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Your Money > Budgeting Articles > Save on mobile...
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By Sarah Modlock
Whether Changes to the law Up until now, anyone setting foot outside the UK and wanting to make or receive calls on their mobile phone had to pay a premium for the privilege. On average, it costs 42p a minute to receive calls while on the Continent and up to £1.20 a minute to make calls, depending on their provider, the country they are in and the operator that handles the call. But many travellers pay as much as £1.50 a minute both to make and receive calls. This is five times the 30p average wholesale figure and it generates annual profits worth billions of pounds for the mobile networks. The EU Commission estimates that 147 million EU citizens use their mobile phones overseas each year, paying roaming fees of nearly £6 billion. After a year of debate and wrangling with the industry, it has finally introduced new rules will save consumers about £3.4 billion a year by capping the amount that mobile phone companies can charge us when we use our phones overseas. Under the new rules, the companies have a deadline of the end of July to offer customers a new pricing structure, with cheaper "roaming" fees. The cost of making a mobile phone call abroad will be capped at 33p a minute and receiving them will cost no more than 16p before VAT. However, the millions of people who will flock to foreign shores in July and August could fail to reap the benefits. This is because mobile phone operators are obliged to offer the price-capped "Eurotariff" to customers by July 30 at the latest. After that date, networks have a month to apply the new rate for customers who request it, and a further month to automatically activate capped rates for everyone. So some mobile users might not benefit from the ruling until September 30 - after the main summer holiday season. "Whilst the cap became law on 30 June, the operators are not obliged to do anything until 30 July and even then it can be spun out until 30 September - long after most holiday makers have returned home and mobile companies have made the most money that they legally can," says Rob Barnes, head of mobile rates at price comparison service moneysupermarket.com. "In the meantime, costs for Britons using mobiles abroad are amongst the highest in Europe, so travellers should look at ways to cut costs." We can also expect the industry to fight back and perhaps recoup the cash another way. In particular, rates for text messaging, which now vary between 25p and 40p, could increase as the ruling does not require providers to cap them. As the ruling only cover European countries, the cost of calls to and from Canada, Australia and Asia could soar. And making and receiving calls in the US - currently around £1.35 a minute on some networks - are likely to increase. Start saving Pay-as-you-go customers face the most expensive overseas call charges. Those with network 3 could be hit with the most costly European charges at £1 per minute, while O2 pay-as-you-go customers travelling beyond Europe could pay £1.49 per minute. T-Mobile holidaymakers have the cheapest rate - 55 pence per minute - to make or receive calls in Europe and the United States, regardless of whether they have a contract or are pay-as-you-go customers. Those who do not travel abroad often should contact their network to see what kind of savings can be made. Most major networks offer "bolt on" deals that can reduce call prices by up to 80%, says Karen Darby, founder of SimplySwitch.com. These usually have a monthly fee of around two or three pounds and customers can sign up for just the month they are on holiday. Vodafone's "Passport" service, for example, lets you talk when you are abroad on the same price plan that you use at home. Customers pay a one-off connection fee per call, then use standard UK rates. The "passport" covers a range of networks and countries, including Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as more far-flung destinations, such as Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Roaming "bundles" can also prove cost effective: O2's "chosen country" tariff, for example, can save users more than £1 per minute. "If you travel abroad a lot, international add-ons from your network that cost a few pounds per month can save you between 20% and 70% on international calls, so check with your provider," advises Which? telecoms expert Ceri Stanaway. She also recommends switching off voicemail or buying a local Sim card in a country if you visit regularly to save money. Local SIM cards are ideal for people who often go to the same country, whereas a global SIM allows you to roam almost anywhere in the world - ideal for frequent travellers and backpackers. But remember that you cannot use your existing mobile number to receive calls; outbound calls connect via a separate system and 'call you back' seconds or even minutes later when the phone call connects. However, a frequent user in Europe would pay £21 for 100 minutes of talk-time with a Story Telecom SIM - almost a third of the price charged by the most expensive network, UK2Abroad, at £61.99, according to moneysupermarket.com. Rob Barnes said: "My advice to consumers is - prepare for your trip early, contact your network directly and advise where you are travelling to and find out the costs of making and receiving calls. Once you know this you can decide whether to sign up to one of their roaming schemes or simply don't use your phone unless it's an emergency." What you could save
Source: moneysupermarket.com |
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