What Can/Should I do?

[FrugalTexan75]

I've recently been on a bit of a kick regarding learning Spanish as a second language. I've ordered a number of programs, plus found tons of free internet resources.

All of the products I ordered offered money-back guarantees. One product sent you their material for just the cost of shipping + 30 days before they charge you full price.

I have good contact info and websites for all of the products - except for the one with the 30 day try before you buy. I ordered it on June 2, and received it on June 13. According to the statement, I will be charged on July 3. (Not exactly 30 days!) Also, the product was shipped from Norway. The only contact info is an email address (which I sent an email to, and have not had a response) and a couple phone numbers in the European format.

I *really* don't want to make an international call to find out how to return the product. (It's a nice product, but since ordering it I found it MUCH cheaper on another website - plus with everything else I've found while waiting for it, it's a bit of overkill.)

I've never made an international call in my life, so really don't know how I'd go about doing that in the first place. In the second place, if one of those numbers actually work, and I end up being put on hold or getting the run around, the phone call might end up costing me as much as the product itself + shipping!

I would really appreciate some advice or suggestions on what to do so my card won't be charged on the 3rd!

Thanks!

[scfr]

To make an international call:
Dial "011" + Country Code (Norway is "47") + the number shown ... If the number shown starts with a "0" you may need to drop the "0."

Here are a couple possibilities for making the call short of just picking up your regular phone and dialing (and don't do that, because you may get charged an arm and a leg).

Add international calling to your cell phone: On my phone plan, it costs $3.99 per month to be able to make international calls. You could add to your plan, make the call, and then drop the international calling capability right away. ***If you know someone who has a cell and makes international calls, perhaps you could make a deal with them to use their phone for the one call?***

Get an international calling card from Costco. The per-minute rates are good, but unfortunately you have to pay $30 for a pre-paid card. This would only make sense if you planned on making more international calls in the future. Or, perhaps you could donate the card to someone who has family overseas?

Skype: Can't give you much information on this, but my husband once got 1-month of free international calls from Skype (he made the calls from the computer ... you'd need to have a microphone and you'd need to download something).

Sorry I can't be of more help.

[neatdesign]

I often have to make international calls/faxes at work, and I've found the following website very helpful:

International Country Calling Codes and World Time Zones

My husband's from the UK, so we have an account on OneSuite.com where it only costs us like 3c/min to call them (anytime, day or night). It's great, we can talk to them for an hour and it only costs a couple of bucks. It's a prepaid deal, with only a $10 minimum required, and can be used pretty much from any phone (read the site for specific details, though). It's not limited to international calls, though, so you can use it for any long-distance calls, domestic or international. The connection can sometimes be a little dodgy but all in all it's a great deal.

~ Jenney

[neatdesign]

P.S. Since you live in Texas, I'm surprised there isn't a native Spanish speaker who lives in your area who would be willing to swap Spanish-for-English lessons with you.

~ Jenney

[FrugalTexan75]

Thanks! I'll have to check into how to add international calling to my plan.

Laura

[FrugalTexan75]

Neatdesign,

I do have several Spanish speaking coworkers at work who let me use them as practicing boards. I asked one of them if she'd be willing to tutor me after work once a week, but she wasn't able to do it.

I have also joined the local Spanish meetup group here - I think my first meeting with them is next Sunday. The majority of the resources I'm using are from the library or free things I've found on the internet.