Prison phone calls are one of the most important lifelines between an incarcerated person and their family, and one of the most expensive. The prison phone industry has historically operated as a near-monopoly charging rates that few other consumer services would get away with. This section covers how the prison phone system works, why rates are so high and what has changed in recent years, how debit calling accounts function, how to get a number approved on an inmate's call list, how InmateAid's local number service reduces call costs by up to 70 percent, and what international callers need to know about reaching a US facility from another country. The questions answered here come from families who are paying too much for calls and from inmates trying to navigate phone access from inside. Understanding how the system works is the first step toward getting the most contact for the least cost. See also our sections on Money Transfer and Commissary.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Paytel.com - If the calls are more than $2.00 each, contact us because we have had great success saving up to $12.00 per call when the fees are that high. Send us your telephone number and the facility where your inmate is held and we will give you an honest estimate before you sign up.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Yes you can use the prepaid cellphone with an InmateAid Discount Telephone number. Our numbers are land lines which are forwarded to you number. There is no problem using any type of phone with our service as you are giving your inmate OUR number to call and it rings on your line.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, but our recommendation is to wait because it is likely there is a restriction on the amount of time the inmate is allowed to use the phone while in segregation. Check back with us when the inmate released back into the general population.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
You will have to notify the inmate. We offer the free use of our letter service if you'd like to use it as a means to relay the new number and what they will need to do to use it. Send us an email to aid@inmateaid.com to request a coupon code for this letter. We will usually throw in a free photo for you to send as well
Subject: Inmate phone calls
What your ex got from us is a telephone number that makes the calls from your inmate less expensive. We are not replacing the service at the jail, you still pay them for the calls but with our number the calls through their service is generally about $4-5 per call cheaper. The cost of our service includes the number and forwarding minutes of the call to the line that you provide. It does not affect your current number.
The savings...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
You might have pushed the wrong number on the phone when accepting the call. If you accidentally block your inmate form calling, the system won't let him dial through. This is a measure to protect citizens from being harassed. To reverse this, you will need to call your inmate's counselor and possibly the phone service at the prison to get the block lifted.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
The phone number provided though the Discount Telephone Service must be given to your inmate, and it's the responsibility of the member/user to do so. Sometimes you can ask a staff member if they will relay the number to your inmate. In most cases, they will cite a rule that they are not allowed. You can get the number by using your old number one last time to let them know to use the new number. OR, you can use...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
InmateAid is NOT a replacement for the phone service at the prison or jail, we make their service cheaper with local phone numbers.
Here is how the industry works: The phone service at any particular correctional center is set up through bid process. Whomever has the contract for all inmate outbound calling and to tape record the calls - essentially has a monopoly. Therefore, you have to use them to receive any calls. The choice is whether you pay them...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
No. Unused phone minutes or phone account balances do not roll over in the way a cell phone plan might. Whatever time or credit is not used within the allotted period does not carry forward to the next month or quarter.
This is true across most prison phone providers, including Securus, ICSolutions, and GTL. The minute allotments set by the facility reset on their own schedule and unused portions simply expire. It is not a system designed with the consumer in...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Our service gets the local line for the facility where your inmate is incarcerated and forwards the call to your current number. Nothing will change on your end. You give your inmate the local number, he places it on the Trulincs system and calls directly to that line - it will ring on the phone number you provide us, completely seamless.
