Problem Solver: MagicJack Refunds Customer

The ads for magicJack say watch your phone bill disappear! Not a bad deal in this kind of economy. But a North Carolina couple says their experience using the discount phone service was hardly a magical one. And we did some digging and found the Better Business Bureau gives them the worst rating possible. Dianne Derby has the details in this 7 On Your Side Problem Solver.

William Smith says setting up magicJack is a breeze...plug your phone line into the jack and then into your computer and you're set. And at only $20 a year for local and long distance calls he and his wife Gladys say it was a deal.

"We thought this is great for us and retired people in our area," said Mrs. Smith.

For a while they didn't have any problems and then they stopped being able to make calls out. They were sent a replacement but that didn't work either. And the company's live chat...a bust say the Smith's.

"They repeated the same questions over and over and I said on the very end I starting saying are you not reading what I have already previously written," said Mrs. Smith.

The Smith's printed out the records of their live chat with magicJack. They say they spent at least 12 hours online trying to get their issue resolved.

"I wanted to give them an opportunity to make it right," said Mr. Smith.

We're not as patient and after several minutes on live chat we finally got an e-mail address that put the Smith's complaint in the hands of the inventor of the magicJack, Dan Borislow. He told us he wasn't available for a phone interview but the Smith's would get a $50 refund for the jack and shipping. Borislow said they could have escalated their chat to a super agent. Not so easy say the Smith's.

"If you get on there with one person if they can't help you they'll end the chat," said Mrs. Smith.

"There is a problem somewhere that's not being resolved," said the Upstate Better Business Bureau's Kathy Barrett. She says the company has a rating of "F" which is the lowest rating possible. (To see BBB report click here.) MagicJack's Borislow says that rating is a "mistake" but didn't tell us why. Barrett says it's not a mistake.

"Better Business Bureaus report on facts, facts of the file, factual information, the "F" is placed there for good reason," said Barrett.

And that failing grade has the Smith's wanting others to listen up.

"We just don't want other people taken in by this we feel it is a bad product and we thought it was something helpful," said Mrs. Smith.

Remember do your job as a consumer! We can't tell you enough how important it is to check out a company before you choose to do business with them. You can look into complaints by checking with your Better Business Bureau, the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs, and the SC Attorney General's office. Doing so may save you time, money, and your peace of mind.