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Companies that hurt
This page will be constantly evolving. My aim here is to provide you with a list of companies which will be helpful to a person fleeing domestic violence and those to watch out for and why. I will not just be giving out names of companies, I will be giving specific examples based on my own or other's experience of how these companies were either helpful or not.
Pacific Bell - Hurt
On changing my address with Pacific Bell, I asked them to ensure that my telephone number, which was unlisted at the address I was moving from, remain unlisted at the address I was moving to. Anyone trying to remain hidden from a potentially violent ex-partner understands the paramount importance of this request.The Pacific Bell representative confirmed this request.
Five months later, I receive a call from a financial institution to whom I had NOT given my telephone number. When I asked them how they had my home phone number, they replied:
"We dialed 411 information and they gave it out"This was at 7:00 pm. I called the Pac Bell business line and they were closed. I called information and my number was indeed available and had been for the last five months!
I called the faults department (as they are the only ones still open) and explained my situation. The representative apologized and said there was nothing she could do. I explained the reason I was so distressed was that I was protecting myself from a violent person. Again she said there was nothing she could do and to call the business center in the morning.
She said, quite triumphantly, that my number had been listed for five months and if the abuser had called he would have it by now and the damage was done! I again asked them to help me due to the dire circumstances and pointed out that this was Pacific Bell's error.
The representative then went on to compare the business center of Pacific Bell to a car dealership –
"When they're closed, they're closed, there's no one there".She did offer to check with information to see what information was listed, in this case only my phone number and not my address, but that, she said was all she could do.
Frustrated by this lack of concern for my predicament and their unwillingness to take immediate action to correct their error I became very upset and was promptly hung up on.
The bottom line is: your local telephone company has a monopoly and they don't care about your situation because they know you have no choice but to use them. If you want your number unlisted, tell them you want to be non-published, that way neither your address nor your telephone number will be listed with information or in the white pages - check up on it periodically.
When a listing is changed to non-published with Pacific Bell it takes effect with 1 to 12 hours, call later on that day and check your number really is not listed. All numbers, which are published (listed) in November, will appear in the white pages the following year.
Another tip: Ask your local telephone company to list only your first initial with your last name instead of spelling out your first name and including your middle initial – this makes it much harder to identify and find you.
The Pacific Bell Business Center number is 1-800-310-2355 website: www. Pacbell.com
Pacific Bell
P.O. Box 928229
San Diego, CA 92192
Attn: Customer Service
T. Rowe Price – Help
T. Rowe Price was one of the few companies I spoke to that knew that when a change of address was filed, a copy of the new address would be sent to the old address.
Whilst I disagree with sending a copy of the new address to the old address for security reasons, at least they know about it and were able to offer me some options.
They also offered to change my account number, as this is one of the pieces of identification requested by a T. Rowe Price representative before any transactions can take place on the account over the telephone.
They do not publicize this service but do offer it in cases of divorce, separation, etc. As your ex-partner (or abuser) probably has access to other information used for security identification purposes, such as your social security number and mothers maiden name, I think offering to change the account number is a good security measure.
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