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Business Profile

Long Distance Phone Service

Smart Communications US, Inc.

This business is NOT BBB Accredited.

Find BBB Accredited Businesses in Long Distance Phone Service.

Complaints

Customer Complaints Summary

  • 36 total complaints in the last 3 years.
  • 12 complaints closed in the last 12 months.

If you've experienced an issue

Submit a Complaint

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

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Complaint status

Complaint type

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:02/13/2023

    Type:Product Issues
    Status:
    Answered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    They refuse to refund credits. This seems like theft and fraud to me. They should be returning unused funds to inmates or families.

    Business Response

    Date: 02/13/2023

    In regards to credit purchases and the refund policy, this policy is made clear not only during the purchase itself, but also can be found in several locations on our website.  By confirming the purchase of credits, the customer is accepting the refund policy.

    The refund policy is outlined in our Terms of Service and it also can be found at least twice via our FAQ pages accessed by selecting the SUPPORT tab at smartjailmail.com. I have also provided quick links below to view/access this information. Thank you. 

    Quick Links

    Terms of Service: *******************************************************************

    Billing FAQs (Support):  **************************************************************

    Messaging FAQs (Support):  ****************************************************************

     

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:11/08/2022

    Type:Service or Repair Issues
    Status:
    Answered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    Hi, so after reading all the complaints I know this company is fraudulent. I just got off a visit I just paid for & the inmate couldnt see me at all! After calling to receive resolution the man on the phone was so rude and nasty, I had to tell him to RELAX! They KNOW we cant see the inmates but refuse to compensate or resolve the issue so we should make it be aware this company is a scam and to never pay for visit! I will NEVER pay for any services through Smart Jail again!

    Business Response

    Date: 11/21/2022

    Smart communications is disappointed to receive this complaint. However, we must clearly and positively disagree with this complaint.

    Smart Communications is not a scam, or fraudulent in any way. Smart Communications is contracted with specific performance terms in our agreements, with over 150 government correctional agencies across the country. 
    We have over 2 million public consumer customers just like the customer making this complaint. We successfully conducts thousands of video visits each day without problems.

    Our video visitation system utilizing content filtering software works very well, however using improper devices or low lighting conditions or the users in the video screen constantly moving will cause the camera to loose focus and will blackout the video screen until the user clearly displays their face in the video screen. 
    If there was a problem with the visit, please contact our 24/7 customer support with specific details and information about your account date, time, visiting inmate etc, so we can investigate the problem and take appropriate action to assist or refund visits if a software problem is detected. 

    Customer Answer

    Date: 11/23/2022

     
    Complaint: 18367548

    I am rejecting this response because customer service was rude

    Sincerely,

    *****************************

    Business Response

    Date: 11/23/2022

    Smart Communications is disappointed that is the position you are taking, however that is your choice. 
    We wish you the best in the future. 

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:09/26/2022

    Type:Product Issues
    Status:
    Unanswered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    When I was transferred from Abingdon Regional Jail to FCCW on 4/22/22 I had a balance on my pin debit account. It did not transfer with me. Now, Smart Communications is saying it did. I want my money refunded.

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:09/23/2022

    Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
    Status:
    Unanswered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    Anytime we video chat I can only see the inmate and they can never see me. Half the time the videos don't connect, and we've only had one call that didn't disconnect itself during the video visit.

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:09/16/2022

    Type:Product Issues
    Status:
    Unanswered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    I added money on my account for phone calls but the next day he was extradited to another county would like to receive refund

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:09/09/2022

    Type:Service or Repair Issues
    Status:
    Unanswered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    In the past month there has been an issue with video visits not showing visitors' video feed to the incarcerated person. I have submitted two email requests to this company, to which I got an unrelated answer for my initial complaint and no response to my second complaint. Smart Communications is aware of this issue but is not taking steps to correct it while continuing to charge full price for video visits that are not functioning properly. All I ask is that this issue be corrected as the purpose of the video visitation is for the incarcerated person to *see and communicate* with their loved one remotely as opposed to at the detention facility.

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:08/13/2022

    Type:Product Issues
    Status:
    Answered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    First of all I wanna start up for saying every time I do the visits it never catches my face and it shows that there's not a connection on their side so I pay for a 30 minute visit and I get about five minutes worth I pay for a 15 minute visit and I get about three minutes worth not to mention that I wrote in plenty of time sending them an email and never gotten an email back on top of that my visits will be missed and then I don't get a refund and I've already missed about five visits with no refund

    Business Response

    Date: 08/30/2022

    The following is our response to BBB Complaint Case# ******** (Ref#1-90213776-********-4-300):

    Smart Communications' patented technologies and state of the art customer service rank the company as the new industry leader. We serve over 100 facilities across 20 states. As a family-owned business, we treat each and every customer as a member of our own extended family. As such, we commit vast resources to ensure that our customers are satisfied.
    We had received two written requests for information from the customer on July 25, and July 28. We responded to both requests and provided instructions on what to expect and how to use the video visits in order to achieve the best results. In order to ensure customer satisfaction, we have also provided our toll-free customer service number for further assistance.
    Our quality assurance team reviewed the visits the customer had with their loved ones. There were a total of 16 visits between July 24, and August 18. Out of the 16 visits, we reimbursed the customer for six visits. Additionally, we also reimbursed their loved one for one visit. The remaining nine of the 16 visits were billed correctly and, therefore, there was no request nor need for reimbursement. Currently, as it has been, all the billing is correct and up to date.
    The customer may view adjustments and transactions to their account by logging to smartjailmail.com. They should select "My Account" and then "Transaction History"
    If the customer needs additional assistance, we recommend that they call our customer service department toll-free at ************. We are open from 6 AM to midnight, seven days a week.
    We are grateful for the opportunity to serve this and all other customers. We continue to work diligently to ensure that our customers remain among the most satisfied in the industry we lead.
    Thank you,
    ***************
    Call Center Manager

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:07/30/2022

    Type:Product Issues
    Status:
    Answered
    Resolved:
    The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
    Unresolved:
    The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
    Answered:
    The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
    Unanswered:
    The business failed to respond to the dispute.
    Unpursuable:
    BBB is unable to locate the business.
    I'm putting money on my fiancé phone account and he is not getting it says we don't have the funds. And I have bank statements showing all the times they were taken out but we can't talk

    Business Response

    Date: 08/19/2022

    Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/08/03) */
    You add money to your PPC phone account and someone's PIN account. I have gone through all payments made on our website and confirmed that every payment has been posted to either your PPC account or their PIN account. Services have been rendered as you accept phone calls daily. If there is a specific transaction in question please provide the transaction information and we will be more than happy to investigate further.

Smart Communications US, Inc. is NOT a BBB Accredited Business.

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