You know that children can get into trouble. The older they get, the bigger the problem as history would have it. To keep your teens safer you undoubtedly have already issued the cell phones to keep in touch, especially in the event of an emergency.
While having a cell phone is a great measure for communicating with your child, you might want to explore some extra emergency contact methods.
Technology is great, and as you may know, even a dead cell phone is capable of dialing 911. While 911 is great for that life or death emergency, it is not always the immediate solution for common everyday mishaps. As you probably well know, even smaller scale scenarios could eventually lead to a larger 911 problem if left unresolved long enough.
As a safety precaution, many parents are finding themselves purchasing extra phone cards that can be used from any phone. In the event a cell phone is disabled either by a low battery or bad reception area a phone card is good extra insurance. If your teen drives a motor vehicle, the possibility of them roaming into uncharted territory is increased. Remember when you were a teenager, bet you do.
Most parents can easily order phone cards along with extra duplicates from their current phone service or long distance provider. It may pay though to do the extra research to find if there are less expensive alternatives out there being phone card rates can easily skyrocket beyond reasonable costs. However, the costs more than likely will always beat the rates of a collect call.
Another option not as many parents have chosen is having a toll free number that forwards to the home phone. While it doesn't cost much, many are confused by the concept or feel it is too expensive.
Toll free numbers are actually really inexpensive and you only pay for calls received at home that were dialed with your toll free number. Toll free numbers can be dialed from any payphone with connect fees costing about 35 cents and only about 4 to 3 cents per minute. It really is an affordable option when you add it all up and your whole family can memorize it more easily than a toll free phone card number and PIN.
If thinking of using a toll free number be sure to look for a stand alone toll free service with either no or low monthly fees. Before doing that though, check with your current phone provider, you might find they can add it right to your local or long distance bill without ever having to shop around.
If you're in the majority of the Earth's inhabitants, you've more than likely used a calling card on more than one occasion. They're used to much that they're taken for granted sometimes. People find it hard to imagine a time before calling cards were available. Here are some tips for calling cards that you might not think about.
Road Trips
Sure, you have your trusty cellphone that you take on all your long road trips, but what if the battery dies and you've lost your car charger? What if you lose the phone? Even with the cases cell phones have a way of easily getting away from you sometimes.
If that happens, it makes a lot of sense to have a back-up calling card either hidden in the car itself somewhere or on your person at all times. You never know when you might be on the road and need to make a long distance call for more than a minute or two without a cell phone. Having a back-up plan with a calling card is so expensive it just makes sense.
Great Gifts
Whether it's a going to college gift for your children or grandchildren or something you send all your relatives on their birthday, calling cards make great gifts. They could be considered gifts that keep on giving. While the person who receives them might not use all the minutes on you, they're bound to give you a call or think about you when using the calling card.
Calling cards can be a nice and inexpensive way to say "keep in touch" for friends or loved ones. It's not too far over the line, but more of a gentle nudge to remind people that you like to hear from them. And with all the modern styles available, even the kids will enjoy them.
Shop Around
When looking for calling cards, it's best to shop around to get the very best deal possible. With so many people offering calling cards, the competition allows you to get a great deal. Whether it's more minutes or some other feature (like recharging the card with more minutes), if you shop around, you're more likely to get exactly what you're looking for and a little more.
Another thing to consider when shopping for a calling card is whether they will be used for international calls or just domestic calls. In today's connected world that might not seem like a big distinction you need to make, but when it comes to calling cards, you can get great deals on international only calls.
See, I bet you didn't think there were so many things to think about when thinking about calling cards. If you spent a little more time on your own, you're bound to find even more useful ways calling cards can help simplify your life.
Both Topsavings.net & Gen Wright are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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