I had a letter from my MP today, it was a real letter and it was signed by him. I realise it was probably vote seeking, but it was a reply to my email of 12th April about the cost of phoning the police. They have gone over to 0845.

I know about the costs of phoning from a landline but would appreciate being filled in about the charges from A. A call box, an B. A mobile, (knowing that these prices vary) I do not have a mobile phone, honestly! When I retired I threw them all away!

juby

Juby.

From a normal BT PAYPHONE the charges  to 0845 are
10p connection,+ 10p every 55 seconds!!!(Where as you would get 15 minutes for 30p to a geographical no.)

Its a minefield from a mobile.If its a contract some providers include them in there inclusive minutes some dont.Eg on the new Virgin contract tariff  they charge 10p at all times.On PAYG it can be as much as 35p a minute depending on network or tariff.

The other point to hit them with is that calls to 0845 do not always work from abroad.

At the time Police Forces and other contact centres put these 0845 no,s in,there reasoning was it enabled everyone in the County to reach them for the price of a local call from a normal landline.so they were not discriminating against folks on the fringe.(Ok revenue sharing might have come into it.)Since  the 1st July 2004 everyone can of course reach them for the same price anyway.So this excuse is out the window.

Dorset Police were considering this route recently but after some research opted for the Geographical Option.

I hope this helps.

Many thanks, it helps perfectly.


juby

If you have an O2 contract phone, then 0845, and 0870 are included.  I got it confirmed from customer services, and my 0870 calls have all been billed as inclusive minutes.