Every Friday consumer reporter Lynda Steele dips into the CTV mailbag to answer viewer questions.
Roaming fees on cruises
Vikram contacted Steele on Your Side after purchasing a Rogers U.S. roaming package for $7.99 per day. He wanted to use his phone on an Alaskan cruise, but when he returned home he was shocked to see he was charged $750 for roaming fees, along with the daily rate. He wants to know why.
Rogers told CTV News that Canadian customers can only access pay-per-use roaming rates while on cruise ships. You cannot get the set daily rate because the costs to enable wireless service are significantly higher at sea, than with a land-based network. That means you could be charged as much as $7 per minute for any voice or data usage while onboard a cruise ship.
Rogers says it sends customers a text message when they start roaming on a cruise ship, notifying them of the rates that will apply when they use their device.
TReO charges
Ronald wrote us after crossing the Port Mann Bridge in his pickup truck and camper and was charged for an over-height vehicle. He wants to know why TReO would have to charge for over-height vehicles when the bridge's towers are 75 metres above the deck level.
TReO says all tolls on the bridge are based on a vehicle's length and height. The idea is the bigger the car or truck the greater its wear and tear is on the roadway. The small vehicle category includes vehicles that are less than six metres long and 2.3 metres high.
In Ronald's case, his vehicle was pulling a camper, so it fell into the medium category which includes vehicles that are six to eight metres long.
