Do not ask for whom the bill tolls in Wanganui

By JULIET ROWAN

A group of Wanganui students who made toll calls for months without paying have suddenly found themselves having to clear hefty phone bills.

The 65 students live in student flats run by the Wanganui Universal College of Learning and did what students living in student flats all over the world have done for years - found a way to bypass the toll bar.

But unlike some others, they got caught, and must now pay bills ranging from $21 to $2300.

The college was forced to confront the students living in the Dublin St flats when it discovered they had been chewing the fat at someone else's expense since February.

Most confessed and agreed to identify the calls that belonged to them.

Wanganui UCOL principal Sue Frecklington said the students had been issued with invoices but some were in denial.

"Some are acknowledging they have the debt, but there are others who haven't come to that," she said.

The college was open to discussions about flexible payment arrangements, but in the end the students had to pay.

A statement from the college said: "Outstanding debts may affect students' ability to have credits recognised. This could affect final awarding of qualifications or enrolment in subsequent years."

Mrs Frecklington said there was no evidence to suggest students had bypassed the toll bar in previous years.

The college put an immediate stop to the long-distance calls as soon it realised what was happening, she said.

In the future, it would be up to students in the flats to arrange a phone connection themselves.