MTCO.com

SUPPORT DOCUMENT

Dial 9-1-1
After the 9-1-1 dispatcher answers the call, pressing the space bar may help you inform the dispatcher this is a TTY call.


For non-emergency or administrative calls, please refer to directory listings.

• Be clear as to what kind of assistance is needed: fire, police, medical.
• Stay on the phone and answer all questions.
• Give a specific location where help is needed (know the nearest intersection, for example).
• Stay calm and speak clearly.
• Remember, wait for help to arrive so you can direct it to the emergency. Follow the directions of the call taker. If you know basic first aid and CPR, you can help people by providing emergency assistance until professional help arrives.

1. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children1-800-THE-LOST (843-5678)
2. National Child Abuse Hotline1-800-4-A-CHILD (422-4453)
3. National Domestic Violence Hotline1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
4.    TTY1-800-787-3224
5. National Eldercare Locator Helpline1-800-677-1116
6. National Human Trafficking Hotline1-888-373-7888
7.    TTY711
8. National Runaway Safeline1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929)
9. National Sexual Assault Hotline1-800-656-HOPE (4673)
10. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline988
11. Poison Control Center Voice & TTY1-800-222-1222
12. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services National Helpline1-800-662-HELP (4357)
13. Veterans Crisis Line988 (Press 1)

The Illinois Relay Service (also known as Dual Party Relay) is a 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week service provided by Brightspeed in cooperation with the Illinois Telecommunication Access Corp. (ITAC). This service is a communication link between those who use a Teletypewriter (TTY) and those who use a standard voice telephone.

Specially trained operators relay communications between TTY users and hearing people who use a voice telephone. The relay operator will type the hearing caller’s spoken words to the TTY caller. The operator will also speak typed words received from the TTY caller to the hearing person. The operator acts as a go-between throughout the entire conversation.

All calls made through the Illinois Relay Center are kept strictly confidential. Employees may not disclose any communications they have seen or heard, and no record of the call is kept, other than for billing purposes. To use this service, contact the Illinois Relay Center by dialing one of the following toll-free numbers:

1. TTY1-800-526-0844
2. VOICE1-800-526-0857
3. Spanish TTY1-800-501-0864
4. Spanish Voice1-800-501-0865
5. VCO1-877-826-1130
6. Speech to Speech1-877-526-6690
7. ASCII1-877-526-6680
8. Telebraille Users1-877-526-6670

There are no additional charges for this service. Calls placed through Illinois Relay Center are billed at regular telephone company rates.

PLEASE NOTE: Relay Operators do not have access to 9-1-1 emergency centers. TTY users should dial their local TTY emergency numbers directly.

Avoid the frustration sometimes associated with telemarketing calls by following these five steps:

• Find out who is calling: always secure the name of the company and individual with whom you are speaking.
• If you are interested in the product or service the caller is offering, request that information be sent to you via mail. Specify that you are not agreeing to purchase anything, but would like to review the information in writing.
• If you are not interested, politely interrupt the caller and end the conversation.
• If you are sure you do not wish to receive future solicitations from that company, ask to be removed from the company’s list.
• DO NOT GIVE YOUR CREDIT CARD NUMBER unless you are certain the call is legitimate.

Illinois law protects residents from certain unwanted telemarketing calls. For more information about the Restricted Call Registry and how to enroll, visit the Illinois Commerce Commission website www.icc.illinois.gov, or call 888-382-1222 and for TTY access, 866-290-4326. You may also place your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry by calling 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1-866-290-4236) or online at WWW.DONOTCALL.GOV

It is against the law to make threatening, obscene, or nuisance calls. Should you be the victim of a threatening call, report it immediately to the police. If you do receive obscene or nuisance calls and have identified them as such, follow these suggestions:

• Hang up.
• DO NOT provide any information about yourself.
• Advise your children to do the same.
• If the calls continue, contact the police and a Brightspeed representative for advice. Often, changing your number will resolve the problem. (If available in your area, utilize Call Trace to report their number to the police.)

1. Directory Assistance411
2. Telephone Repair Service611
3. Buried Cable Locations (JULIE)800-892-0123

MTCO Business Offices
1. Marseilles815-795-5161
2. Metamora 309-367-4197

A customer can initially establish service by coming to the Marseilles Telephone Company, 244 Lincoln Street in Marseilles during our normal business hours (8 a.m.-5 p.m., Mon.-Fri.). Requests for additional services can be made in person or by calling our office at 309-367-4197 (in the Marseilles area, call 815-795-5161) during the same business hours.

MTCO, assure the payment of its charges, will require applicants and customers to establish and maintain credit.

The establishment or reestablishment of credit shall not relieve the customer from responsibility for payments, and shall in no way modify the tariff provisions regarding disconnection and termination of service for failure to pay bills.

MTCO may refuse to furnish service to an applicant who has not established credit or may require a security deposit or guaranty.

If a customer fails to keep current with his account as required by the Company, service may be discontinued after delivery of a written notice of intention to disconnect service.

If a deposit is required, it will be refunded upon establishing a history of paying the monthly bill by the due date. If the service is disconnected, the deposit will be applied to the final bill.

All charges for services, including local and long-distance, are billed every month. Your local service charge is billed one month in advance. Your long-distance and other service charges will be billed for the past month. Your “Billing Date” is shown at the top of page 1 along with the “Total” you owe and the “Past Due” date. A summary of your current charges is also printed on this page. On page two you will find the detailed description of your current long-distance charges unless these charges are billed by another long-distance carrier.

You are responsible for the payment of all charges, including any calls originating from or accepted at your premises and billed to you through your calling card.

You may pay by mail or in person the total amount you owe before the “Past Due” date. Please note your Account Number on your check and return it with the bottom portion of your bill in the return envelope. You also can log into www.mtco.com and click on eBill to pay or call 800-859-6826 to make a payment over the phone.

Any check returned due to insufficient funds will result in a non-sufficient fund fee.

Your telephone bill will be mailed to you on the 1st day of each month. This bill is due when rendered and is past due by the 21st of each month and must be paid in full.

If payment in full is not made by the 21st, you will be assessed a late payment charge of 1.5% or $10.00, whichever is greater, on your unpaid balance. This charge will be added to your next month’s statement. Also, failing to pay in full by the 21st may result in your service being disconnected for non-payment. You will receive a phone call from MTCO to inform you of the situation.

If your service is disconnected for non-payment, you must pay your bill in full plus a $10.00 restoral of service charge.

Please call a service representative at 309-367-4197 (in the Marseilles area, call 815-795-5161). We may be able to make payment arrangements. Late payments will impair your credit standing with us, and an additional deposit may be required. Repeated late payments may result in disconnection.

We are committed to providing you with the best possible service. Please read this page before you call for repairs to minimize the inconvenience and costs of a service outage.

BEFORE YOU CALL Try to locate the problem before you call MTCO.

• Unplug all telephones (and other devices) from your telephone line jacks. Reinstall the equipment one piece at a time to determine which piece is creating the problem. If your phone equipment is the problem, contact the manufacturer or the store where you bought it.
• Plug in a single-line phone directly into the modular jack that’s enclosed in the network interface device that is installed on the outside of your home. By plugging into this modular jack, you will remove any problems that could be caused by the internal wiring in your house. If the trouble is in the premise wiring or jacks, MTCO will repair it if you cannot, however, you will pay for the repair unless you have an MTCO "Home Guard Line Minder" Plan.

REPAIR CHARGES You will not be charged if:

• the trouble is in an outside line.
• you have an MTCO Home Guard Line Minder Plan.
  Otherwise, both residential and business customers will be charged:
• $62.50 service call charge.
• $62.50 for each 1/2 hour or any part thereof.
• Material costs.

Wire Maintenance
Residential Customers - $2.00 per month, per line
To Order, Call 309-367-4197 (in the Marseilles area, call 815-795-5161)

MTCO offers the latest in custom and enhanced calling features which will help to simplify your life and maximize your time, along with cost savings long-distance plans. Please contact our office for specific information and package discounts which can save you even more!

Toll-Free - call 611

Customer
Inside Wire
Modular Jack
Telephone Device
(Modem, Fax, Answering Machine, etc.)

Phone Company
Buried Phone Cable
Pedestal
Buried Service Cable
Network Interface

All telephone devices that also plug into A.C. power are especially susceptible to damage during an electrical storm. Please be sure to disconnect these devices from the telephone line jack before calling to report a line that is out of order. You will be charged for a service call if the problem is found to be in your customer-owned equipment.

Though 900 and 976 numbers do offer a wide variety of information, there is a charge for every call placed. In addition, some 800 numbers can lead to billable charges. Residence and business customers can block all 900 and 976 numbers through an optional service. For further information, please contact our business office.

Customers may connect customer-owned equipment to the Telephone Company’s facilities under certain conditions specified by the Federal Commerce Commission. Generally, these conditions require that the connection be made through FCC-approved jacks or other connecting arrangements.

The Telephone Company does not repair customer-provided equipment. The customer will be billed a service charge for each repair visit made by the Company if it is determined that the service difficulty resulted from the use of customer-provided equipment.

Before you (or your contractors) do any digging, trenching, or landscaping on or near your property, please call JULIE (Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators) for cable locations in the area. You are legally responsible for calling the JULIE toll-free number 800-892-0123 to contact utility companies in the area. This call should be placed at least 48 hours before the digging begins, but even short notice is better than neglecting to call at all. Customers will be held responsible for the repair or replacement of damaged telephone cables and other MTCO property.

We believe that our customers deserve to be treated with respect, courtesy, and honesty. If you have a complaint or grievance about our telephone services, billing, or other policies and procedures, we want to hear from you so that the matter can be settled fairly. Our service representatives and technicians have the responsibility to answer your questions in a professional manner. If you are not satisfied with the Company’s position, you may contact the Illinois Commerce Commission at 800-524-0795, 1-800-858-9277 (TTY) or send your concerns in writing to:

Illinois Commerce Commission
Consumer Services Division
527 East Capitol Avenue
Springfield, IL 62701