Total Call International, Inc. Sanctioned by State of California

Total Call International (TCI), a Los Angeles based telecommunications provider that markets prepaid calling cards and other services, has settled a calling card fraud suit brought by the State of California.

"Total Call International has raked in profits by advertising bargain basement prices then charging exorbitant fees when their cards were used." Attorney General Edmund G. Brown said. "Today's agreement safeguards California's consumers by forcing this company to fully disclose hidden and deceptive calling card fees."

Among other items, the suit against Total Call International (TCI) charged that the company was defrauding by charging steep undisclosed fees to its customers. In particular, the company was accused of charging 'hidden and deceptive' fees on its prepaid calling cards.

Under the settlement, TCI will pay civil penalties of $300,000, will refrain from fraudulent calling card marketing practices, including fully disclosing all fees and surcharges, and maintain records taht allow effective monitoring of TCI's business operations. The company will be under scrutiny for four years.

Total Call International, Inc. has been on the losing end of two other suits by Attorney's General in both Florida and New Jersey. More information on these actions can be found by following links on this page: Calling Card Fraud Settlements which tracks calling card fraud cases in the United States.

More information

• California Office of the Attorney General announcement
• ConsumerAffairs.com article
• Los Angeles Times article
• Total Call International website

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