Your Rights to Continued Telephone Service
Know Your Rights To Continued Telephone Service
1. The Department of Telecommunications and Energy (DTE) should not terminate your telephone service for failure to pay telephone service charges that you are disputing.
If you believe your telephone bill is wrong, write or call:
Department of Telecommunications and Energy
Consumer Division
One South Station
Boston, MA 02110
(617) 305-3531 (800) 392-6066 (Toll Free) (800) 323-3298 (TTY)
2. The DTE should not terminate your telephone service if you tell them a seriously ill person resides in your household.
If you cannot pay your bill and continued access to telephone service is needed because of serious illness, call or write to DTE. Your doctor may initially call DTE on your behalf, but follow-up documentation may be required. A serious illness may postpone or require restoration of service for as much as 90 days in some cases.
3. The DTE should not terminate your telephone service if you can demonstrate you are unable to pay your bill and a personal emergency exists.
If you have a personal emergency and cannot pay, call or write to DTE. A personal emergency may postpone or require restoration of service for as much as 30 days.
Only DTE can terminate telephone service in the home of a person aged 65 or older, and not without first investigating to make certain (1) the elder received a proper warning; (2) the telephone service company reasonably tried to obtain payment; and (3) did not refuse a fair offer of payment.
If you disagree with a DTE order to terminate your telephone service, you may call or write the Consumer Division at DTE, as listed above, and request a formal hearing.
Additional Resources:
1. Coastline Elderly Services, Inc.
Services available through Coastline include:
- Money Management: This program can assist you in managing your money and property.
- Home Care: This program includes services such as personal care, home delivered meals, social day care, transportation, etc.
- Protective Services: If you are a victim of elder abuse, neglect or financial exploitation, you may seek assistance through this program.
You may contact Coastline Elderly Services, Inc. at:
Coastline Elderly Services, Inc.
1646 Purchase St.
New Bedford, MA 02740
Telephone 1-508-999-6400 TDD 1-508-994-4265
2. Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
If you have questions about your consumer rights and responsibilities, please contact:
Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
10 Park Plaza, Suite 5170
Boston, MA 02116
(888) 283-3757 (toll free, in MA only) or (617) 973-8787
3. Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS)
If you are having trouble paying your bills, you may consider contacting CCCS to create a debt repayment plan.
In these plans, you develop a payment agreement with a counselor, and the service distributes your payments to the creditors.
You may contact the CCCS at:
Consumer Credit Counseling Service
8 Winter Street, 10th Floor
Boston, MA 02108
(617) 426-6644 or (800) 388-2227
4. Legal Services
If you would like to learn more about your legal rights, or how to find a lawyer to help stop a telephone shut-off or obtain restoration of telephone service, call the elder law project attorney at:
1-508-997-9781
If you would like to learn more about the statewide eldercare network and services for elders and their caregivers available throughout the Commonwealth, please call (800) AGE-INFO (1-800-243-2646) or visit www.800ageinfo.com
