Don't Let The Bad Economy Get You Down!
May 5, 2009 6:52 pm US/Eastern
Cutting Corners: Cutting The Cord On Your Landline
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
Trying to cut costs wherever possible is pretty common these days but have you considered cutting the cord on your landline? It's a decision faced by many cell phone users who are looking save money by ditching home telephone service in favor of using only a cell phone.
"You've got internet and everything with text message," says Gabriel Guerra.
Guerra told
CBS 4 Your Money Reporter Gwen Belton that he never leaves home without his cell phone, in fact, he got rid of his home phone altogether four years ago.
"Definitely more economical," he says.
For that reason, many people are making the decision to cut the cord on their landline, in favor of using only their cell phone or internet phone service.
"There are a lot of people that see more value in having a wireless device where they can do everything they can do on a landline plus they can be more mobile," says Rafael Fuentes, store manager at the Sprint store in Doral.
He says cell phone users can save up to $200 a year by dropping their home phone service. However, while there are numerous advantages to having a cell phone there is one thing you might want to consider before you completely cut the cord on your home phone and that's safety.
"Some of the cons that you have getting rid of your landline is we don't always have the accuracy for locating you with 911 service," said Lt. Woody Bahr with the City of Miami Fire Rescue Department.
Lt. Bahr says when a 911 call comes in from a cellular phone, finding the caller might be difficult unless the person is able to give their exact location. Otherwise, he says, emergency operators have to rely on GPS or triangulating cellular information from different receiving towers, which gives them a general area within about 300 yards of where the call came from.
"Time is obviously important in our line of work', says Lt. Bahr.
Time is also of the essence for landline providers who see their customer base dwindling.
Many offer basic landline service for around $35 a month, but that does not include long distance.
Barbara Pita still has her landline. For now it works because she has her internet and cable service bundled with it. But once her contract is up, she may think about joining the thousands of cellular customers getting rid of their home phones.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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