I own a service oriented company and we use an 0800  number – I’m always pissed off when people we buy from use 0870 numbers (you’d think they’d be chasing our business…), but I’ve just tried to order Vue cinema tickets and they use an 0871 number…

I read that Ofcom were going to bring these under the PRS umbrella – did this ever happen or have they been as effing useless in this as in everything else?

Is there a requirement for websites to state that 0871 numbers are charged at 10p a minute?

I last complained to Ofcom in 2005 about the 070 scams, but I notice that this scam is still alive and well. For the record – can anybody else think of any single positive thing that Ofcom have done for the consumer? I assume that they’ve become yet another self serving bunch of freeloaders preying on those few of us who actually generate taxable income  that they can still screw us for. I seem to live in a cloud in indignation these days – I’ve already left the country once to get away from rip-off Britain, and after 10 years away, now I’ve returned it all seems to have got worse…

Yours,

Pissed off of Surrey
>:(

strongp wrote on Jan 10^th, 2009 at 5:48pm:

I read that Ofcom were going to bring these under the PRS umbrella – did this ever happen or have they been as effing useless in this as in everything else?

Ofcom originally quite purposefully misled I and other leading campaigners that it was their intention to transfer 0871 numbers to proper PRS control.  However they and ICSTIS then spent the intervening three years dreaming up a special new regime for 0871 numbers to be run by PhonePayPlus (formerly ICSTIS) that means they will not be premium rate at all as there will be no equivalent price disclosure before connection to 09 and no ban on or fines for call queues beyond a certain length.  Anyhow as things stand due to Ofcom's endless regime of procrastination that new form of control by PhonePayPlus for 0871 has still not come in to effect.  Who knows if it ever will come in to effect and even if it does if there will be any greater control over 0871 misuse than at present (seems unlikely given the proposed rules by PhonePayPlus).


Quote:

Is there a requirement for websites to state that 0871 numbers are charged at 10p a minute?

The ASA has rules about price disclosure for all 084/7 numbers in adverts but these do not apply to websites unless the website content is deemed to itself be an advert.  Frequently website content is not seen as an advert but only as information.


Quote:

I last complained to Ofcom in 2005 about the 070 scams, but I notice that this scam is still alive and well. For the record – can anybody else think of any single positive thing that Ofcom have done for the consumer? I assume that they’ve become yet another self serving bunch of freeloaders preying on those few of us who actually generate taxable income  that they can still screw us for.

You seem to have a very accurate understanding indeed of the basis on which Ofcom operates and the kind of entirely conscienceless and heavily overpaid individuals that it employs.


Quote:

I seem to live in a cloud in indignation these days – I’ve already left the country once to get away from rip-off Britain, and after 10 years away, now I’ve returned it all seems to have got worse

What else would one expect after nearly 12 years of New Labour though.


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Pissed off of Surrey >:(

Join the club.  I also live in Surrey here.  Perhaps we should meet up for a pint.