CUB Holds Free Clinic In Park Ridge To Save Consumers Hundreds Of Dollars A Year On Phone Bills
CHICAGO, Feb. 2, 2010—The Citizens Utility Board’s (CUB) “Don’t Overspend in 2010” campaign is coming to Park Ridge to help consumers cut their calling costs by hundreds of dollars a year.

Contact:
For more information call
Patrick Deignan at 312-263-4282 (office) or 847-636-0677 (cell).
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CUB released a report in 2009 estimating that Illinois callers could be overpaying by about $1.5 billion a year—but most could enjoy big savings by making a few simple changes on their phone bills. Since then, the consumer group has shown phone customers how to save millions of dollars through an award-winning website, www.CitizensUtilityBoard.org, and free clinics that give people tips on how to slash their local and long-distance bills by an average of about $200 a year. The next clinic is:

2 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 16
Park Ridge Public Library
20 S. Prospect Ave.
Park Ridge


Space is limited, so please register for this event by calling the library at 847-825-3123.

“Most people are paying too much for phone service, but CUB can help you deflate your bloated phone bill,” CUB Executive Director David Kolata said. “We’ve been showing consumers how to cut their phone bills by hundreds of dollars a year, and that’s good news in tough economic times.”

Consumers frequently complain that they can’t get reliable information from the phone company, which often just throws them a sales pitch for a more expensive plan. At CUB’s clinics, however, citizens will receive helpful tips about:

The CUB Cellphone Saver—a state-of-the art online tool that automatically analyzes individual wireless bills. The Cellphone Saver, created by a Texas-based company called Validas, has been showing consumers how to cut their wireless bills by an average of more than $300 a year.
The new CUB-designed Consumer’s Choice local-calling plans that AT&T is forced to offer under a legal settlement. Unlike AT&T’s other plans, these plans are designed to save most consumers money.
Illinois’ best long-distance plans, including how to get an automatic $20 credit negotiated by CUB. That amounts to nearly 11 hours of free calls.
Line-Backer, a costly—and optional—AT&T service that most people don’t need.
Attendees should bring their phone bills so CUB experts can analyze them and give cost-cutting tips.

CUB is Illinois’ leading nonprofit utility watchdog organization. It was created by the Illinois legislature in 1983 to represent the interests of residential and small-business utility customers. Since then, CUB has saved consumers more than $10 billion by helping to block rate hikes and secure refunds. For more information, call CUB’s Consumer Hotline at 1-800-669-5556.