How to Change Telephone Companies
People choose to change their telephone company for many reasons. They may have found a better rate, cheaper Internet service or any number of reasons. This is often not a problem because the phone companies must follow specific guidelines in placed by the Federal Trade Commission (FCC) their regulatory body.
Things you will need:
- Phone bill
- Telephone
- Zip code
- Phone contract
- Research all your options before you switch to another telephone company. Often, a phone company offers new customers incentives to switch, but sometimes they come with many stipulations in the fine prints and are not good incentives. So, double-check the offer you receive before you switch your services.
- Call the new phone company that you want to switch to. Give the company your current phone number, account number and zip code. The new company will contact your present phone company to start the switching process.
- Decide whether you want to use your old phone number or whether you want to obtain a new phone number. FCC mandates that you can switch your telephone number to another company whether you use wireless service, VOIP or a wired home phone.
- Take care of any outstanding bills you may owe your present phone carrier and any termination fees applicable. Your phone contract will indicate whether there are any termination fees in placed. Usually there are no termination fees for a wired line, but check to make sure. Since, an old company could block you from porting your telephone number to a new carrier if you have an outstanding balance.
- Set up your new service start date. Normally a phone transfer occurs in a day or two even if you switch from a wired connection to a wireless connection or VOIP.
- Contact your new phone carrier on the day of the switch to ensure all features are working correctly. If you switch from a wired to wireless, you may have service with the same phone number on the first day of the switch only.