Well, I’ve finally done it. Hard to say why it has taken me this long, but I just got rid of home phone service from AT&T. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a long, long time, but I’d just failed to take action until today. Why? I liked the number, for one thing. And I use it as a code to other things, so now I’m afraid I won’t be able to remember how to get into those technical lock boxes. Also, ever since I was in the telecom business, I’ve felt the home phone line was the last, safe, reliable service in case of emergencies. Not that I’ve ever had one of those, but still. It could happen.
So what broke me. I’m in a clutter reduction, capital conservation mode going into the holidays and I’m looking for ways to cut my monthly bills. After a while, a measly $25/month phone line adds up to real money. Even more important, I seldom get a real call from someone I know on that phone. During political season, it’s robo calls from candidates of all stripes. Other times, I’m flooded with solicitations from one charity or another, despite being on every “No Call” list there is.
But the straw that broke the camel’s back was a series of what I can only imagine is some kind of scam calls. They leave cryptic messages saying this is the second notice of a judicial action against me and if I don’t respond I can face time in jail. Now, Momma didn’t raise no fools and I am a lawyer, so I do know that they don’t put you in jail for failing to answer the phone. I’m more concerned about some little old lady who may indeed think the IRS is after her. I’ve reported it, but there isn’t much the authorities can do. I, however, can remove myself from their grasp through my home phone and now I have. Success.
I spoke with a lovely man at the AT&T and, although he tried to persuade me to keep it, he did finally hook me up and also told me I was paying too much for my TV service, so we adjusted that too. I’m out of the transaction saving $50/month and I feel like a superstar.
That’s my big action for today. Purge, purge, purge. Also, it’s a great reminder to check in on those recurring bills every now and then, folks, and see if they can work some magic for you too.
Boonedoggler 
Ah, Cathy, a brave move if I say so myself. However, there is a small adjustment you could have made before you cancelled. And, now that you have cancelled, it may not be possible.
I offer this, however, to your faithful readers who may be considering cutting the cord.
If you really want to keep your landline number, you can. All you need to do is transfer it to a new service and pay the $40 fee for the transfer. Where can you transfer it to that will cost you less in the long run?
Ooma, sells a device that plugs into your internet, you can transfer your number to it ($40) and the basic monthly service is no charge.
You could transfer the landline number to google voice (again $40 for the transfer, free monthly service) and then program google voice to have the land line number call your mobile. Services such as Vonage charge $25/mo so no savings there.
The key to all of these is to transfer the number BEFORE you cancel your landline. After you have cancelled, the number is no longer yours to move around. I suppose you could reinitiate the number with ATT but they’ll probably charge an arm and a leg if you then transfer it to another service.
Overall, good move!
LikeLike
Thanks Pat. Great idea.
LikeLike