AT&T; Fined for Slamming; Qwest Settles Similar Case

U.S. and state regulators will collect more than $1 million in payments from AT&T; Corp. and Qwest Communications International in cases involving complaints that the firms switched customers’ long-distance carriers without permission, an illegal practice known as “slamming.”

The Federal Communications Commission fined AT&T;, the nation’s largest long-distance company, $520,000. The FCC said it received 1,000 complaints from consumers about AT&T; and found that the firm had improperly switched 11 phone lines to AT&T; service without customer permission.

In a separate case, long-distance company Qwest agreed to pay $500,000 to New Jersey agencies to settle allegations of slamming in that state. The Denver-based phone company did not admit wrongdoing. The settlement, the largest in the state’s history, also includes a mandate that Qwest implement anti-slamming measures.

New Jersey regulators said Qwest sometimes used forged authorization letters or didn’t obtain them at all before switching customers to its service. They also claimed that the company billed consumers for monthly service charges even when the customers refused its services and continued billing after people had canceled accounts.

Representatives for AT&T; and Qwest couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

On the New York Stock Exchange, AT&T; fell 25 cents to close at $21.85 while Qwest closed up 54 cents at $36.24.