Global Tel Link Consumer Reviews - Page 6

CALIFORNIA -- This service is the worst ever! They have 3 minutes of recordings that they make you listen to which counts against the inmate's phone usage! We are not paying for this with money, but it counts against the time you can talk. Then when you call to set up billing the person who answers the phone will tell you that they do not service the facility that your loved one is in, and if you set up pre-paid service, you get totally ripped off because they charge you a setup fee EACH Time.

This is ridiculous and we are doing all that we can to boycott this service where my loved one is. We are instead sending money for a phone card which is cheaper, no hidden fees, and the minutes are the minutes, no unnecessary recordings!

I have had a time trying to get Global Telling on the phone so I can receive collect calls from a loved one. A friend of mine told me I could go to a check cashing place and they would be able to put money on my phone so I could receive the call and they did, they took my money... come to find out Global Telling aren't the ones who set everything up... CORRECTIONAL BILLING SERVICES are. I have their telephone number for any one who is interested 1-800-844-6591. You actually talk to a person and I could receive call the very same day!!!

FT PIERCE, FLORIDA -- This company steals our money for pre pay phone service. Today I got 5 minutes of talk time and was supposed to get 20 min. I paid in advance and $50 dollars only gives $40 dollars in time. $20 dollars for each call minus the min they steal from us. This company should be banned and the old system of just calling home collect should be brought back. Rock county jail in Florida is scamming inmate families as well. Taking money from commissary to fuel their needs... Where the hell is our tax money going??? Government needs to stop this bull and pay out for what we are taxed on...

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA -- I double dog dare you to stop using Global Tel Link for 30-60 days. I think that customers who use Global Tel Link should boycott the use of their services for a 30-60 day period. The company provides the worst customer service I've ever encountered and will never use the service again. I know the importance of talking to our loved ones but come on who are we kidding. They are providing a service that is not a necessity to live on like electricity and they should provide a decent (not better), a decent customer service to all the people who use their service.

I guarantee you, if we, their customers, stopped using the service for a 30-60 day period, they would lose money and start providing better service. The question are you brave enough to take that sacrifice? If you are willing to take a stand, the months of February and March 2008, we will take a stand for get better service. Let's tell them what we want from them as their customers.

HOLLISTER, MISSOURI -- My wife is in an Arkansas DOC. We recently have been speaking through collect calling. Well she reached a limit, then I had to set up a pre-pay account. As of today, 1-20-08, there is a credit of $81.00. She has been trying to call, it will not let her through. It says there is a block on the phone. I call the phone number I have to verify the account, and the automated system tells me there is no account for my number. It happened just now!!! Still will not let her through!! Pisses me OFF!!!

OK, I now have a balance of $99.44. She will be able to call until that credit is used. You think!! But no, it lets her call once then says there is no account set up. Also it says that no one in the past six months has called my number from a correctional facility using GTL. **! This company is a rip off and I don't mind telling them!!

COVINGTON, GEORGIA -- I have tried to resolve a bill dispute with this company since early Sept 07. Your on hold forever. You are offered to have someone call you back. They never do. When you get a live person, they make dumb statements. Is this a jail to upstate prison, you're asked. When you question the difference, they mention pay phone use by depositing 50 cents. If a direct question is asked, they will connect you to supervisor.

You will wait 30 minutes or more and get another IVR that your person can't talk to you, leave a message if you want. Try it !! I got somewhere the other day when I dialed a number I got off internet. A rep. I believe in South America. She told me the facilities set their own rates. I thought that was interesting. She still was not able to resolve my problem. I am sorry about not making dispute totally clear. I have just been over this so many times.

It is the charges per call. You cannot get a live person to explain their billing policy as to why their rates are off the scale. In case anyone is interested: A lawsuit was filed against MCI, then Verizon by Center for Constitutional Rights representing prisoners' families in New York. As of April 1, 2007, the new rates for them was $1.50 to connect .08 cents a minutes. Check this out. Thought this was interesting.

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE -- The reason it costs so much for calls is because the Dept of Corrections receives such a huge kickback for the collect calls. They make millions of dollars by ripping off the family and friends of inmates. They are the ones who suffer with the phone expense. I was shocked at some of the cruel uncaring comments on here about inmates. Some are innocent but most are guilty but their family and friends are only guilty of loving an inmate. If it was your brother, sister, mother, dad, etc. you would want to hear their voice.

You say "no way it could never happen to me." Think again! In a matter of seconds a life can be turned upside down. Sentences are given for longer years, life, death sentences. They are human beings although a lot of people would not think that and want them thrown away to never get out. BUT the majority do get out and can be your neighbor or the person who takes care of you at the store, etc. You might be surprised. Many return but some never do and their life changes after prison. If they have contact with their family and friends and have a support system there is less of a chance they will re-offend.

DULUTH, GEORGIA -- My entire experience with Global Tel Link has been horrible. The "customer service" reps are rude, unprofessional and while I realize that my brother committed a crime and put himself in prison my family is decent and hardworking and we don't deserved to be punished by any phone company. Our lives are difficult enough without being treated as criminals ourselves and the treatment heaped on my whole family by these people should be a criminal offense!

If you dare ask to speak to a supervisor they immediately hang up, so don't dare question the authority of these horrid people or they will make it virtually impossible for you to ever speak to your loved one over the phone again. I sent a payment on September 1, 2007 and it is now the 28th and they still haven't credited my account and calling them is no help at all...just demeaning. Can't anyone do something about them?

On top of the fees you're charged to place money on the phone via the pay portal they take a 19% service fee to coincide with the fee you were already charged... I placed $100 on my phone and got a whooping $30 and some charge took between paying the fees and the funds that I place on the phone. The people you get on the phone with already have their mouths fixed to tell you what they won't do (credit your accounts) on top of them robbing you, when you call in to notify them that the system accused you of making a three way call disconnects the line (when it was only you and your loved one on the line).

They make it a habit not to credit your account especially if you're using a cell phone, mind you I have T-mobile service with good service in my particular area, but as worded from the rep, they don't give credits back towards cell phones period... Not to mention the reps that you speak with on the line are cold hearted and rude, they don't care for the customer, they don't care to hear your situation. All they want to do is tell you what they cannot do, which is basically nothing to satisfy the customer, which is more than fine because lord spare my life my husband will be home on the 12th of October 2011 and I won't ever have to place money on my phone via gtl.

Global Tel is a complete scam. I can't believe the jails are using this company. I got a house phone to accept the collect calls cheaper and for a month it was great. I was able to accept the calls for cheaper than adding money each time he called. Then all of a sudden Global Tel put a block on my phone and said they're not billing the phone companies anymore, that they will only be accepting prepaid calls which is so expensive. My boyfriend told me that wasn't true because other inmates were accepting collect calls to home. I even called the phone company and they said there was no block on their end.

This is so frustrating. Global Tel charges my credit card even when they don't connect my call. The recording kept saying my card was denied and didn't let me talk to my loved one but the next day I have five different $25 connect charges from Global Tel.

When I called to complain customer service said they would take the block off this one time because I exceeded my monthly $75 limit. Well what is it then?! I've been told so many different stories. I can't take this phone company anymore!!!