Useful Information & Say no to 0870! Hot Topics » Numbering and pricing information

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Numbering and pricing information

The UK's numbering scheme was meant to be so simple, where all premium rate numbers being prefixed 09 and local and national rate non-geographical numbers prefixed 08.

It has, IMO, turned into a complete shambles. This is most notable with the prefixes 0844 and 0845 and similarly, 0870 and 0871, which are so close it's fair to assume that many won't be aware that there is a difference.

When rates are quoted for 08 and 09 numbers on the TV and in advertisements and the like, it is the price from a BT landline. Furthermore, for all 0844 and 0871 and some 09 numbers, rates don't have to be quoted!

If you make calls with another provider (Primus, TalkTalk, Post Office Home Phone etc) it's worth checking with them what they charge. Where you have a CPS (carrier pre-selection) on your BT line, it may work out cheaper to bypass it by dialing a prefix (usually 1280) so that the call appears on your BT bill. This is usually the case with 0845 and 0870.

The UK's numbering scheme

In the UK, we have the following principal Non-geographic prefixes:

• 030, 033, 034, 037 UK-wide numbers
  
• 0870 No revenue share (since 1 August 2009). Unfortunately most telephone companies still charge these numbers above that of 01, 02 and 03 numbers.
  
• 070 Personal numbers These are numbers which can be 'pointed' (diverted) to other numbers, including mobiles and landlines. These cost anything upto 50p/min at all times from BT non-discounted landlines.
  
• 076 Pagers (except for 07624 which are for Manx mobile phones)
  
• 075, 077, 078, 079 Mobile Mobile phone numbers.
  
• 0800, 0808, 0500 Freephone Free from landlines. Mobiles usually charge and do so outside of any inclusive minutes on the caller's tariff.
  
• 0844, 0843 Special services basic rate Charged at a wide variety of rates from 1p/min upto 5p/min for BT customers. Other providers often charge more than BT, but none ever charge less.¹
  
• 0845 Special services basic rate¹
  
• 0871, 0872, 090, 091 Premium Rate Services Charged at anything from 10p/min to £1.50/min for BT customers. Other providers often charge more than BT, but none ever charge less.¹

All Geographic numbers begin with a 01 or 02 prefix.

An important point to note is that for all calls to 084x, 0871 and 09 the called party (known as the Service Provider or SP) receives a subsidy from the caller (via his/her telephone company). This happens irrespective of whether the SP is paid directly revenue for calls received. See my blog posting How do 084x numbers work?

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1. BT's 084x/0871/0872/09 rates are atypical. See BT charges may vary from others.

Ofcom numbering information
The Office of Communications, or Ofcom as it is more commonly known, is the UK regulator for telecoms amongst other things. Information about telephone numbering can be found on Ofcom's website here.

Amongst other things, this section includes:

• Check telephone number availability
  
  • The National Numbering Scheme - Telephone Numbers administered by Ofcom This lists number prefixes and which communications provider they are allocated to. Most numbers are allocated in blocks of 10,000; ie 01234 56xxxx, 0870 123xxxx and so on.
    
    The numbering data is available in Microsoft Excel or CSV text formats. The numbers are shown without leading zeros, so 0113 is shown as 113, 0870 is shown as 870 and so on. This is in the left most column.
    
  • Number Block Transactions Shows prefixes which have been allocated, removed or changed hands within the last 12 months.
  
  
• Guidance on telephone numbering Contains National Telephone Numbering Plan, 030 Number Eligibility Guidance, Personal Numbering - Guidance on the acceptable use of 070 numbers and other information.

If any of the above links don't work, send me a message, as Ofcom has a habit of moving things around.

BT pricing information

Pricing for BT Calling Plans² (and other BT tariffs) is available on the BT Price List, although it's not set out in a friendly manner. However, my guide below will show you how to find the relevant information.

All the codes for non-geographical numbers are available in a PDF, Specialised Services, and you may find it easier to locate the information in it.

The BT Price List

If you would like to know how to refer to the BT Price List, I have prepared the following to guide you through finding out what you want to know.

A 'call set up' fee of 10.9 pence³ for all chargeable calls (except fixed-fee calls) applies on BT Calling Plans. Whole minute charging also applies to geographical calls, international calls and calls to mobiles.

For more information on BT's policy of call duration rounding, call charge rounding and the Call Set-up fee, see Dialled Call Charges.

For call rates for numbers starting 05, 07, 08 and 09 on the BT Price List, see the following:

1. Find the Charge Rate for the relevant number:

• 05 numbers
  
• 07 numbers
  
• 08 numbers
  
• 09 numbers

2. Now refer to the relevant pricing section and find the price of the charge rate:

a. For calls from BT landlines on BT Calling Plans², which is most BT residential accounts, refer to Unlimited Weekend Calling Plan for a list of call rates (mobile, 0870, 09 premium rate etc). These rates apply on all BT Calling Plans. The only differences are with geographical, UK-wide (03) numbers and 0870 numbers, which are detailed in Unlimited Evening & Weekend Calling Plan and Unlimited Anytime Calling Plan.

For charge rates which don't appear in the above link, see Basic Inland Call Charges: Calls Charged By Time Duration - Residential and Basic Inland Call Charges: Fixed Fee Calls.

b. Call Charges from BT Public Payphones: The pricing tables also show the number of seconds 10p buys and not the pence per minute. Calls from Payphones also have a 40p connection fee and a minimum charge of 60p.³


BT have a habit of moving their price list around, so send me a message if any of the links don't work, and I'll do my best at updating the page. Also, let me know if any of the information I've given or pointed to is wrong.

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2. Previously known as BT Together options.
3. Prices correct as at 12 December 2010.