What To Do If Your
Cell Phone Is Lost Or Stolen? :There are situations in which sometimes we
get in, that we feel rather helpless or
without knowing exactly what to do or where
to go for help. Having a personal
cell phone
(telefone celular) lost or stolen may be one
of these situations. In cases like these the
following tips may be of some help at least
to minimize the potential problems you may
run into.
1 - You should take care of your
cell phone
(telefone celular) as if it were your
personal wallet. The best way to avoid being
liable with fraudulent charges is to do
whatever you can within your means to avoid
unauthorized calls in the first place.
Check
the user guide that comes with your phone
set and start using the lock or password
feature to potentially prevent a theft from
making unauthorized phone calls. There are
ways to get around passwords, but you will
probably be buying yourself some time until
you realize the loss of your cell phone and
call your service phone provider.
2 - Call your cell phone (telefone celular)
service provider as soon as you discover the
loss. Report your missing/stolen device and
be sure to keep records of the date and time
you called your phone carrier, the name of
the person to whom you spoke to, and what
you have been informed.
Also take note of
the state and the region of their call
center, plus their telephone extension
number. Finally ask for confirmation in
writing that your device has been disabled.
Some companies can even email this to you.
3 - File a police report. It may not be much
of a help in getting your cell phone (telefone
celular) back, but it should provide an
official record of the missing/stolen cell
phone. Keep the police report number
available while reporting the loss to the
phone carrier. Also you may open an
investigation with your carrier if necessary.
If you are not getting an immediate response
by working directly with your cell phone (telefone
celular) company, do not waste any more
time. Contact your phone carrier and request
an immediate investigation. Usually a formal
request for an investigation will prevent
formal collections filed by the phone
carrier, not to mention that might delay
reporting to any credit bureaus against the
phone user.
4 - When requesting an investigation, let
your phone carrier know that you will be
filling a complaint with the Federal
Communication Commission (FCC), your state
attorney general`s office, and your state`s
public utility commission (PUC). After
taking these steps, the phone carriers will
most likely pay closer attention to you,
once they become aware that you are an
informed consumer. According to a 2006 AARP/ROPER
cell phone survey, half of all cell phone
users between the age of 18 and over, report
not knowing who to call to in the event
their cell phone carrier is unable to
resolve a billing/service problem to the
user satisfaction. Beware that FCC is going
to forward your complaint to your phone
service provider, requiring a return from
them within a month.
5 - Contact your attorney general`s office.
According to their website, state attorney
general offices handles complaints about
cell phone frauds and contract disputes.
This office has lawsuits against phone
companies based on phone user complaints,
resulting sometimes in refunds to consumers
and new agreements made by cell phone (telefone
celular) service providers on behalf of
their cell phone users.
Also contact your
state`s
PUC. Each state has a government
agency, usually called utility commission,
which handles consumer problems with
telephone companies.
A missing or stolen
cell phone (telefone
celular) may become a big problem if the
user does not take immediate actions. Filing
a formal missing/stolen report together the
with cell phone service carrier and
government agencies are the necessary steps
one should take to make sure he will not
have any more losses.
Get to know your
rights as a consumer and make sure the any
loss you are going to have, in the event of
a missing/stolen cell phone (telefone
celular), will be the cell phone itself.
About the author:
This article can also be accessed in
portuguese language from the News Article
section of page
www.polomercantil.com.br/celular.php
Roberto Sedycias has a bachelor degree in
Business Administration and over 20 years
experience in systems analysis and computer
programming. Currently working as IT
consultant for
www.polomercantil.com.br
