receiving bills from BTC -- when she says she does not even have a telephone line.

The 26-year-old from Pembroke said she had been waiting since September last year to have a phone line switched on in her home.

However, as of this week, she was still waiting.

But in the meantime, the Bermuda Telephone Company has sent her a number of bills, demanding a total of $340.27, as well as a letter with the words `debt collection proceedings' written across the top.

The mother of two, who lives on Union Street, said she had no intention of paying them.

"I have called BTC so many times, and every time I call they say they will get somebody to look into the matter, but they never get back to me,'' said Ms Hendrickson.

"I have now got to the point where I am no longer worried about getting the phone in anymore.

"I can't believe BTC has sent me bills for a phone they still have not put in.

"For the last four months they have been sending me bills, and each time adding access charges, and charges for service and equipment, plus a late payment charge.

"It's getting ridiculous. Now they are saying that if I don't pay within 15 days, I will be sent to Credit Association.'' Ms Hendrickson said she decided to get the phone switched on in case there was an emergency while her sons were at school. One suffers from asthma and the other has a heart murmur.

She said she was told it would take three to four working days to get the line on. But although the number rang out when she called it from work, when she got home the line was dead.

BTC bill mix-up The mother said she complained to BTC, and a few weeks later a repair man arrived at her home to check the line.

She claimed that he told her the phone line inside her house was in good condition, but that there was no phone cable from the pole to her home.

However, he said it would be a few weeks before a cable slicer could go out and do the job, she said.

Several months on, she alleges she is no further forward.

"I called BTC with the information I received (from the repair man) and was told an order would be put out for me,'' she said.

"I called almost weekly and was told no new info yet. Finally, I was told that BTC was waiting for new phone cable to come in before they could fill my order.

"I advised them of the urgency of my request as I am a single mother with an asthmatic child and another with a heart murmur and no transportation, so if an emergency came up I would have to locate a phone in the neighbourhood or stand in the streets screaming like a wild woman for help. But here I am still waiting.

"I'm not trying to say others aren't desperate for a phone and I should get first preference, I just want the job done.

"I have one thing to say to BTC -- try connecting me before sending out threats you can't fulfil. I'm not paying for services not rendered.'' Calls put in to BTC by The Royal Gazette at the end of last week, were not returned.

The details were taken down by somebody at the telephone company yesterday, but they failed to respond to the complaint by press time last night.