this fee increases my monthly bill roughly 30% - quite a lot.
I had a rather unhelpful call with customer service. It was made quite clear to me that, as a low volume customer, they were not interested in my business. In my world, this type of attitude is never acceptable. I first asked if the fee could be waived. It could not. No problem...that I expect. I asked if $15 was the lowest fee. No straight answer. But I did learn that $15 is the fee if you have no DID's with them - I do not. Ok, so what is the cost if I have a DID? $0.50 per DID. Ok, so, if I purchase a DID, does that mean that my "fee" will change from $15 to $0.50 per month. I was told "I can't answer that. All I can say is the fee for no DID is $15 and the fee per DID is $0.50." I realized that I was talking to support and not to sales, so I asked if I could be transferred to sales for help figuring out my options and bill. I was told that my account is too small and thus I do not have any account manager that can help me.
So this clearly leaves a sour taste in my mouth. It's entirely possible that I am not understanding some basic concepts of VOIP wholesale economics, but it seems appropriate that the company to whom I send money monthly should explain their billing to me, no matter how small my account.
So perhaps someone here can help me. As I've said, I've had no issues with Flowroute service, so I am not here to flame them. I do have a bit of a problem with the customer service I received as well as their new billing practices.
So the questions:
1. Can anyone here confirm that my monthly "regulatory fee" would be $0.50 if I purchase a single DID?
2. I understand that a DID comes with its own monthly charge, on average about $1.25. I understand that would be in addition to the "fee."
3. Each DID comes with "applicable fees, surcharges, and taxes." I couldn't get this information. Can anyone here give me a ballpark of what to expect?
4. In lieu of all of this, can anyone recommend a better provider for termination?
In my phone conversation, I simply wanted to find the optimal billing solution for me. Obviously, I am trying to minimize my expense. I understand that we are all in business to make money (me included), but I think it's appropriate for any business to work with their client to find the best solution to his or her problems. The support I received from Flowroute was basically: I can't really help. Why don't you just make some changes and see what happens on next month's bill. Kinda felt like I was getting screwed.
Thanks.
This month, they changed to "Intrado" and also initiated a "regulatory admin fee."
I am a low volume customer - just a simple professional office with under 10 employees. My average monthly usage is about $45.
The monthly fee is $15. Thus, this fee increases my monthly bill roughly 30% - quite a lot.
I had a rather unhelpful call with customer service. It was made quite clear to me that, as a low volume customer, they were not interested in my business. In my world, this type of attitude is never acceptable. I first asked if the fee could be waived. It could not. No problem...that I expect. I asked if $15 was the lowest fee. No straight answer. But I did learn that $15 is the fee if you have no DID's with them - I do not. Ok, so what is the cost if I have a DID? $0.50 per DID. Ok, so, if I purchase a DID, does that mean that my "fee" will change from $15 to $0.50 per month. I was told "I can't answer that. All I can say is the fee for no DID is $15 and the fee per DID is $0.50." I realized that I was talking to support and not to sales, so I asked if I could be transferred to sales for help figuring out my options and bill. I was told that my account is too small and thus I do not have any account manager that can help me.
So this clearly leaves a sour taste in my mouth. It's entirely possible that I am not understanding some basic concepts of VOIP wholesale economics, but it seems appropriate that the company to whom I send money monthly should explain their billing to me, no matter how small my account.
So perhaps someone here can help me. As I've said, I've had no issues with Flowroute service, so I am not here to flame them. I do have a bit of a problem with the customer service I received as well as their new billing practices.
So the questions:
1. Can anyone here confirm that my monthly "regulatory fee" would be $0.50 if I purchase a single DID?
2. I understand that a DID comes with its own monthly charge, on average about $1.25. I understand that would be in addition to the "fee."
3. Each DID comes with "applicable fees, surcharges, and taxes." I couldn't get this information. Can anyone here give me a ballpark of what to expect?
4. In lieu of all of this, can anyone recommend a better provider for termination?
In my phone conversation, I simply wanted to find the optimal billing solution for me. Obviously, I am trying to minimize my expense. I understand that we are all in business to make money (me included), but I think it's appropriate for any business to work with their client to find the best solution to his or her problems. The support I received from Flowroute was basically: I can't really help. Why don't you just make some changes and see what happens on next month's bill. Kinda felt like I was getting screwed.
Thanks.