5 steps to cheaper phone calls
We're paying over the odds for landlines. Here are five easy ways to get cheaper phone calls and save money
We're paying over the odds of landlines. Here are five easy ways to get cheaper phone calls and save money
Gone are the days when you had no choice but to have BT landline. Now there are plenty of other options, and plenty of ways to save money. Here are five easy ways you can do just that:
Switch your landline
According to Consumer Choices, we’re wasting over £350 million every year by failing to shop around for a more competitive deal on line rental and call charges. In fact, 53% of you haven’t switched in the last five years, and so you’ll probably find you’re paying more than you should.
Use a comparison website such as Home Phone Choices to find the cheapest deal. You may be able to save even more with a bundle that offers line rental, broadband and TV as a single package.
Compare the cost of calls
Think about how you use your landline. Do you tend to make calls at certain times of the day? Or make a lot of international calls? Make sure you choose a package which offers the most competitive deal based on your own usage.
Pay by direct debit and paperless billing
Paying your bill by direct debit and choosing online paperless billing can actually be a bit cheaper. For example, a BT landline currently costs £11.54 a month, but the cost rises to £14.29 if you don’t pay by direct debit and you have a paper bill.
Check the small print
You may be tied into a contract with your current landline, which means you could be hit with exit fees if you switch early. You’ll need to check out whether the savings you’ll make by switching will compensate for any charges you might incur.
Check when you can call off-peak
Finally, off-peak hours can be changed by the phone company at any time, so make sure you check exactly when cheaper or free calls are available. Try your best to avoid making calls outside these times.
Most Recent
Comments
-
Hi guys, For those of you that are looking just for cheap international calls, try Telediscount. [b]http://www.telediscount.co.uk/[/b] I have been using them for years and call the USA on a regular basis and get calls for 1p per min. I absolutely refuse to pay ridiculous prices to call abroad. You do not have to sign up for an account and I have never seen any weird fees appear on my bills. The access number you use will just appear on your regular phone bill. You just simply pay for what you use. You dial the relevant access number from a landline and then the international number and you are on your way. I have never had problems with the connection or sound quality. They cover so many locations. It’s worth a shot!
REPORT This comment has been reported. -
[i]To garfsuncle[/i]: I'm pleased you pointed that out. I was aware that the advertised rates may not apply to non-BT lines, so I made sure to mention that my line is BT. I didn't know how much of a rip-off these calls can be through other providers. I suppose non-BT users who are interested in these indirect services should [b]ask their providers[/b] what they charge for calls to these numbers. As I understand it, if I use such a service to call Switzerland for 0.5 p/min, BT retains a certain proportion of the 0.5 p and the company supplying the indirect service receives the rest. The only check I have done on this was when I rang Switzerland a year or two ago (probably using 0844 200 9898) and spoke for over an hour. I then checked the effect on my BT bill (at the BT website) and it was about 50 or 60 pence, so I believed it really was 0.5 p/min plus, perhaps, a one-off connection charge. [b]Another point to bear in mind[/b]: charging starts as soon as the 0844 machine answers, so you pay something even if the other end doesn't answer. Oliver
REPORT This comment has been reported. -
Like oliverw I used to use indirect services such as phonecheap and discountdial until I checked my Virgin telephone bill. While these services inform you that the call wil cost 4p (or whatever) per minute, Virgin would charge me whatever they like for my call to their 0844 number, usually working out at 8 or 9p per minute for what purported to be a 4p per minute call. I now use the 18185 service. The call is not routed through my Virgin line and if they say the charge is 4p per minute, that's what you pay.
REPORT This comment has been reported.
Do you want to comment on this article? You need to be signed in for this feature
12 September 2010