Q: T-Mobile started charging me $1.50 for receiving a paper bill? Can they legally do this? I don’t want to pay online and several friends have no computer.— Helen Sims, Denver
A: It’s probably how the buggy-whip manufacturer felt as the first automobile drove by his shop.
Like it or not, technological advances are just that — advancing. And paperless billing is merely the offspring of our own computer age coming of age.
Known as “electronic bill presentment and payment,” paperless billing kicked into gear around 1999 as a way for businesses to save money.
Now, however, the excuse is “going green,” which is pretty funny considering many customers like yourself are now forced to print the bill themselves so, in the end, it’s actually not saving many more trees, but saves the company the postage and envelope.
Legally they can do it since they’ve notified you of the change. Frankly, T-Mobile is slow to go paperless. Other wireless providers such as Verizon have been that way for a time, though only charge the fee if you want a detailed bill. A regular statement is still free. T-Mobile charges $3.49 for a detailed paper bill.
Paying online is merely an option and you’re still able to print the bill and mail your payment, the folks at T-Mobile tell me. But for those without computer access, such as your friends, the alternatives are not that simple.
Of course they’re able to use free computers in libraries, but print the bill and suddenly you’ve used paper. Since it belongs to the library, you’ve got to pay 10 cents or more for it.
It’s almost worth paying the $1.50.
And T-Mobile does offer cellphone services to know how much you owe (dial #225#) or how many minutes you have unused (dial #646#).
But it’s the continuing wave. Some cities are even leaning toward the practice. Officials of Columbia, Mo., said they’ll be asking citizens to accept paperless utility bills. If just 10 percent of citizens buy in, the city will save $35,000.
