The Jail Told Me My Inmate Cannot Use InmateAid. Is That True?

This is a common misunderstanding and the short answer is that the facility is mistaken about what InmateAid actually does.

InmateAid has no direct relationship with any jail, prison, or correctional facility in the United States. We are not a service that operates inside facilities, interfaces with their phone systems, or requires their approval or cooperation. The facility cannot block InmateAid because InmateAid does not interact with them in any way.

Here is what InmateAid's discount phone service actually does.

When your inmate calls you from inside the facility, that call travels from the facility's contracted phone carrier to whatever number your inmate has on their approved call list. InmateAid simply provides you with a phone number that may qualify for a lower per minute rate based on its relationship to the facility's location. That number is yours. It works exactly like any other phone number on your inmate's approved call list.

To illustrate how independent this is from the facility: you could accomplish the same thing yourself by obtaining a local phone number through any number of services and adding it to your inmate's approved call list. InmateAid makes that process simple, cost effective, and convenient. Nothing about it requires the jail's knowledge, cooperation, or permission.

If a facility staff member told you your inmate cannot use this service, they likely did not understand what was being described to them or were thinking of a different type of service entirely. Their phone system works exactly the same way it always has. The only thing that changes is the number your inmate calls and what rate that number qualifies for.

If you purchased a discount line and are having any difficulty getting it set up, contact InmateAid directly and we will make sure everything is working correctly or issue a refund if we cannot save you money at that facility.