Over the next few months every landline and mobile provider will be declaring their Access Charge for calling 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers.

This must be done before the implementation date of 1 July 2015.

Post below the details of any Access Charge announcements that you find. This thread could provide a record of the Access Charges as first announced and how they change over time.

Sky has recently announced their Access Charge will be 9.5p per minute.

Sky initially sent a letter or email to customers then some time later they added the Access Charge details to the FAQ:
http://help.sky.com/articles/ofcom-uk-calling-campaign-faqs

Talk Talk has recently announced their Access Charge will be 5p per minute from a TalkTalk landline and 20p per minute from a TalkTalk mobile.
http://help2.talktalk.co.uk/uk-calling-0
http://sales.talktalk.co.uk/pricing/info/pricing-notification

Vodafone has recently announced their Access Charge will be 23p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/explore/costs/pay-monthly-call-charges/index.htm
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/explore/costs/pay-as-you-go-call-charges/index.htm

Vodafone RED and Vodafone RED Business contracts will have an Access Charge of 19.17p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062387

Vodafone Business and Vodafone Business Choice contracts will have an Access Charge of 10p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062388

Vodafone Business essentials contracts will have an Access Charge of 19.17p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062389

Vodafone Business Sharer contracts will have an Access Charge of 10p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062390

Vodafone Business Single Plan contracts will have an Access Charge of 19.17p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062391

Vodafone One Net Business Direct contracts will have an Access Charge of 2p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062392

Vodafone RED Sharer for Large Businesses contracts will have an Access Charge of 10p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062393

Vodafone Total Business contracts will have an Access Charge of 10p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/about-this-site/terms-and-conditions/VFCON062394

KC (Hull) has recently announced their Access Charge will be 7p per minute.
http://www.kc.co.uk/products/phone/uk-calling/

Vodafone recently added an additional page mentioning the Access Charge:
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/campaigns/calling-service-numbers/calling-service-numbers-1/index.htm

There's a rumour circulating for the past couple of days that BT's Access Charge will be 9.58p per minute.

Ian01 wrote on May 10^th, 2015 at 4:40pm:

There's a rumour circulating for the past couple of days that BT's Access Charge will be 9.58p per minute.

Which is what they charge to call UK  01/02/03 numbers currently,if you dont have inclusive minutes.

EE has recently announced their Access Charge will be 44p per minute.
http://ee.co.uk/help/add-ons-benefits-and-plans/price-plans-and-costs/ee-price-plans/changes-to-numbers-starting-08-09-and-118#what

The same rate will also apply to Orange and to T-Mobile.
Additionally, Orange Pay As You Go will no longer support calls to 09 and 118 numbers.

TalkTalk Mobile has a page mentioning the Access Charge:
http://help2.talktalk.co.uk/mobile-pricing

PlusNet has recently announced their Access Charge will be 9.58p per minute.
http://www.plus.net/ukcalling/

I'm with Plusnet and have looked at their notes on access charges. Most of it is very clear but there is an apparent contradiction.

1: They say my inclusive calls will not be affected
2: There will be a service charge to 08 and 07 numbers

My package, like many, currently includes calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers, as if they were 01/02/03. Will calls to 0845 and 0870 be charged under the new access/service regime or stay as inclusive within my package?

It says that calls to 0870 and 0845 numbers will remain inclusive at the time of day and on the days of the week relevant to your call plan (i.e. weekends, evening and weekends or anytime) for calls of up to 70 minutes long. Outside of those times you'll pay a 9.58p per minute Access Charge plus the Service Charge as advised by the service provider (chatline, recorded information line, conference-calling service, international dial-through provider, etc).

With Service Charges of up to 13p per minute and a fair usage policy of 1000 minutes per month, they are committing to pay out up to £130 of Service Charge to the organisations that you call (earning them, after VAT and call handling costs have been deducted, up to about £80 to £90 in revenue share payments) even though you are paying only a few pounds per month for the call plan. This means that your calls are being subsidised by other callers who do not call these numbers.

Worth noting Plusnet like many other suppliers  dont allow you to use your inclusive  0845/0870 minutes to make cheap calls via an access number.  They normally charge the full price for the call.

Ian01 wrote on May 20^th, 2015 at 8:19am:

It says that calls to 0870 and 0845 numbers will remain inclusive at the time of day and on the days of the week relevant to your call plan (i.e. weekends, evening and weekends or anytime) for calls of up to 70 minutes long.

I can't see this. Where is it? Might they mean that the access charge will be included, but they will bill the service charge?

I can't see this either, hence my question a few posts back.

One thing the access/service charge model will do is wreck the business of the 0844 etc dial through services for cheap international calls. At the moment you're paying a one-off connection charge plus a typically very small per minute charge. If you're paying 9p/minute access charge this becomes non-viable.

The 'connection fee plus very low per-minute rate via an 084 number' charging model applies only if you make the call from a BT landline. The same numbers cost more when dialled from other landlines and a lot more when dialled from mobile phones.

The cheap deals for BT customers exist because BT is currently regulated to make zero margin on call origination to 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers. When you pay BT for the call, almost all of the money is passed on the terminating telecoms provider. That regulation will end on 1 July 2015. Thereafter BT's rates will no longer vary from all other providers.


Providers of international dial-through services haven't always been explicit about using their service only from a BT landline. I am sure that many people have been caught out by high charges when using other landlines and mobile phones, not realising the quoted rates apply only to calls made from BT landlines.

While the 'call via an 0844 number' system may go into decline, most dial-through providers now offer an 020, 03 or 080 number and a simple way to top-up in advance by calling an 09 number or texting a mobile shortcode with a, e.g., £5 one-off fee.

I received a letter from BT according to which the access charge from 1 July will be 9.53 pence- per-minute.

This implies that the access charge will continue during  the whole duration of the call. Am I (hopefully) wrong?

Yes, the Access Charge is a simple per-minute rate for the whole of the call charged in one second increments and with an option for a minimum one minute charge.

BT is the only network that currently has, effectively, a zero access charge whereas all other landline and mobile providers do make a charge for connecting and conveying the call as well as collecting the money that is passed on.

This price cap regulation is imposed solely on BT and is known as 'The NTS Retail Condition'. It will end on 1 July 2015. At the same time, connection fees will be banned on all calls to 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers.

Just received a text from EE informing me of changes from 01st July 2015.

I have a T-mobile PAYG sim and calls to 01/02/03 and mobiles currently cost 35ppm, ( this sim is very rarely used and the credit on it came free with the sim).

"Calls to 0808, 0800, and 116 will be free to call from your mobile.

Calls to a service number 084, 087, 09, 118, will be made up of an EE access charge of 44ppm and a service charge that will vary based on the service provider you are calling"

Question:

What about 0500 numbers? i.e. Radio 5 Live uses freephone,(from a landline),0500.


OK question answered: http://www.ukcalling.info/faqs

"0500 numbers are not part of these changes and calls from mobiles to these numbers may still be charged for. Ofcom has decided that the 0500 number range will be withdrawn from use in 2017."

.

All users of 0500 numbers have the option to migrate to the matching 0808 5 number. The new number retains the last six digits of the old number. The new number is one digit longer than the old number.

Ofcom announced the changes on 3 June 2014 with three years allowed for transition.

Ian01 wrote on May 21^st, 2015 at 10:57pm:

Yes, the Access Charge is a simple per-minute rate for the whole of the call charged in one second increments and with an option for a minimum one minute charge. BT is the only network that currently has, effectively, a zero access charge whereas all other landline and mobile providers do make a charge for connecting and conveying the call as well as collecting the money that is passed on. This price cap regulation is imposed solely on BT and is known as 'The NTS Retail Condition'. It will end on 1 July 2015. At the same time, connection fees will be banned on all calls to 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers.

do I understand this correctly?
As an example, 10 min call from UK BT landline to French landline:
at present: 15p connection + 10 x ½p service charge = 20p
from 1 July: 10 x (9.5p + ½p) = 100p

lompos wrote on May 23^rd, 2015 at 2:57pm:

do I understand this correctly? As an example, 10 min call from UK BT landline to French landline: at present: 15p connection + 10 x ½p service charge = 20p from 1 July: 10 x (9.5p + ½p) = 100p

Assuming that you are talking about using an 08 dial-through number to call a French landline then yes, you have understood correctly. These numbers will no longer be an attractive option for these services.

In the new system there are no ½p service charges. They are in 1p increments up to 13p, then larger increments for the higher rates.

These dial-through services have relied on some outdated regulation imposed solely on BT to make their existence viable. That regulation ends on 1 July 2015. Thereafter, BT will no longer be forced to have a zero Access Charge.

Some of these dial-through services will close. Others have made 020, 03 or 080 access numbers available.

Three's Access Charge may be 25p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

EE Home Phone Access Charge may be 11p per minute.

Ian01 wrote on May 25^th, 2015 at 10:45pm:

EE Home Phone Access Charge may be 11p per minute.

Thanks. We have EE Home Phone. I've just phoned and asked them. The muppet I spoke to had no idea what I was talking about.
Any idea whether EE (like some other home phone companies ??) will include the access charge, or n minutes of access charge, in (some?) packages?

Any bets or knowledge about what Finarea will do? Is it viable for them to announce an access charge of 1p a minute, ie what they charge at present from non-BT lines and mobiles? I guess they will continue not to provide access to 118 or 09? How many rates would Finarea have to list (ie, including the service charge) if they provided all 084cde and 087c?

The beauty of the "unbundled tariff" system is that they only have to list one thing: their Access Charge. They are free to set it at whatever rate they want as long it is a simple pence-per-minute rate with no connection fee. A one minute minimum charge is allowed for the Access Charge.

Responsibility for declaring the Service Charge rests solely with the service provider. There are 18 price bands at or below the limit set for use on the 087 range. The 084 range has a lower limit and only 10 price bands within. The 084 and 087 ranges have just over 5000 blocks of numbers allocated, each with an assigned Service Charge from that selection.

Ian01 wrote on May 26^th, 2015 at 8:08pm:

The beauty of the "unbundled tariff" system is that they only have to list one thing: their Access Charge. .... Responsibility for declaring the Service Charge rests solely with the service provider.

Hmm. Can't see the couple of guys who run Finarea getting their heads round that. Their (excellent) usp is that their websites (18185 etc) clearly tell you the price of any call they offer, and this is backed up (and occasionally contradicted) by a voice announcement at the start of every call.
In theory I suppose the message could say "one pee a minute, plus whatever service charge the scoundrels you are calling help themselves to, which we will add to our bill to you."
I wish.

As the Service Charge for each number range will be known, it isn't rocket science for the announcement to state the actual Service Charge that will apply to each particular call.

Given the new price declaration Condition that will shortly be imposed by Ofcom on all users of 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers from 1 July 2015, that shouldn't really be necessary.

Ian01 wrote on May 27^th, 2015 at 8:16pm:

As the Service Charge for each number range will be known, .

to Ian, and maybe a couple of other punters, and probably not  any muppets in telcos' call centres, and certainly not easy to find on any telco's website ...

Ian01 wrote on May 27^th, 2015 at 8:16pm:

Given the new price declaration Condition that will shortly be imposed by Ofcom on all users of 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers from 1 July 2015,

and completely ignored by hundreds of existing telephone directories, adverts, flyers, telephone numbers etched into the windows as at a swimming pool near me, etc, etc. Millions of these will not be compliant until 2019, if ever.

Any landline or mobile provider with a clue will know exactly where to look. It's all detailed in an updated section of a document they already use.

By now, most service providers should have been notified of the particular rate for their number(s) by their non-geo telecoms provider.

This is a major change. Of course it will take years for some to catch up. This is an opportunity to steer them towards 03 numbers.

Change does take time. If you take a walk round London you will still see plenty of shops and businesses with 0171 and 0181 numbers on signage from before 1999. You'll still see a few with 071 or 081 numbers from before 1995, and a small number with 01 numbers from before 1990.

One place there will be a high level of compliance from Day One is in TV and radio broadcasting:
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/ngn-broadcasting/statement

John Lewis Home Phone, Greenbee Telecom and Waitrose Home Phone have recently announced their Access Charge will be 9.58p per minute.
https://www.johnlewisbroadband.com/ukcalling/

nicholas43 wrote on May 26^th, 2015 at 6:10pm:

Any bets or knowledge about what Finarea will do? Is it viable for them to announce an access charge of 1p a minute, ie what they charge at present from non-BT lines and mobiles? I guess they will continue not to provide access to 118 or 09? How many rates would Finarea have to list (ie, including the service charge) if they provided all 084cde and 087c?

Re the "access charge of 1p a minute", this is for using the 0808 number from a landline that does not allow override numbers and from mobiles using an 020 number , when 080 numbers become truly free from July 01st will Finarea be able to use the 080 number to provide calls from mobiles and landlines at the rate of 5p access charge as is done at the moment from a BT line for example by using the 1899/18866 prefix, )this point relates to 01/02/03 numbers).

As 080 numbers will be free this should be feasible, I remember many years ago a company did this from mobiles and the Telcos kept blocking the 0800 numbers, with the company releasing new 0800 umbers resulting in a cat and mouse game.


.

Service providers using freephone numbers have to pay a Call Origination Fee to the caller's provider to compensate them for the fact that the caller paid nothing for the call.

Currently, this fee adequately covers call origination from landlines but not from mobiles. From 1 July 2015 free calls from mobiles will be funded by an increase in that Call Origination Fee.

The Freephone Access Levy that dial-through providers add when you use their service via a freephone 080 number is likely to increase from that date.

O2's Access Charge may be 25p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

Ian01 wrote on May 29^th, 2015 at 5:43pm:

O2's Access Charge may be 25p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

MSE are saying its 25p a minute. Presumeably they got the information from the o2 Press Office.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/phones/2015/05/calls-to-084-087-09-and-118-to-be-clearer-but-prices-vary-wildly?_ga=1.234487063.843600684.1432922220

Virgin Media's Access Charge (from a landline) may be 10.25p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

Virgin Media's Access Charge (from a mobile) may be 36p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

BT Mobile's Access Charge may be 30p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

EE emailed us (on 27 May) announcing 11p a minute. In response to my complaint about their tardiness, I got a phonecall. I was assured that the whole cost of our calls to 0845 and 0870 will continue to be included in our "Anytime" package. The person calling me did not seem to understand that it would be madness for EE to include the service element. I have sought written clarification.

nicholas43 wrote on May 30^th, 2015 at 7:48am:

… it would be madness for EE to include the service element. …

There can only be one Access Charge per tariff - which must apply to all calls to 084/087/09/118 numbers. Ranges cannot be treated differently by call originators. This principle holds, but sadly only in respect of the Access Charge itself.

After heavy lobbying from the telcos, Ofcom reluctantly agreed to permit them to treat ranges differently, but only where the total call cost (Access Charge + Service Charge) is inclusive for certain ranges.

We had hoped to win the argument that it is fundamentally unfair for the Service Charge to be paid by anyone other than those who call the organisation that imposes it. Sadly, those telcos who rely on the revenue from the Service Charge (as providers of phone services to businesses) have a sufficient commercial interest and the necessary breadth of power to dilute its effect. Sadly, neither the fair telecoms campaign nor Ofcom win every battle that we fight - even when on the same side.

SilentCallsVictim wrote on May 30^th, 2015 at 8:44am:

We had hoped to win the argument that it is fundamentally unfair for the Service Charge to be paid by anyone other than those who call the organisation that imposes it. Sadly, those telcos who rely on the revenue from the Service Charge (as providers of phone services to businesses) have a sufficient commercial interest and the necessary breadth of power to dilute its effect. Sadly, neither the fair telecoms campaign nor Ofcom win every battle that we fight - even when on the same side.

But condition 14.9 says (if I have found the correct final version) that Providers must make clear
(b) whether calls to Unbundled Tariff Numbers are included within bundles of inclusive calls or inclusive call minutes purchased by Consumers from the Communications Provider, specifying in particular:
(i) the Unbundled Tariff Numbers to which the terms of the bundle apply;
(ii) if relevant, the number of call minutes to Unbundled Tariff Numbers that are so included;
(iii) if relevant, whether the inclusion of calls to Unbundled Tariff Numbers is conditional upon the time or day of the call; and
(iv) whether [my italics] any special offers, discount schemes or call bundling arrangements apply to the Service Charges payable in respect of the call minutes or calls to Unbundled Tariff Numbers that are so included.
So can't they say that the bundling does not apply to the Service Charges?

ASDA Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 8p per minute.
https://mobile.asda.com/pages/services

SSE / SWALEC has recently announced their Access Charge will be 6.9p per minute.
https://www.swalec.co.uk/PhoneAndBroadband/Prices/PriceUpdates/

We now have an email from EE stating that

Quote:

Our records show that you're registered to our anytime package, therefore, the coming increase does not effect [sic] you, as calls to 084 and 087 are free in your package.

Currently it is, of course, only 0845 and 0870 calls which are included. Any guesses on what EE really intend from 1 July 2015? Just including 084 would be silly, but not crazy. Including just 0870 wouldn't hurt much now, because there's been a flight from 0870. From 1 July, including both access and service charges to 0870 (and 0871 and 0872?) still seems madness, to me.

Quote:

You'll be billed extra for any 118 call you make, as these calls are charged by 118 themselves and not us.

The writer appears to be unaware that there are lots of different 118 sharks of varying rapacity, and that there will also be service charges on 084 and 087 numbers, equally not set by EE.

giffgaff has recently announced their Access Charge will be 15p per minute.
http://community.giffgaff.com/t5/Announcements/Changes-to-service-number-charging/m-p/16745244#M74400

Tesco Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 15p per minute.
http://www.tescomobile.com/help-and-support/1082-pay-as-you-go/1091-tariffs/uk-calling
http://www.tescomobile.com/help-and-support/1082-pay-as-you-go/1182-call-charges/call-charges-for-pay-as-you-go

Soon after announcing the charge, the notification was withdrawn: https://archive.is/CChuP

Three has recently announced their Access Charge will be 25p per minute.
http://support.three.co.uk/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBISAPI.DLL?Command=New,Kb=Mobile,Ts=Mobile,T=Article,varset_cat=callsemails,varset_subcat=3787,Case=obj(3060)

The Phone Coop has recently announced their Access Charge will be 7.2p per minute from a landline and 21p per minute from a mobile.
http://www.thephone.coop/support/uk-calling-faq/

Having previously announced that their Access Charge will be 23p per minute, Vodafone have since announced that from 10 August 2015 it will be 45p per minute.
https://www.vodafone.co.uk/explore/costs/call-charges/index.htm

Virgin Media has recently announced their Access Charge will be 10.25p per minute from a landline and 36p per minute from a mobile.
https://my.virginmedia.com/customer-news/articles/servicenumbers.html

Tesco Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 25p per minute.
http://www.tescomobile.com/help-and-support/1082-pay-as-you-go/1091-tariffs/uk-calling

This replaces the previous announcement which was withdrawn within hours of being made.

Zen's Access Charge may be 8p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

Is anyone maintaining a unified list of all access charges? Must admit I'm horrified (but perhaps not so surprised) to see how high they are!

This thread details Access Charges as they are published on the web by the individual telecoms providers.

Half a dozen other sites have published simple lists of these charges. Whether they will keep them up to date, or not, remains to be seen.

Cheers.
Which one do you use (if any!)?

Hyperoptic has recently announced their Access Charge will be 10p per minute.
https://hyperoptic.com/changes-to-08-09-118-numbers-from-1-july-2015/

Post Office Home Phone's Access Charge may be 9.5p per minute. Awaiting confirmation.

Utility Warehouse's Access Charge will be 9p per minute from a landline and 20p per minute from a mobile.
https://www.utilitywarehouse.co.uk/files/terms/01739_UWDCWebTariffGuide_Summer2015.pdf

The tariff guide doesn't appear to specify any particular start date other than 'Summer 2015'.

Zen has recently announced their Access Charge will be 8p per minute.
http://blog.zen.co.uk/caller-clarity/

Lyca Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 23p per minute.
http://www.lycamobile.co.uk/en/uk-calling

Talk Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 15p per minute.
http://talkmobile.co.uk/uk-calling1a

Three charges 3p a minute for calls to geographic numbers. Finarea charges a flat 5p, presumably in the hope that the average call duration is (at a guess) 2 minutes (because there are lots of 5 sec calls when the caller just gets a pickup by the menace of voicemail).
Do I correctly deduce that the cost of originating a call, transmitting this call, and transferring a payment to the terminating provider, for a call within the UK, is less than 3p a minute? And therefore that all these access charges are profiteering - blatantly in some cases?

Termination rates are less than 1p per minute for calls to geographic 01 and 02, non-geographic 03 and mobile 07 numbers. For 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers the termination rate is separately declared as the Service Charge. The originating network also has to pay transit fees with far-end handover on 01 and 02 numbers and near-end handover on 03, 07, 08 and 09 numbers. There's also origination costs, infrastructure costs and the matter of paying for offices, staff, and the myriad other costs involved in running a telephone network. Costs directly involved in connecting a call are just one part of the picture.


On calls to 09 and 118 numbers Three's share of the call cost was often more than £1 per minute. On calls to 087 numbers, Three were paying out more to the terminating network than the customer paid for the call, a loss leader if ever there was on. On calls to 084 numbers, Three were barely breaking even.

From 1 July 2015, landline and mobile providers have to set a single Access Charge covering all 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers. Presumably, 25p per minute is somewhere around the average of the total revenue previously received divided by the number of call minutes handled. Three could reduce the Access Charge, but to receive the same overall revenue other prices would have to go up.

Post Office Mobile has recently announced their Access Charge will be 30p per minute.
https://mobile.postoffice.co.uk/call-rates/special

Had an email from 3, explaining their access charges. They actually encourage customers to use 01/02/03 and free numbers. They even recommend Saynoto 0870. Here's part of that email:


Quote:

Firstly, the good news: 0800 and 0808 calls are still free. And we all like free. Secondly, our aim is to have Access Charges which are competitive with the rest of the market - and considering we were the first network to make 0800 calls free on our new plans, who'd doubt us? Thirdly, there's more and more options to avoid spending money on service number calls. Thankfully, utilities, banks and service organisations are moving away from service numbers towards 03, 0800 and 0808 numbers. These numbers, 0800 and 0808, are free and 03 numbers come out of your allowance so where you have the option, why not use these instead? Many organisations using 084 and 087 numbers have alternative numbers that you can call so it's always worth looking around before you dial. There are also websites and apps available that help you search for numbers that are free or come out of your contract instead of calling service numbers (084, 087, 09 and 118). A couple of the top websites are saynoto0870.com and 0870converter.co.uk - these can help you find alternative numbers to use.

Marked as spam by Gmail so I nearly missed it!

Three's self-praise is, of course, rubbish.


Quote:

Firstly, the good news: 0800 and 0808 calls are still free. And we all like free.

Nothing is ever free. If I call 080, the called party pays, a lot. They pass that on to me in their prices. Or if they are a charity, they do less with donors' money.


Quote:

Secondly, our aim is to have Access Charges which are competitive with the rest of the market

Then they've failed. See, for example, ASDA.
I'm still intrigued that, as far as I can see, all so-far-announced access charges are a huge rip-off compared with the cost of originating and connecting a call, and handling the "service" payment to the terminating provider.

Marketing people are free to talk up their wares, and usually do. Users of 080 numbers have to make an economic decision as to whether paying several pence per minute for incoming calls is worth it, or whether they would be better off with an 03 number that many people can call from their inclusive calls allowance.

Three's Access Charge is competitive when compared with the other main operators. O2 is 30p per minute. EE is 44p per minute. Vodafone will shortly be 45p per minute. The level of Access Charges will be irrelevant for most people. The major effect of the changes is the mass closure of 084 and 087 lines in favour of 03 numbers.

Manx Telecom (Isle of Man) has recently announce their Access Charge will be 10p per minute from a landline, 25p per minute from a contract mobile and 30p per minute from a pay as you go mobile.
http://www.isleofman.com/News/details/73070/biggest-change-to-telephone-calls-in-over-a-decade-

Being outside of the UK, operators in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man have no obligation to adopt Clear Call Rates for Everyone.

It's a shame that calls to IOM and CI landlines and mobiles are generally not included in inclusive minutes, despite having normal 01/07 numbers. They ought to have their own country code or numbering range.

As termination rates have plummeted within the UK, the number of inclusive minutes has increased sharply. Termination rates for calls to CI and IoM haven't fallen as quickly, hence these calls are not inclusive. The rates are still falling so there's still the possibility that these calls will become inclusive again in the future.

BT has recently announced their Access Charge will be 9.58p per minute from a landline and 30p per minute from a mobile.
http://bt.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/51727/~/how-will-calls-to-08,-09-and-118-numbers-be-charged-from-1-july-2015%3F

BT Basic customers will have a zero Access Charge. Obsolete call plans will have a 9.53p per minute Access Charge.

EE Home Phone didn't pre-announce their Access Charge. It is listed in their price list as 11p per minute.
http://ee.co.uk/help/add-ons-benefits-and-plans/price-plans-and-costs/ee-price-plans/home-phone-call-charges


On some price plans, the Access Charge (but not the Service Charge) is inclusive for calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers.

O2 didn't pre-announce their Access Charge. It is listed in their price list as 25p per minute.
http://www.o2.co.uk/help/everything-else/service-numbers

The Access Charge will rise to 45p per minute on 15 August 2015.

Post Office Home Phone didn't pre-announce their Access Charge. It is listed in their price list as 9.5p per minute.
http://www.postoffice.co.uk/broadband-mobile/pricing-notifications
http://www.postoffice.co.uk/broadband-mobile

Access Charges do NOT appear to have been declared on these websites:
Vodafone Home Phone
Sainsbury Mobile
Lebara
The People's Operator
White Mobile
Delight Mobile
Family Mobile
GT Mobile
Kingdom Mobile
Vectone
Eclipse
18185
1899

They still list old style prices, including charges for calls to 080 numbers.

Lebara are now declaring their Access Charge.

25p/min for calls to 084/087 numbers
70p/min - £5/min for calls to 09/118 numbers

http://www.lebara.co.uk/uk-calling

Details of this and the Access Charges for other providers can be checked on the 'Cost of Calling' page of our website:  http://www.saynoto0870.com/costofcalling.php

The Access Charge must be the same rate for all 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers.

Lebara cannot set variable rates for different ranges.

Sainsbury Mobile also appear to be declaring variable rates for different ranges.

They also appear to still be charging 8p or 20p per minute for calls to 080 numbers.

Sainsbury's Mobile page is showing that their Access Charge is 15p and it also states calls to 080 numbers are free of charge.  It looks as though they haven't fully updated their rates page.

'The People's Operator' (TPO) are now declaring their Access Charge.

5p/min for Pay As You Go customers
35p/min for Pay Monthly Customers

https://www.thepeoplesoperator.com/tpo_payg_rates
https://www.thepeoplesoperator.com/PAYM_Rates

Details of this and the Access Charges for other providers can be checked on the 'Cost of Calling' page of our website:  http://www.saynoto0870.com/costofcalling.php

Forum Admin wrote on Jul 1^st, 2015 at 11:03pm:

Details of this and the Access Charges for other providers can be checked on the 'Cost of Calling' page of our website:  http://www.saynoto0870.com/costofcalling.php

Re the above link, the first panel needs rectifying re Post Office landline access charge, (unless it has none), as at the moment it reads: Post Office      "p/min" :)

.

All providers appear to be jumping onto what they obviously see as a cash cow and are not even attempting to match their new PER MINUTE access charges to what they used to charge as PER CALL connection charges.

Some of these PER MINUTE access charges are so ridiculous, I'm re-programming my Orchid tonight barring all 084/087/09 and 118 calls.

The death knell to all such numbers ?

I hope.

sergeant121 wrote on Jul 2^nd, 2015 at 3:49pm:

Some of these PER MINUTE access charges are so ridiculous, I'm re-programming my Orchid tonight barring all 084/087/09 and 118 calls.

There's only one Access Charge that you need to note, and that's the one charged by your landline or mobile provider.  All the others are irrelevant. While they have gone up for many 084 and 087 calls, they have come down significantly for some 09 calls.

The Service Charge is set by the organisation being called and linked to their choice of telephone number. The Service Charge remains the same irrespective of which landline or mobile provider you use to make the call. In general, for 084 and 087 numbers, the Service Charge is much the same as it was before call prices were unbundled.

sergeant121 wrote on Jul 2^nd, 2015 at 3:49pm:

All providers appear to be jumping onto what they obviously see as a cash cow and are not even attempting to match their new PER MINUTE access charges to what they used to charge as PER CALL connection charges.

There were still per minute charges on top of the connection charge (which will now not apply), which were split between the telco and the recipient in an opaque way. Now it is transparent. Some calls will cost more, some less.


sergeant121 wrote on Jul 2^nd, 2015 at 3:49pm:

Some of these PER MINUTE access charges are so ridiculous, I'm re-programming my Orchid tonight barring all 084/087/09 and 118 calls.

I sincerely hope you were already barring 118 calls, the biggest telecoms rip-off of all time. The new charging method has hardly made matters any worse.

derrick wrote on Jul 2^nd, 2015 at 10:29am:

Re the above link, the first panel needs rectifying re Post Office landline access charge, (unless it has none), as at the moment it reads: Post Office      "p/min" :)

Thanks derrick - That must have been deleted by mistake during one of the amendments, but is now back showing what it should do.

Ian01 wrote on Jul 1^st, 2015 at 7:08pm:

Lebara cannot set variable rates for different ranges.

Hmm. Apparently, they can and have set them! The question is, How many months/years will it take before Ofcom tells Lebara to comply with General Condition 17?

Ian01 wrote on Jul 1^st, 2015 at 11:33am:

O2 didn't pre-announce their Access Charge. It is listed in their price list as 25p per minute. http://www.o2.co.uk/help/everything-else/service-numbers The Access Charge will rise to 45p per minute on 15 August 2015.

O2 appear to have removed the reference to 45p a minute from 15/8/15.

Vodafone Home Phone didn't pre-announce their Access Charge. It is listed in their price list as 9.5p per minute.
http://www.vodafone.co.uk/broadband/deals/

See the "Price Plans" PDF linked from the above page.

Calls to 0870 numbers are no longer inclusive.

Sure (Isle of Man) has set their Access Charge at 36p per minute for 084 and 087 numbers and 72p per minute for calls to 09 numbers. 118 numbers have various charges and no common Access Charge.
https://web.sure.com/isleofman/home-phone/call-charges-2/

As an offshore company, they are outside of Ofcom control.

Sainsbury Mobile are still charging for 080 calls and have not set an Access Charge for 084, 087, 09 and 118 calls:
http://www.phoneshopbysainsburys.co.uk/pay-monthly-out-of-allowance-charges
http://www.phoneshopbysainsburys.co.uk/basic

bigjohn wrote on Jul 3^rd, 2015 at 4:25am:

O2 appear to have removed the reference to 45p a minute from 15/8/15.

It's back and now says the price change will be on 17 August 2015:
http://www.o2.co.uk/help/everything-else/service-numbers

Gradwell (Business) has announced their Access Charge as 7p per minute:
http://www.gradwell.com/phoneservices/call-charges/

Andrews and Arnold has announced their Access Charge as 2p per minute.
http://aaisp.net/telecoms-callprices.html

Family Mobile has finally announced their Access Charge as 44p per minute, and will close down 31 August 2015.
http://www.yourfamilymobile.co.uk/

Vonage has announced their Access Charge as 9.5p per minute.
http://www.vonage.co.uk/call-plans/rates/

More confusion on Plusnet's policy for 0845/0870 numbers. Until July 1st these were included in my "anytime" package. After that it was rather unclear from their website as to whether they would still  be included.

Today I received an email:


Quote:

Anytime Calls† - £6.00 a month               Free calls to UK landlines, 0845/0870 numbers any time of the day or night •             Anytime International - £7.50 a month               300 inclusive minutes to our top 35 international destinations~. Anytime calls to UK landlines, 0845 and 0870 numbers.

allegro wrote on Jul 9^th, 2015 at 7:05am:

More confusion on Plusnet's policy for 0845/0870 numbers. Until July 1st these were included in my "anytime" package. After that it was rather unclear from their website as to whether they would still  be included. Today I received an email: Quote: Anytime Calls† - £6.00 a month               Free calls to UK landlines, 0845/0870 numbers any time of the day or night •             Anytime International - £7.50 a month               300 inclusive minutes to our top 35 international destinations~. Anytime calls to UK landlines, 0845 and 0870 numbers.

They cover it here: www.plus.net/home-broadband/faqs/broadband-and-phone/#included-calls

Qx call have declared their Access Charge as 3p a minute.

"We are please to announce that QX Call will now allow our customer to call 0843/0844,0845 and 0870/1/23 numbers (up to 7p Service charge) for an access charge of 3p/min + the service charge compares to the very high access charge charged by the likes of EE. So, calling a 0845 number with a declared service charge of 2p will cost 5p/min (3p access + 2p service charge) via QX Call vs 27p - 46p/min levied by the main mobile operators.."

http://www.qxcall.co.uk/

bigjohn wrote on Jul 9^th, 2015 at 7:15pm:

allegro wrote on Jul 9th, 2015 at 7:05am: More confusion on Plusnet's policy for 0845/0870 numbers. Until July 1st these were included in my "anytime" package. After that it was rather unclear from their website as to whether they would still  be included. Today I received an email: Quote: Anytime Calls† - £6.00 a month               Free calls to UK landlines, 0845/0870 numbers any time of the day or night •             Anytime International - £7.50 a month               300 inclusive minutes to our top 35 international destinations~. Anytime calls to UK landlines, 0845 and 0870 numbers. They cover it here: www.plus.net/home-broadband/faqs/broadband-and-phone/#included-calls

When I last looked at Plusnet's notes on the July 1st changes they were a bit ambiguous. Thanks for showing where they clearly state their position.

Still a little surprised that they can afford to cover the service charge element of calls to 0845 and 0870 within a low cost inclusive package.

One correction to the QX Call information. While the Service Charge for 084 is up to 7p per minute, the Service Charge for 087 is up to 13p per minute.

The 3p per minute Access Charge applies when you take your landline service from QX Call and pay your line rental to them.

Lebara has finally set a single Access Charge of 25p per minute covering all 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers:
http://www.lebara.co.uk/uk-calling

Has anyone found what the Skype Access Charge is ?

They still seem to quote the old rates.

I thought the connection fee had been dropped?

A couple of 118 services seem to still be using them,( and probably more than these 2), 2 examples:

Maureen 118 212, (http://www.hellomaureen.co.uk ,: - "Calls to 118 212 cost £2.75 per call plus £2.99 per minute (minimum 1 minute charge), plus your phone company's access charge.
Calls to international 118 412 cost £1.88 per call plus £2.57 per minute (minimum 1 minute charge), plus your phone company's access charge."


118 434 constantly advertise on LBC radio, "£3.99 plus £1.99ppm plus your providers access charges"

If there are only supposed to be 2 separate parts, how come the 118 providers are getting away with 3 parts?


.

There are four types of Service Charge for 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers:
- per call, irrespective of call length
- per minute, charged per second from the start of the call
- per call plus a per minute rate charged per second from the start of the call
- per call plus a per minute rate charged per second after the first 60 seconds.

http://www.icc-uk.com/NGCS-Price-Points.php

In all cases the per minute part starts from zero pence and is billed per second from when it starts. In two of the four cases it starts from the beginning of the call. In one case it starts after the first 60 seconds.

Explore the options at http://giffgaff.screet.co.uk/call/

The Service Charge "£2.75 per call plus £2.99 per minute (minimum 1 minute)" does not appear in the official list of the 80 allowed Service Charges. Writing it that way means you have to add the two numbers together to find the minimum call cost. Ofcom's list of Service Charges instead lists "£5.74 per call plus £2.99 per minute (after 60 seconds) which is much more clear.

The Service Charge "£1.88 per call plus £2.57 per minute (minimum 1 minute)" does not appear in the official list of the 80 allowed Service Charges. Writing it that way means you have to add the two numbers together to find the minimum call cost. Ofcom's list of Service Charges instead lists "£4.45 per call plus £2.57 per minute (after 60 seconds) which is much more clear.

The Access Charge is always stated as a simple per minute rate. It is usually charged per second and most landline and mobile providers have a one minute minimum fee. There is no longer a connection fee on these calls.

Talk Talk Increaseing Access Charge from 1/12/15

Landline from 5p to 7.5p a minute.

Mobile from 20p to 25p a minute.

See: http://help2.talktalk.co.uk/important-update-our-price-changes

O2 Access Charge increased from 25p to 45p per minute on 10 August 2015.

Vodafone Access Charge increased from 23p to 45p per minute on 17 August 2015.

giffgaff Access Charge will increase from 15p to 25p per minute on 2 September 2015.

BT Access Charge will increase from 9.58p to 10.24p per minute on 20 September 2015.

There have been a number of further changes to Access Charges during 2016.


Landline

BT is now 11p per minute
Sky is now 11.5p per minute
Virgin Media is now 11.25p per minute
Vodafone Home Phone is now 11p per minute
Zen is now 11p per minute.


Mobile

EE will be changing to 50p per minute near end of September 2016 (also Orange & T-Mobile)
Lebara is now 45p per minute
Post Office Mobile has closed down
Sainsburys Mobile has closed down
Three is now 45p per minute
Virgin Mobile is now 45p per minute
Vodafone is now 55p per minute.


Additionally, an extra 20 new Service Charge price points came into effect on 1 July 2016. There are now 100 price points.

O2 has changed their Access Charge from 45p per minute to 55p per minute sometime in the last few days.

Sky still can't get it right.

I had an email from them today offering me a £5/month no contract deal with an 0844 number as an alternative way of contacting them.  I immediately looked for and found the tariff information but, as you'll see, they have their knickers firmly in a twist still:


Quote:

Calls to Sky cost 7ppm plus your provider's access charge. Call charges from other providers may vary.

What's that 'other providers' nonsense all about?  As Sky is also a provider, you'd have thought they'd have that right.

That unwanted additional wording adorns hundreds, if not thousands, of websites. Despite Ofcom and ASA and dozens of other organisations stating the recommended wording, it appears a large number of organisations have been unable to accurately make the required changes.

Heinz wrote on Oct 1^st, 2016 at 11:23am:

Sky still can't get it right. I had an email from them today offering me a £5/month no contract deal with an 0844 number as an alternative way of contacting them.  I immediately looked for and found the tariff information but, as you'll see, they have their knickers firmly in a twist still: Quote: Calls to Sky cost 7ppm plus your provider's access charge. Call charges from other providers may vary. What's that 'other providers' nonsense all about?  As Sky is also a provider, you'd have thought they'd have that right.

Heinz,

I have sent you a PM  :)