This content was created by Alan Akina. This content was uploaded by Alan Akina. This is a YouTube clip titled "Watch your Wallet with Alan Akina - Your teen's cell phone bill" (posted 2013-11-26) containing a short broadcast segment from the Wake Up Today show. Alan Akina presents five tips for parents to control teenagers' cell phone bills (monitor minutes, use tracking apps, drop roadside assistance, combine lines, consider prepaid, and have teens pay part of the bill) interspersed with brief comments from two hosts (Speaker A and Speaker B).
Chapters
Well, teenagers and cell phones can add up to big money, especially when minutes run out.
Alan Akina shows us how to avoid the extra charges.
Good morning, gang. Are you having a tough time keeping your teen's cell bill under control? Well, if you're like most parents, we constantly worry about the overages on our monthly cell bill. I know it seems impossible, but somehow these teens can send thousands of text messages a month and gobble up data like crazy. So here are 5 tips to keep your teen's cell bill under control. First tip is to mind your minutes. Knowing how much your teen used and how many minutes they have left is a key thing. Now, I suggest using apps like DataMan or Onavo that track usage and alert you as you approach your limit. Drop the roadside assistance plan. Your teen will most likely not need it, or you may have it with other coverages for insurance plans. Number 3, combine lines. Most cell carriers offer discounts for family plans and shared minutes. 4, consider using a prepaid phone. Pay-as-you-go could be a great option to cap the cost. And number 5, have your teen pay for all or at least part of the bill. When they have to pull out their own money each month, they'll think twice about it when it comes to using their phones. For Wake Up Today, I'm Alan Akina. See you on Monday.
I like the last one. Have your teen pay for part of the bill. That'll get them thinking.
Accountability.
Yeah.
I don't know anybody that has the prepaid phone. That would be interesting.
That'd be very interesting. But you know, nowadays there's so many— I mean, there's so many plans out there that allows teens to kind of go crazy.
Unlimited text, picture. I have a friend that didn't have text messaging for a while, and then now she just got it. Oh, she just did? Congratulations.
