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.
Related InmateAid Services
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Inmates are not personally notified when money is added to their phone account. There is no staff member who goes and tells them. They usually find out when they check their balance on the phone system or when they go to make a call and hear the available funds.
As for getting your phone number to them, you will need to send it yourself. Jail and prison staff generally will not pass along messages or contact information.
The best ways to do...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
The phone service at all of the prisons in the Arkansas Department of Correction is set up through bid process. In this case, GTL has the contract for all inmate outbound calling and to tape record the calls - essentially a monopoly. Therefore, you have to use them to receive any calls. The choice is whether you pay GTL for a long distance call (to your number) or a local call (to a number that we get you). If you...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
At McCreary Satellite Camp in Pine Knot, KY, the discount phone service option is unfortunately not available. This is one of those rare locations where local number solutions cannot be set up due to how the phone lines are configured in that area.
Here is how the phone system works there:
All federal inmates use the Bureau of Prisons phone system, which is a closed system. Your loved one has to add your number to their approved calling list, and calls can...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
We get you a local telephone number to use with the service at the prison. You cannot use this as a substitute for them, nor can you accept a collect call through our number. The easiest way is to have your inmate buy calling cards from the commissary and dial the local number we issued you - it will ring on your number without changing anything on your end.
Calling cards are available at the commissary in denominations of $10,...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, you will still need to pay the prison’s phone provider in addition to the InmateAid service. These are two separate parts of the same call.
The facility’s phone company controls all outgoing calls, so your husband must have funds on his account, or you must fund the account on your side depending on how that facility handles calls. That payment covers the connection from the prison phone system.
What InmateAid provides is a local number that reduces the cost of those...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, there are still two parts to the cost, and it can be confusing at first.
Your inmate is responsible for paying for the call on their end using their facility phone account or calling card. That part never goes away because the prison phone provider controls all outgoing calls and charges for the connection.
What you are paying for through InmateAid is the setup that reduces the cost of the call overall. We provide a local number that your inmate can...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Inmates cannot receive calls. Inmates have to make the outbound call to you. You will have to get involved with the payment part of the call - funding it from the outside which can and does get expensive.
The service at Fannin is Securus. Depending on your number, the calls could be as little at 50 cents or as much as $12-14 each. We can give you an exact price for what each call would cost and if our Discount Telephone...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
It would be a total of 600 long distance minutes for the month and may be used in any combination.
Subject: Inmate phone calls
When you set up a number for your son to call, the facility will not automatically notify him. It is your responsibility to make sure he knows.
Best ways to let him know:
Send him a letter with the new number clearly written
Tell him during your next phone call (if possible)
Make sure the number is easy to read and correct
Important details:
The number usually needs to be approved and added to his phone list
Staff rarely pass along messages, so do not rely on them
What happens next:
Once he has the...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
The telephone service at all of the TDCJ Prison facilities is a company called Securus. Securus' rules are often different than the rules at the jail so they can maximize the profit per call. Normally, the cell phone carrier should have nothing to do with the approval process of an inmate's calls. The process is supposed to approve a person, not a telephone type or it's underlying carrier.
Some people use InmateAid's service to get a local number for cheaper...
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