Thieves at Montego Bay Airport, Jamaica

[marinebio]

Just thought I'd warn everyone going through Montego Bay Airport, Jamaica (MBJ) - in August we flew through there on our way to Bonaire for an expedition. My sister brought her cell phone along in her checked baggage. At the end of two weeks in Bonaire she discovered it was missing. She reported it stolen the next day once back in Houston and her next bill showed up with $6400 worth of calls on it. The phone company insists she has to pay it because the calls were placed before she reported it stolen. All calls were placed from Jamaica and the phone was stolen by airport personnel while we transfered from one plane to the next (bags were on the ground there for about an hour).

$6400 - she doesn't have it, can't pay it, can only go to court to fight it without a lawyer because she can't afford that either. So her credit will be ruined all because she decided to take a cell phone on vacation....

 

[RonFrank]

Just thought I'd warn everyone going through Montego Bay Airport, Jamaica (MBJ) - in August we flew through there on our way to Bonaire for an expedition. My sister brought her cell phone along in her checked baggage. At the end of two weeks in Bonaire she discovered it was missing. She reported it stolen the next day once back in Houston and her next bill showed up with $6400 worth of calls on it. The phone company insists she has to pay it because the calls were placed before she reported it stolen.

$6400 - she doesn't have it, can't pay it, can only go to court to fight it without a lawyer because she can't afford that either. So her credit will be ruined all because she decided to take a cell phone on vacation....

It's not just credit, IF the phone company get's this to court, there will likely be a judgement. That judgement will NOT just be for $6200, they will add on court and lawyer fees. Then they may go after her wages assuming she has a job.

She needs to determine what liability she has in this based on her contract with the phone service provide. So many of us just sign these huge documents, but don't every bother reading what we have agreed to (I'm guilty of this :11: ).

She should DEFINATELY call the PUC and determine what type of regulations (if any) that the may apply to agreements with the service provider.

Fighting one of the phone giants would be VERY expensive. It may cost her MORE in attorny fees then the entire amount of the bill, and you can bet the phone company will be added in THEIR costs.

The PUC is VERY effective at dealing with utility company issues, but only if the company maybe in violation of a regulation.

I truely hope things work out well for your Sis, but this could turn out to be a VERY ugly, expensive problem. For the charges you describe, it's highly unlikely the phone company will just let this slide without legal action.

The unfortunate lesson learned is... don't put an active phone in checked baggage, password protect personal devices, and verify the contents of checked baggage upon arrival of the destination.

Ron

 

[RonFrank]

If your sister determines she is liable for part or all of this charge, the best approach is to try and come to an agreement with the phone company.

I work for a phone company. While I do NOT work on the billing side, I do mediate network switch traffic. The actual charges that the phone company will incure involves service fees paid to many other network providers. The good news is this amount is pennies on the dollar.

If your sister determines she is liable for the charges, she needs to attempt to reach an agreement to pay some amount. If she does NOT do this, the phone company will act in a very set manner. The likely course of actions will be letters of collection, turning it over to internal collections, turning it over to legal, court, a judgement, and garnishment of wages. The farther down this path the phone company proceeds the more difficult it will be to negoiate. While you sis may take this VERY personally, the phone company will not, and the more departements that get involved, the more difficult it will be to deal with.

I Truely hope that things work out, and that the phone company recognizes that your sister should not be help responsible. However I doubt that will happen, and if this gets to legal, the charges will build rapidly, and this can turn into a TRUE nightmare.

Good Luck,
Ron

 

[marinebio]

Thanks guys, we're helping her find the best solution and contacting everyone to find out what the options are. Just wanted to make sure people know this stuff does happen so others can avoid problems like this. We'll most likely all pitch in to help her pay when it comes down to it.

 

[Willar]

I agree with the tactic of negotiation with the phone company. They do NOT like to turn it over to collections department because it costs too much money. Negotiate but not with the operator who answers. Ask for a supervisor who has authority to negotiate or a collections manager. They want to collect as much as possible without incurring additional collection costs. Negotiate for 30 days before you do anything!

Edited to add:
Do not take it personal and do NOT cut off communications or get angry. Stay polite but stern. Keep saying "I can't do THAT but here's what I CAN do..." Keep suggesting solutions to keep the communications going. If you get mad and harsh, so will they.