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GP 0870 numbers could be banned (Read 108,660 times)
Dave
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #45 - Feb 13th, 2005 at 3:49pm
 
The BT Price List, as clear as mud!  Roll Eyes

There is a link on the above page. Pricing is here. 0845/0870 numbers are charged at g5 rate, it says at the bottom. To find out which number prefixes have which codes, refer here.
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NonGeographicalMan
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #46 - Feb 13th, 2005 at 4:14pm
 
Quote:
The BT Price List, as clear as mud!  Roll Eyes

There is a link on the above page. Pricing is here. 0845/0870 numbers are charged at g5 rate, it says at the bottom. To find out which number prefixes have which codes, refer here.


Given the typical expected socio economic grouping and educational level of the average payphone box user I am sure they would of course have no trouble at all with any of this?! Undecided

I suppose it might be just a little simpler though if on their headline page for Paybox call pricing BT could have simply said something like "tough luck mate we have decided to do you over on the 0845 call pricing by charging you a huge wedge and not even giving you a cheaper rate for 0845 calls than 0870 calls like what we do when you is back home in doors"?

If anyone wishes to make further comments on this matter I believe that paul.hendron@bt.com is the current head of BT's payphone division.

You surely aren't seriously telling me Dave that you believe the full BT price list is an acceptable document for ordinary telephone consumers to have to grapple with? Shocked
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« Last Edit: Feb 13th, 2005 at 4:16pm by N/A »  
 
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reggie
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #47 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 6:38pm
 
I heard on "You & Yours" today that the company which installed the now infamous 0870 numbers for GP surgeries has anticipated the actions of the Health Authorities  to ban these numbers and has now come up with another wheeze, they are to be changed to 0844 numbers. The company spokesman was coy about the price of these calls but apparently they will cost less than 0870.Has anyone understood why not having a geographic number shortens the conversation with the surgery ? Possibly knowing the cost makes us all very succint in what we say!!
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kk
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #48 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 6:42pm
 
see "Stutter Stutter"
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NonGeographicalMan
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #49 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 6:45pm
 
Quote:
.Has anyone understood why not having a geographic number shortens the conversation with the surgery ? Possibly knowing the cost makes us all very succint in what we say!!


It doesn't shorten the conversation with the surgery at all but it means your call gets answered almost instantly before you are then put in an automated queue racking up the 0870 call charges.

Like all fiddles with meeting targets in the health service the fiddle here is that they only count your waiting time as the number of rings until the call is answered.  They completely ignore the time you then spend waiting in the queue as a poorer service and can therefore let you wait as long as they like while you rack up the charges.

You actually get a worse service therefore as well as a higher call cost but they have found a way to play with words to claims its better because now you never get an engaged tone.
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PeDaSp
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #50 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 6:57pm
 
I've saved it for posterity ...

Listen to the interview here  Grin
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« Last Edit: Feb 17th, 2005 at 7:04pm by PeDaSp »  
 
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juby
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #51 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 9:15pm
 
Isn't it about time we award ourselves a little pat on the back?

We have (with a lot of help from You & Yours) at least got the call costs down by 30%.

I believe the best tactic now would be to hammer home the cost of calling a GP from a call box.

Just my thoughts on the subject, standby for shooting down................

Smiley
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NonGeographicalMan
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #52 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 9:32pm
 
Quote:
Isn't it about time we award ourselves a little pat on the back?

We have (with a lot of help from You & Yours) at least got the call costs down by 30%.

I believe the best tactic now would be to hammer home the cost of calling a GP from a call box.


Well the 33.33333% reduction in call cost per minute for these calls is better than nothing but not that much to write home about though as

(a) the little - didn't even switch to using a normal 0845 local rate number at 3p per minute (a 60% reduction) and are now using an 0844 code actually only intended for dialup ISP services and not in any way industry standard for this kind of call

(b) Its still 4400% more expensive for a 15 minute call than a call to a geographic number using call18866.co.uk and infinity times more expensive than on BT Option 3

But as You and Yours only like "keep it simple" vox pop type topics for their rather wide ranging audience I reckon we should now try to shoot down Mr Paul Hendron, General Manager of BT Payphones (paul.hendron@bt.com) for his division's digraceful decision to charge 11p per minute **AT ALL TIMES** for 0870 and 0845 calls (even though the call termination rate for 0870 falls to under 1p a minute at the weekend compared to 5p in the week) when the BT main board has just put in a submission to Ofcom saying that 0845 and 0870 revenue sharing should be banned.

I reckon You and Yours should also get back that nasty little man from the scam phone equipment company to grill him about people who have to use payphones paying 11p per minute at the weekend  (Saturday morning) compared to something a lot less on a BT landline (not sure what they charge on a BT line for 0844 at the weekend but must be close to 1p per minute).

I also think they should suggest that BT put in big lettering on the box of every BT Payphone "calls starting 01 and 02 cost 30p for for 15 minutes but 084x and 087x calls cost £1.64 for 15 minutes"!
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« Last Edit: Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:19pm by N/A »  
 
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Dave
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #53 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 9:45pm
 
Quote:
I reckon You and Yours should also get back that nasty little man from the scam phone equipment company to grill him about people who have to use payphones paying 11p per minute at the weekend  (Saturday morning) compared to something a lot less on a BT landline (not sure what they charge on a BT line for 0844 at the weekend but must be close to 1p per minute).

It depends which 0844 is used. They are all a muddle of different rates. The ones mentioned are 5p/min (presumably at all times), which is the highest 0844. It is these numbers which I have given pricing information for from call boxes (in the Shudder shudder thread). Some 0844s do have different day/evening/weekend rates. See here
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« Last Edit: Feb 17th, 2005 at 9:46pm by Dave »  
 
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kk
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #54 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 9:46pm
 
The proposed 0844 number cost more than a 0870 number from a call box.  The  0844 range to be used cost 10p for  43 seconds plus a 10p connection charge.  0870 cost  10p for 55 seconds plus 10p connection.
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bill
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #55 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:01pm
 
BT's charges for calls to 0844 numbers from residential landlines vary between 0.5p per minute and 5p per minute depending upon the subsequent digits and the time/day.

Full list (in an easy-to-read table - very unusual for the BT website)
HERE
.

By the sound of it, NEG have bought up a range of the 0844 numbers which are designated as being in the (maximum) 5p per minute charge band.  Why am I not surprised?
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juby
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #56 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:04pm
 
NGM

I agree with your final point re:call boxes.

Strongly disagree with the guff about housewives, not true, some of us are retired. And it is sexist, not the right forum I think?

However, as the numbers will become illegal in seven days time. who is going to inform the punters that their doctors number has changed?

Are they going to dial the number listed in the telephone book 0870? Are they to redirected and at what cost? If they dial 0870 in the first place how much is that to cost?

Or is the GP going to have to write to everyone of his patients advising of the new number?

That should make NEG very popular?

Is the best solution to go back to theirgeograhical number?

Smiley

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NonGeographicalMan
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #57 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:11pm
 
Quote:
The proposed 0844 number cost more than a 0870 number from a call box.  The  0844 range to be used cost 10p for  43 seconds plus a 10p connection charge.  0870 cost  10p for 55 seconds plus 10p connection.


Can i recommend that you email the below people to point out this remarkable anomaly to them as I am sure they are sick and tired of only hearing from me by email and by now imagine that I am some kind of fanatic on this topic (as indeed I probably am):-

winifred.robinson@bbc.co.uk (the presenter today)
john.waite@bbc.co.uk (other main presenter)
dan.saladino@bbc.co.uk (program producer)
paraic.obrien@bbc.co.uk (researcher)
stoateh@parliament.uk (the MP doctor on the program)
tylerP@parliament.uk (the other interested MP)

If they realised that 0844 actually costs more than an 0870 number from a callbox they would really have a field day with our friend from the telecoms company doing the doctors surgery stuff.  It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. Wink

Also don't forget to make sure to complain to that greedy so and so called paul.hendron@bt.com who is in charge of BT payphones division.  How can he justify these prices unless there is at least a price announcment before each call as per www.call18866.co.uk ; Especially when they mislead everyone into thinking that all calls cost 30p for 15 minutes and when everyone (even me) would assume that an 0844 number would not cost more than an 0870.

Please do email them on this in layman's terms.  They just aren't going to take much more notice of me at this stage.  Some fresh blood is needed.

You might also like to consider emailing the editor of Panorama - mike.robinson@bbc.co.uk - as I have suggested it is high time that they did a major feature program on the history of this whole NTS issue.
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NonGeographicalMan
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #58 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:27pm
 
Quote:
Strongly disagree with the guff about housewives, not true, some of us are retired. And it is sexist, not the right forum I think?

However, as the numbers will become illegal in seven days time. who is going to inform the punters that their doctors number has changed?

Are they going to dial the number listed in the telephone book 0870? Are they to redirected and at what cost? If they dial 0870 in the first place how much is that to cost?

Or is the GP going to have to write to everyone of his patients advising of the new number?


What housewives are they?  I can only find mention of housewives now in your own post. Wink  As one of the listeners I know very well is actually male and unemployed I can't imagine that I would surely ever have written such a thing. Grin

Regarding the old numbers I imagine they will continue to leave the 0870 numbers functioning as well or they will put an announcement on them saying redial 0844...  They may even charge patients for that announcement.

But do you realise that if 0844 is 5p per minute at all times this means they will be 150% more expensive than the old 0870 number on a Saturday and 400% more expensive than a normal 0845 local rate BT number on a Saturday.  The NHS aren't going to like that when its pointed out to them. As I hope somebody here will do.

I think someone needs to email both You and Yours and our friend Mr Stoate, the Doctor MP, to tell them.  But better one of you than me.  Journalists don't like to feel they are acting as a vehicle for just one person's campaign.  Much better if a whole lot of us start pestering them.
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« Last Edit: Feb 17th, 2005 at 10:28pm by N/A »  
 
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kk
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Re: GP 0870 numbers could be banned
Reply #59 - Feb 17th, 2005 at 11:21pm
 
I agree - 4 emails sent two hours ago.
kk
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