Holiday Callers Get Tips on Selecting Phone Firm

Not all of the long-distance telephone companies let their customers off the hook with lower rates on some holidays, but all of them force consumers into a five-digit fit if they want to switch carriers.

It isn’t hard to get your wires crossed.

However, the 13th edition of a calling comparison chart assembled by a privately funded consumer advocacy group could help callers’ fingers walk their way through the long-distance labyrinth.

American Telephone & Telegraph, Allnet, Mid American and MCI do not consider Memorial Day a holiday, but ITT, US Sprint, Western Union and TDX do, according to Tele-Tips, the work of the Telecommunications Research & Action Center.

Sprint is the only company that recognizes Presidents Day as a low-price calling day.

The eight largest long-distance companies offer lower rates on New Year’s, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, the survey reports.

A discounted rate is offered from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time on holidays.

The chart has been published quarterly since serious competition developed in the long-distance telephone market. “Rates, services and features are changing rapidly,” the publication says.

Tele-Tips recommends that consumers spending less than $10 monthly on long-distance calls should review their choice of company annually. Customers with bigger tabs should reconsider their choice more frequently.

Once the choice is made, consumers are still free to hop from one company to another by dialing a few extra digits, the publication says.