Cingular's Family Talk Plan--Caller ID issue

Just recently added two phone lines to my family calling plan. The issue is that each phone line comes up with my name (account holder) for each line. I called in on the 611 care line and asked the op if we could change the names on the caller id output so the actual user of the phone would be identified correctly.

The op said sure thing (sorry for the inconvience and problem...company tag line for csr so they can keep their job) and we can fix that right up for you, however it will take 48 to 72 hours for the change to complete as the system is updated daily (and I was calling on a Friday). I said ok, no problem as I didn't think of it when I went to the store and made the purchase.

We made the changes (I thought) that I wanted and was quite pleased with the process.

Now forward 10 days. I travel and didn't know the change had NOT been made. So I called 611 care line back and was told by that op that it could not be done! So I asked why I was told earlier it could and the op took my info and appartently was typing in the changes (could hear typing) and knew the numbers I wanted to update!

She said that was a mistake by that op and it couldn't be done. Well, I started to lose it (in younger days it would have been an ugly scene) so I asked who I need to talk to there about it and was told everone there would give me the same answer!

Boy, talk about being stuck on stupid !!! We got little dune buggy's roaming around on Mars and we can't enter a name change on a caller id account ???

Will be calling, email-ing and snail mailing some suits about this...Hopefully I will find someone with an IQ larger than their shoe size and not chained in front of a computer screen with blinders on and can speak without a script before them!!

Anyone else with this problem?? Solutions??

Thanks, Bill

I have inquired about this same issue and was told from the get-go that its not possible to have different names for each number. This kind of makes sense when you think about the fact that it is only ONE account, therefore technically all the lines are yours. The only thing you can do is have them set it up so it comes up on the caller ID as private or something like that. I had Verizon before Cingular and I believe that I had the same problem with them. Therefore it seems that it is just a simple network limitation, due to the fact that the account is in your name only. The first person who told you it could be done was wrong, but I'm afraid that that simple fact isn't enough to justify getting upset. That stuff happens to people who use any carrier, not just Cingular.

Last edited by elmo01 on Tue Apr 11, 2006 4:51 pm, edited 1 time in total

this is the policy on it....

Follow the steps below to request a change to the CNAM information in the Line Information Database. CSRs do not have the capability to change the display name to anything other than the billing name or "Wireless Call".

call # 1 was incorrect info... call number 2 was the correct answer...

btw... the typing you hear is the CSR noting the events of the call as it happens...

Can you give a little more detail on how this is done? Been wanting this for a while.

the only text that can be on your CNAM is "wireless call" or the account holders name... no exceptions!

I sent an email to the company president, vp, marketing and customer service vp. About 30 min ago I got a call from the president's office.

The lady told me there was a techincal issue somewhere with the vendor who services the caller id (at least I think that is what she said...was still on my high from getting a call from the office within 30 of sending email ).

Anywho, she said there was someone in the office there who could make the changes. I gave her what I wanted and she said she would call me back. Well, in about 15 mon she did call me back and said it was done.

I told her if it was a tech issue that could be overcome and discussed during the next staff meeting, that this cold be a marketing plus for the company.

She did say that its not advertised, but could be done...hmmmm

Well, I had all three phones call in to home and the caller id did in fact come up the way I wanted it too.

To me I haven't had any issues with cingular. I did with BellSouth at first, and they worked hard to fix the problems. The transitition from BellSouth to Cingular was fine. And if ATT has happened...I didn't notice anything different.

I travel all 48 and Canada and I can get service when others are stuck trying to find a signal..Veriaon and Tmobile for some....I just laugh when they can't talk and I have bars.....gotta love it!!

So the polls are in my opinion just that...an opinion !!!

Cingualar today GOT-ER-DONE !!!!!!!

1). It's not a technical issue--the CNAM, or the outgoing caller id name tag, is a modifiable item. Generally, it's manually modified only when the system doesn't do so itself, which is oftentimes the result of a manual change (*gasp!*). So if you're number gets recycled, then the next person who gets it might have to get it cleared or changed.

Just because you can do it, doesn't mean you should. See bullet 2:

2). Because of aforementioned reason, and also company policy. CNAM to Cingular Wireless shows the recipient, obviously a home phone, who is RESPONSIBLE for that line, not whose kid has the phone. Which is more important to say, corporate lines than to the individual consumer.

I don't see why there is such the big deal over this frivolous CNAM vanity bit, and also why there's the need to make a big stink over it just because a representative said they could (one call center's tech team is more lax about it) and another cited the correct policy (whereas that center's tech team is not so much).

You know, I pay some 200-250 dollars a month for 5 lines. None of the users hardly give me any support in paying these bills, so I play a dictator to these phones. They're mine, I paid for them. My name better damn well show up.

Oh yeah, by the way, if you do really care about what name's popping up, then after it gets changed and you give it the 24-48 hours, you also have to purge the caller id units: They cache the CNAM and it'll always default the cache.

IF you want to have user name shows up on caller ID. Call 611 and have them transfer you to Tech. Tech will be able to fix problem

You can bet I'll be doing this tonight for all lines in my family talk plan.

bulldog1979-
where did you get the att suits' contact info? i have called 611 on 5 different occassions about the same issue of getting my caller id name to switch and gotten 5 different answers; none of which have resolved my problem.

Cingular's Family Talk Plan--Caller ID issue

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