The Situation.

As we’ve explained in a series of earlier posts, we recently took a group of faculty and students to the UK for an educational experience. As we typically do, before our flight left the US, we turned our phone data off and then put the phones in airplane mode for the flight. When we landed in the UK, we turned off airplane mode and leave our data plans turned off. This means we weren’t using our phone plans for data and wouldn’t be charged international rates unless we turned our data back on. When this happens, at least for Verizon, it activates a 24-hour TravelPass session which costs $10 per 24-hour period ($5 if you’re in Canada or Mexico) and lets us use our regular phone plan (calling, texting, and data). Or at least that’s how it usually works (we explain all that here).

What ended up happening was, during our travels, despite our data being turned off, we received four separate notifications that Tasha’s TravelPass had been activated. After we got home, we learned Jason’s line had also been charged for four TravelPass sessions even though his data was also turned off (except one session, which was a legitimate charge). Even more frustrating, we never received the notifications that his TravelPass had been activated until after we got home and spoke with Verizon’s customer service folks.

The Service Call.

I’d like to say this was the first time this has happened, but that’s not true. Instead, this happens from time-to-time, but whenever it does, once we get home and the billing cycle has closed (Verizon has told us multiple times there’s ‘nothing they can do’ until the billing cycle closes, at which point they can see the final charges. Why this is the case is something we can’t explain), we chat with the Verizon customer service folks, explain the situation, and after they verify that our data remained off the whole time (which they can easily do), they credit our account for the charges. A pain? Sure, but it’s easy enough and the situation is resolved. Except that’s not what happened this time.

This time, after we got home and the billing cycle closed, Jason spoke to their customer service desk and was told, much to his surprise, that the TravelPass charges were valid. What?! Let’s back up for a minute and explain what events activate a TravelPass session. Here’s what Verizon’s website says (see Point 2 under ‘About TravelPass’):

How does TravelPass work and when will I be charged for it?

Here’s how TravelPass works. After you add TravelPass to your mobile phone line:

• A 24-hour TravelPass session starts automatically when you use your phone in a TravelPass country (e.g., make or answer a phone call, send a text or use data).
• You’re only charged for the days that you use your device in the TravelPass country.

Note:

• You must turn on cellular data or data roaming when you go to the TravelPass country.
• When cellular data or data roaming is turned on, a TravelPass session can be started by background data, including:
  • App content refreshing (e.g., Weather apps, Fitness Tracker)
  • Syncing (e.g., email)
  • Device or app software updates

2 hours after the session starts we send you a text letting you know when your 24-hour TravelPass session ends. Using your device after that session starts a new session.

If you interpret this the way we did, it very clearly indicates that you are charged when you do something. You must make/answer a call. You must send a text message. You must use your data. In our case, we didn’t make or answer a phone call, we didn’t send a text message, and our data was turned off. All of this was confirmed by the customer service agent.

However, unlike prior times, this time Jason was told that a TravelPass session can be activated – and your account charged – if you receive a text message, which did happen several times while we were abroad. WHAT?! This means we can be charged for something that not only we didn’t do, but also that we had no control over. Surely this can’t be right, right?

The Solution.

During the chat (we always use their chat feature on their website as it lets us do other things while fixing a situation), the agent repeated this time after time after time. Each time, Jason made it clear that not only did this not make sense, but that it also contradicts the information on Verizon’s own website. Interestingly, the customer service agent directed us to this same website during our chat. After all, if it’s possible for me to be charged because someone else sends me a text message, why would that not be listed on their website that specifically talks about the situations that lead to a TravelPass charge?

At one point in the discussion, the agent agreed to credit Jason back for the charges on his line because we never received the text messages saying a TravelPass session had been activated. Win! Thinking the situation was resolved, the agent asked if there was anything else they could do. At this point Jason reminded the agent there were still four TravelPass charges on Tasha’s line, none of which were our responsibility. The agent repeated the familiar justification: you were charged because her line received a text message.

Finally, Jason asked the agent why Verizon was unable or unwilling to stand behind the information on its website. And remember this was the same website the agent sent us to! In the end, after a few more rounds of their ‘justification’ and Jason’s insistence that they were incorrectly using their policy, the agent mysteriously came back with a statement credit for all the charges on Tasha’s line. Success, at last!

Our Suggestions.

If you’re thinking this was a frustrating experience, we agree. Was it dishonest? We’ll leave that for you to decide, but we’re not saying it wasn’t. At the very least, if it’s true that a TravelPass session can be activated by factors beyond our control, that should be noted on their website.

We asked the agent how we could prevent this from happening in the future (always ask this; even if it doesn’t work, you can tell the next agent what you were told and that it didn’t work) and their suggestion was to keep our phones in airplane mode while we’re traveling. This is a disappointing answer, as that means some of the functionality of our phones might not work the way we want them to. Specifically, we’re not sure how the Wi-Fi function on the phones will work while in airplane mode, and we completely rely on Wi-Fi while abroad to stay in touch with folks back home. For example, if we do receive a text message from a friend or family member, we’ll respond on a Wi-Fi-based application like Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp, so we don’t get charged. We’ll have to experiment with this on our next trip to see what we can and can’t do while airplane mode is switched on. More to come.

Here are a few things we suggest doing while working through situations like this:

1. Stay calm. To be sure, this was a frustrating experience and one that took time and patience to resolve. If you aren’t someone who can keep your cool when frustrated, maybe see if someone else can lead the conversation.

• Be nice. We should be clear that our customer service agent was super nice and friendly throughout our conversation. Multiple times they said they were looking into things on their end and were doing everything they could to help with the situation. Always keep in mind that your customer service agent didn’t write the company’s policies, but they are responsible for making sure you know the policy and when it applies to you. By all means, be frustrated with dumb policies, but also recognize the person you’re speaking with didn’t make it and probably can’t change it. However, it seems reasonable to think they’re more willing to help people who are nice to them. I know I am.

• Be informed. In our case, this wasn’t the first time this had happened, so we had a precedent to use to our advantage. We also specifically asked the customer service agent for more information about the situations that lead to a TravelPass charge and, once they sent us the website, we read it very carefully. We had a reasonable understanding of this information before we traveled, but it was still nice to have available during our conversation. This is another reason we prefer the chat function rather than the phone. If we didn’t have this information available during our chat, our counter-argument would have been far less convincing.

• Stick to your case. If you’ve done your research, don’t be afraid to stick up for yourself. In our case, the total charge was $70 for the TravelPass sessions we didn’t initiate. After they credited our account for the charges to Jason’s line, that went down to $40. We’re fortunate that $40 or even $70 wouldn’t have broken our checkbook, but that’s also not the point. We were being charged for something we didn’t do and that was contrary to Verizon’s stated policy. Yes, Jason had to repeat this multiple times, but eventually it worked. We might have also noted that, if this really was Verizon’s policy, we’d need to start looking for a different carrier.

In the end, are we going to change phone carriers? Unlikely, as the other major carriers probably have similar policies. And while we probably will experiment with the agent’s suggestion to keep our phones in airplane mode on our next trip, that doesn’t seem like the best solution. So, what’s a person to do? See points 1-4, above.

The post Beware Costly Phone Mistakes: When Knowing the Policy Helps first appeared on The DeBode Way.

When we first started traveling, it wasn’t uncommon for the smaller B&Bs we’d stay at to either not have internet, or only in common areas. Think about it: it wasn’t that long ago that the major hotel brands only had hardwired internet connections in their rooms. Today that’s the stuff of nightmares. Fortunately (or not, if you’re wanting to unplug while away), that seems to be changing, allowing folks to stay connected wherever they go, at least for the most part.

However, if you’re one the rare folks who like to make regular phone calls while abroad, things can get expensive quickly if you don’t make a plan before you leave. So, let’s chat about a few things we do to help keep those costs down.

Stick to Wi-Fi

First, we try to stick to Wi-Fi-based calling as much as possible. While in Europe we’re big fans of utilizing WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, both of which work via Wi-Fi and don’t need a mobile network connection. WhatsApp is our default, as it has better encryption and is more widespread in Europe. Facebook messenger is still used, but not as frequently, at least in our experience. Both platforms let us send instant messages to the people we want to chat with, and let us call (voice or video) back home to check in. As long as we have a Wi-Fi connection, we’re set. And, like I said earlier, Wi-Fi is plentiful where we’ve been in Europe, and when it isn’t, we can take our own TravelWifi and be fine.

Verizon TravelPass

If you want the security or peace of mind of being able to make phone calls on your travels, in our experience there are two main options. We should note that our mobile carrier is Verizon (because its the best rural coverage in the US), so the following is exclusive to them. Still, it’s worth checking with your carrier to see what your options are and the prices for each. My understanding is T-Mobile and Sprint include a bit of international coverage in their normal plans.

What we’ve used the most is what Verizon calls their TravelPass. This plan, which isn’t really a plan as much as an option you can turn on/off in your account whenever you like, lets you use your regular phone plan (data, talk, and text messages) while abroad. It’ll charge you $10 per day of use ($5 per day in Canada or Mexico) and be advised that a ‘day’ is defined as a 24-hour period of time. For example, if you use your plan at 4.23pm, you’ll get a text message from Verizon letting you know your TravelPass has been activated and you’re good until 4.22 the following day. As of the writing of this post, Verizon notes that TravelPass can be used in more than 140 countries.

International Calling Plans

If you don’t want to hassle with the TravelPass and prefer more certainty about what your bill will be when you get home, Verizon also has a pre-paid international monthly plan. They used to have more options, but as of now it looks like the only international plan they have will run you $100 for the month per phone (even if your trip is only a week). It includes unlimited data, 250 minutes for calls, and unlimited texts. If you exceed your 250 minutes for phone calls, you will be charged $0.25 per minute beyond the 250 included with your plan. This, of course, is on top of the plan you use at home.

Pay-As-You-Go

This isn’t something we use and only suggest using it in emergency situations. These rates, which can be expensive, kick in when you don’t have an international calling plan and travel to a country not covered by the TravelPass (with Verizon, anyway). To make a call, expect to pay between $0.99 to $2.99 per minute, texts can cost you $0.50 to send, and your data can cost $2.05 per megabyte. These rates are as of the writing of this post and may have changed by the time you’re reading it.

International SIM cards

Using a new SIM card is something we haven’t done since we try to share a wifi plan, but especially when we’re in Europe, it seems there are plenty of folks who use this option.

First, a Subscriber Identity Module, or SIM, card is what allows you to be on your carrier’s network (you already have one in your phone). In other words, that little card is what tells Verizon’s network, in our case, that our phone is a Verizon phone and is authorized to access the network. It’s also what prevents our phones from jumping onto another carrier’s network (AT&T, for example). When you go abroad, you have the option of purchasing a new SIM card for your phone. You can either purchase a physical SIM card when you get to a new country or you can purchase an eSIM card online before you go. If you purchase an eSIM card, you virtually add it to your phone’s network settings and switch it on when you get to your destination. Easy peasy.

Most of the SIM cards come with a plan, a set number of minutes and/or gigabytes of data you can use. Some SIM cards are only useful in a single country, while others (usually more expensive) can be used in multiple countries (e.g., the entire EU). Above all else, make sure you keep your physical home SIM card in a safe place and be sure to put it back in your phone before turning it on again when you get home. Similar for the eSIM, make sure you switch back to your home SIM card already in your phone before you power down for your flight home.

This seems like a great and easy option to use you phone abroad, and it is! The company we use for our mobile hotspot also sells eSIM cards but we haven’t given it a try because it will double the total price for us. Each phone requires its own eSIM card number and it can only be used once. Currently, we share the data on one mobile hotspot and have gotten along just fine.

An example: with an eSIM we would get 20 GB of data for 15 days for $40, times two for data only = $80.
Our current hotspot from the same company is 4 GB of data for 15 days for $27 total, which is significantly less data, but it’s plenty to get us between WiFi locations.
It boils down to just how much data you think you will use. Keeping in mind, this is just data, no calling or texting plan, so you still need to use the WiFi messaging apps for everything.

Our Recommendation

If you’re familiar with our blog and the way we travel, you’ll know we try to keep our costs down as much as possible. This gives us the ability to travel more or splurge where we really want to. That same mentality applies to how we use our phones when traveling abroad. Here’s our usual routine:

1. When we get on the plane taking us out of the US, we turn off our mobile data before putting our phones in airplane mode. Why? Because if you don’t, when you land in the new country and take your phone out of airplane mode, it’ll automatically turn your data back on. If you’ve already purchased an international plan, then no worries, but if you haven’t, it’ll immediately start your first TravelPass session (if you have Verizon) and cost you $10. However, if you turn your data off before turning on airplane mode, when you take your phone out of airplane mode, your data will stay off.
2. As much as possible we stick to Wi-Fi. Almost without exception, the hotels, B&B’s, Airbnb’s, and so on will all have Wi-Fi available, and frequently for ‘free’ (it’s not free, it’s just included in the price you’ve already paid). This lets us stay in touch with family and friends, check e-mail, plan routes, and so on.
3. If we need an internet connection after we leave the hotel, we take our TravelWi-Fi hotspot with us. For the most part, we use this with Google Maps for navigation, as it’s less expensive than renting a GPS unit from the rental car company.
4. If we really need to make a phone call or connect to the internet and for whatever reason Wi-Fi either isn’t available or isn’t working, we use the TravelPass option from Verizon. Be warned, though: while Wi-Fi is more and more plentiful on your travels, your data plan might not be. At least where we go, data connections are frequently unreliable and spotty (that’s part of why we go to those places in the first place!). Also, if you do this and have Verizon, you have to turn the TravelPass option on via your online account.

Operating this way lets us save a lot of money when we travel. For example, a TravelWi-Fi plan with our mobile unit might cost us $30, but it will give us plenty of data for our trip for BOTH of us to use. Most of the time we end up not using it all because we do things that take up a bunch of data (like uploading pictures) on the Wi-Fi at our hotel. So, we can easily be gone for a 12-day trip and only spend that one-time $30 for Wi-Fi. If we used TravelPass every day, we’d spend $120, or we’d have to fork over $100+ if we paid for a pre-paid international plan.

In the end, be smart with your money and know your options. Do whatever makes you comfortable, but also know there are lots of options that can help keep you connected. Or…not.

Happy traveling!

The post How to Use Your Phone Abroad Without Breaking the Bank first appeared on The DeBode Way.