I traveled to Canada with an international SIM card from Matrix. I was convinced that the plan is cheaper than regular international roaming and there are no extra charges. Upon receiving a bill of Rs. 27700+, I looked up the contract letter carefully to detect a lot of gray and hidden costs. Apart from that:
1. According to the contract agreement, the currency exchange rate is to be calculated on the billing date (Sep-07). The maximum rate on that day has been 1 CAD = 62.6 INR and not 65.9 as has been calculated.
2. They never mentioned anything called "fixed charges" in the agreement which has been charged at CAD 40.
3. The contract mentions a service charge/ surcharge of 12 % which has been calculated over the total. However, each individual call has also been subjected to the same surcharge which was not mentioned anywhere. In effect, I have been charged twice at 12%.
4. The "Education Cess" and "Higher Education Cess" were not mentioned anywhere either.
I was told over phone by one of their representatives that my credit card won't be charged without authentication, which was grossly violated as well.