Place a Collect Call

What happens when you are desperate to make a phone call and are out of phone minutes? What do you do when you are phoneless, out-on-the-town, and need to get hold of a friend, neighbor, lover, etc? You make a collect call - that's what you do. These instructions are if you are using a payphone, though similar instructions apply to other phones.

Steps

  1. Take the phone off the hook and put up to your ear.
  2. Press "0".
  3. Wait for an answer.
    • If a real person answers, say politely "I'd like to place a collect call to BLANK (eg. Texas, America, Australia), please", then give them the number and your name.
    • You may find yourself listening to a recording, saying "if you'd like to place a call, press 1, if you'd like directory assistance, press 2", etc. Press the appropriate number and continue with the instructions.

Tips

  • Don't call collect to just say 'hey' - have a reason.
  • There may be instructions on the pay phone - if so, use them!
  • Be sure your friend is OK with you calling collect - remember, they will have to pay the bill.
  • Only call collect if you need to - it's not fair to call collect when you have spare change.

Warnings

  • Your friend may get mad if he/she is broke and you place a collect call to them.
  • Some people use collect calls to steal your identity - be careful.

Things You'll Need

  • Access to a telephone
  • No spare change
  • A phone number to call

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