I keep getting taxed for a service I no longer use.

[pattymotley]

I have recently discontinued my phone service but I keep getting taxed for it. I have called about this several times and told it is fixed but it keeps comming up on my bill. 

[maratsade]

Good, you're in the right area now.  🙂 The reps will see this next week and address it.  Give them time, as there may be other people ahead of you (and there are only a handful of reps on the site).  

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.

@pattymotley wrote:

I have recently discontinued my phone service but I keep getting taxed for it. I have called about this several times and told it is fixed but it keeps comming up on my bill. 

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[pattymotley]

Thanks. I just did a chat but the person I need to talk too was not available. I'm just tired of having to deal with this every month.

[maratsade]

Yeah, I'd be pretty steamed too.  I can't imagine it's hard to fix your problem, unless there's something going on you may not be aware of.  The reps here can check your account (unless you're a business account, in which case their superpowers are limited) and tell you what's going on.   They're very responsive and helpful, but overworked, so it may take a bit.  Keep an eye out, though, and I would say if 7 business days go by and you don't hear anything, you could post a gentle reminder. 

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.

@pattymotley wrote:

Thanks. I just did a chat but the person I need to talk too was not available. I'm just tired of having to deal with this every month.

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[Hardy]

Hello Patty,

Thank you for reaching out to us. I apologize you are still being billed voice taxes. I am having this issue escalated.  Your cooperation, patience, and understanding are much appreciated.

Thanks,

*Felicia*

[pattymotley]

Thanks Felicia.
I have been dealing with this since I discontinued the service. I keep being told it is fixed but each month it pops back up. With autodraft that is an issue. 

[Hardy]

Patty,

I have heard back, and the telecommunication taxes are a type of state tax. To understand better, I would recommend contacting your state in regards to what sales taxes are charged. I have located an Email for you SalesTax@dor.sc.gov and the phone number 1-844-898-8542. Please let me know if you have further questions or concerns.

Thanks,

Felicia

[pattymotley]

I understand that but it was for the phone service I no longer receive from HughesNet. I discontinued my phone service 4 months ago. 

[Hardy]

Patty,

I understand. We do not determine what the state charges for taxes. I would recommend contacting the state in regards to these charges with the information I provided previously. 

Thanks,

Felicia

[maratsade]

Forgive me for butting in, but I’m curious.  Isn’t this tax something that Hughesnet accounting sets up as part of the invoice? It sounds to me the OP is saying she's getting a tax charge on her bill/account for a service she no longer has (though I may be completely wrong in my understanding).  So if  she no longer has the service, there should not be any tax being charged to that account for that service, right?  While the state determines how much tax we pay, it's the company's accounting department that bills her, so shouldn't this department fix it?  

[pattymotley]

Thanks Maratsade.  HugesNet was the one who informed the government I was receiving the phone service so they could tax me. I was told the tax was on the phone service when I called about the taxes going up. At that point I discontinued the service since I was at the end of the contract and the lag in the service caused a lot of talking over the other person on the line. If HughesNet informed the government I was receiving the service they should be able to inform them I am no longer receiving it? Now I am wondering how many others are still paying a state tax while no longer receiving a service. I have also been informed on two seperate occasions that the issue had been resolved by HughesNet and this was not so.

[BirdDog]

I have to agree @pattymotley, it was the Hughes voice service that started the tax being billed to your Hughes account. Once you stop that service there has to be some communication between HughesNet and the state taxing authority to stop the tax collection. Simple as that.

[maratsade]

OK, so to me (I've got very little experience with taxes), it sounds like it should be Hughesnet (their accounting department or similar) who needs to fix this (it's similar to when you get sales tax applied to a purchase and then you return the purchase, the sales tax you paid is refunded too, and by the merchant, not the state).  I imagine that if you contact the state they will tell you the same thing, that you need to contact the company, but I would contact the state just in case anyway, to cover all the bases.  I would send them an email.

It looks like someone at  Hughesnet has acknowledged this is an error on their part and has tried to apply a fix (twice!), but it hasn't taken. Maybe it needs to be kicked up the chain to a different department or something.

Any accountants on this site?  Care to chime in?

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.

@pattymotley wrote:

Thanks Maratsade.  HugesNet was the one who informed the government I was receiving the phone service so they could tax me. I was told the tax was on the phone service when I called about the taxes going up. At that point I discontinued the service since I was at the end of the contract and the lag in the service caused a lot of talking over the other person on the line. If HughesNet informed the government I was receiving the service they should be able to inform them I am no longer receiving it? Now I am wondering how many others are still paying a state tax while no longer receiving a service. I have also been informed on two seperate occasions that the issue had been resolved by HughesNet and this was not so.

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[GabeU]

Is it possible that the tax being shown is for the internet or the lease of the equipment?  I only ask as I don't know what you're seeing.  I do know that they told you it was for the phone, though.  

I pay four taxes on my bill.  State and county for the equipment lease and a state and county excise tax.  Gotta love NY taxes.  😛  

 

[Hardy]

Patty,

After researching, the telecommunication taxes are not related to the phone service, it is actually relative to the internet service itself. I hope this helps. 🙂

Thanks,

Felicia

[GabeU]

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@Hardy wrote:

Patty,

After researching, the telecommunication taxes are not related to the phone service, it is actually relative to the internet service itself. I hope this helps. 🙂

Thanks,

Felicia

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That's what I was wondering.  I know that the term "telecommunications" can be a bit confusing when it comes to taxes and such, especially state to state.  It seems that it would only apply to something having to do with phones, whether home, cell or some type of VOIP service, like HughesNet Voice, but in practice it can mean internet service, too.  

[BirdDog]

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@GabeU wrote:

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@Hardy wrote:

Patty,

After researching, the telecommunication taxes are not related to the phone service, it is actually relative to the internet service itself. I hope this helps. 🙂

Thanks,

Felicia

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That's what I was wondering.  I know that the term "telecommunications" can be a bit confusing when it comes to taxes and such, especially state to state.  It seems that it would only apply to something having to do with phones, whether home, cell or some type of VOIP service, like HughesNet Voice, but in practice it can mean internet service, too.  

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Thought OP might have been referring to the telecommunication charge, I have that on my bill also with no phone. It is a confusing catch all word for many data things that are not necessarily telephone related.

[maratsade]

OP wrote that "I was told the tax was on the phone service when I called about the taxes going up."  HN also seems to have acknowledged the existence of an error, twice.  Something doesn't seem quite right. 

[BirdDog]

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@maratsade wrote:

OP wrote that "I was told the tax was on the phone service when I called about the taxes going up."  HN also seems to have acknowledged the existence of an error, twice.  Something doesn't seem quite right. 

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Well, unless a pic of exactly what charge is being referred to gets posted, I'm taking a seat on this one. 

[maratsade]

Yes, that'd certainly be useful.  

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@BirdDog wrote:

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Well, unless a pic of exactly what charge is being referred to gets posted, I'm taking a seat on this one. 

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[pattymotley]

OK, my bill for hughesnet was $108.70 every month. I have automatic draft and when it was taken out at the end of Sept for my oct payment they took out $114.07, an increase of $5.37. When I called about the increase I was told it was due to taxes on the phone service, NOT the internet. Since my contract on the phone was up I had it discontinued. I received a refund for the phone service for Oct. which posted as $29.99 on my phone app as a refund. When I called back to ask about the taxes I was told the government took those out and HughesNet had no controll of that although the tax came out with their withdrawel. The taxes at that time reduced to $2.72 which was in keeping with what the rep on the phone said it would be, between $2 and $3. He even gave me a breakdown of how much went to federal, state and local taxes at the time. It has since went back up to $5.26. When I called back to ask about it I was told it was the phone tax. That came from HughesNet. They said they would take care of it. If it was not a tax on the phone they should have told me that but each time I was told it was the phone service. I am simply going by what HughesNet told me. At no time was I told the tax was on the internet. I can understand if one rep got it wrong but not 3 in a row.