Tmobile is charging me for intl data with the intl email plan

[soxwrx]

Just a heads up for all of those claiming you wont be charged for using data overseas with the international email plan! NOT TRUE! I have been in europe for under 2 weeks UK, France, Belgium, Netherlands i have the international unlimited email plan and I am showing $67 in roaming charges on my account. I made one 10min phone call when i thought i was in UMA oops! But that was a $23 charge and now its gone up to 67. I have been using wifi everytime i can as well. Here are the Apps ive been using BBmessenger , brower, facebook, bank of america (which i believe just opens the browser). I have the Curve 8900 and opened my Tmobile account last month. This sucks i thought i was going to be getting away with lots of data use but knew this might happen. im cutting down to just email and BBmessenger which only uses .025K per message. anyone else over here getting charged like me????

[XxTRCxX]

The only way you can get out of this, is if you record your phone calls lol. Always remember the name of the rep, and try and ask the location of where they are. That way if something happens you can always give them the rep, and location. They have everything logged as to who went in your account anyways, but if you show them you know i am more than sure they will do something about it. If not, i would ask for a supervisor.

[DenimDemon]

That's nothing, I would love a $67 roaming charge... mine could potentially be thousands when I return from Paris in 3 months... I am keeping close tabs on my bill. I just posted this in another thread:

So I just got to Paris. My e-mail works fine of course, but I decided to experiment. I used internet browsing, facebook, twitterberry, and google maps. Then I called T-Mobile to check in on my bill. They said the only record thay have for me is a $0.35 international text message that I sent. But they also said that it can take from a few hours to a few days for the French telecom company to let T-Mobile know about the roaming charges. I really hope nothing appears on my bill because I would love to have internet while in Paris!

[mattglobal]

My guess is that you're being charged for the international voice and SMS usage. I've posted copies of my bill before that show no charge for lots of MBs in Japan, China, Europe, etc.

[luave1]

I work for an airline and I travel all over the world. About three months ago I got the Curve 8900 from T-Mob and I was offered the international plan for $19.99 on top of my BB data plan for $25.00. I took it because I thought it was a good price.
However, my first trip with the 8900 took me to Tokyo and the trouble began. The 8900 can not be used in Japan because it is not 3G. The "international service" should have an asterik stating that it is not usable in CDMA countries that do not support T-Mob's GSM technology. The rep at Tmob offered to sell me a 3G phone, (apparently Japan has 3G now according to the Tmob rep,) and blamed Japan for not having GSM/EDGE service and "not installing towers to support GPRS."
Then, the "international data service" for $19.99 offered to me by the rep, (when I told him I worked for an airline and would like to use the service overseas and asked how much it will cost me,) turned out to only cover email such as Gmail or Hotmail or any other email you can set up and have an icon on the BB home screen. Found out when I got the bill! And turns out, that, in fact, is what the service is called "Blackberry Unlimited International Email" but that is not what the rep told me. He said "International Data Plan"! Other reps, when I called to find out about those charges, also kept on referring to it as "International Data Plan."
Some of the charges took over 2 months to appear, but they did appear. It depends on how long it takes the carrier you use overseas to send the bill to T-Mob. This happened in Hong Kong, Paris, Munich, Amsterdam, London and Frankfurt. This month I am going to Sao Paulo, Brazil and will find out if the email service works there. It should, Brazil is GSM.
I called T-Mob customer service and because I was able to demonstrate with dates, times and name of the rep that I had been told that for $19.99 I could get intenational data service, (and not just email,) I got credit for those charges. Overseas I used the BB messenger and visited some sites on the internet with the browser. It took forever to find out if I was being charged or not for the BB messenger and Windows Live Messenger or just the internet browsing usage. No one could give me an answer, no one knew if the IM messengers, (like the Gmail messenger, Windows, BB, etc,) were considered email or data transfer service. Finally a girl rep put me on hold for a long time and came back with the answer: The service, at it is named, It is for email only! All reps I spoke with, except for the girl rep, didn't know if IM was considered email or internet use, that the service was just for email, etc. Even after finding out it was just for email kept on calling it International data Plan!
Turns out that my charges were for both internet browsing and IM service. Some people here say they didn't get charged, lucky for them. It was because of some glitch or the bill has not arrived yet.
Also, if you are overseas and your telephone rings, even if you turn it off or click ignore, you will be charged one minute talk time. What upsets me with T-Mob regarding international service is that they tell you one thing, and then it is another. The reps give you wrong info. When you get the bill and call to complain, they reseach and then direct you to the some obscure link with the info or give you the bad news.

Now my question:

I downloaded the app for the Weather from BB App World. It can be programmed to update itself from 30min to 4hrs. How can I disable it so I would not be charged for data transfer every 4hrs? Would I have to uninstall and reisntall the app every time I go overseas, which is almost every week? If that is the case, forget it. Will just get rid of it!
Thanks for any help regarding the Weather App.

[soxwrx]

Originally Posted by mattglobal

My guess is that you're being charged for the international voice and SMS usage. I've posted copies of my bill before that show no charge for lots of MBs in Japan, China, Europe, etc.

i have used ZERO SMS and made 1 10 min phone call that i was billed 23 dollars for.....my roaming charges are now up to 89 dollars....i am begin billed by the megabyte for all of my data use outside of email.....when was the last time you were in europe matt? i think you may find that tmobile has got their act together and now knows how to bill data and email separately.

[SpyDude]

Originally Posted by soxwrx

Just a heads up for all of those claiming you wont be charged for using data overseas with the international email plan! NOT TRUE!

Yeah not surprised, T-Mobile has been actively enforcing data plans of late. This is why it's important to advise about the potential for charges even though so far few have been billed. We have a few users who perpetually post that T-Mobile won't and can't charge but the reality is they can according to the Terms. Glad you caught this before it became a huge several hundred dollar bill.

Originally Posted by XxTRCxX

The only way you can get out of this, is if you record your phone calls lol.

No first they don't allow that, and that doesn't matter. The Terms clearly stated T-Mobile can and will charge for data used abroad. Some people haven't been charged, myself included, but that never ruled out that eventually T-Mobile would begin actively billing for this. At best a rep can make a one-time credit and usually for just half or less.

[luave1]

When you call, if you hear a T-Mobile, (or any other compant for that matter,) recorded tape, (or live voice,) stating the conversation is being recorded, you can record the conversation too without having to tell them that you are doing so. If they don't mention that any recording of the conversation is about to happen, (for quality assurance, tranining, etc,) then you have to advise that you will be recording. Federal Law only requires one party consent.

[burbunny]

Just ordered my 8900 and inquired about the international plan, as I do a lot of traveling. The rep made sure to emphasize the $19.99 was for email only, that data was not included, nor were calls, in that amount. Thank heavens.

Now if they'd get an international flat rate data plan, I'd be a very happy camper.

[soxwrx]

yeah i was flat out misinformed by the rep at the store about the international data. i might try to back out of my contract and get sprint who has unlimited international data for $70. Ive only been out of the country for 2 weeks and have racked up 100 bucks in data roaming. Why don't they offer an unlimited data plan????? ATT has a business only unlimited for 65 which im also looking into. To make it worse i just saw that T-mobile UK has dropped their european roaming down to like 1 pound per megabyte.

[c0rinne]

You might try, you know, not using data now, since you know that you're going to be paying a lot for it.

[soxwrx]

Originally Posted by c0rinne

You might try, you know, not using data now, since you know that you're going to be paying a lot for it.

wow i never thought of that :-\

[c0rinne]

Well, I'm here to help.

[jvd]

Is it possible that T-zones is still active on you phone? That might be one f the problems.
Maybe you can ask T-mobile to send the services books again

[sk33m0]

ok, please tell me what plan you all are talking about. There are NO international plans that will let you download your emails for free. Check the website, its on there under coverage. it states that you are charge $15/mb in all countries other then canada $10.

if you let any rep know you are recording a call they will warn you and disconnect you. FYI.

****8900 does not have 3 (bull[b][/b][b][/b][b][/b][b][/b] I know) so it will not work in japan. Its much easier for that country to blanket and upgrade there services then it is here. the nazi's at the FCC continually slow everything down.