BT are about (October 06) to implement a 10% call price hike and yet nobody appears to have noticed. Not a mention in any of the mass circulation media. BT have achieved the ‘smoke and mirrors’ increase by abolishing the current 5p minimum charge and introducing a 3p “set up charge” - at first glance this may appear to be a price reduction.  On top of this cheeky little move, BT have also introduced ‘whole minute call charging’ to replace the current ‘per second billing’.  Both measures appear benign, but the overall effect is a 10% increase in call cost for calls averaging 15 minutes in length.

I have produced a computer program that generated 500 random length calls lasting from 6 seconds to 30 minutes.  The results have been based on the normal 3p/minute day time tariff.

The current cost of 500 calls is £223.95 (Average call cost 44.70p)
The new cost of 500 calls will be £246.54 (Average call cost 49.20p) - An increase of 10.1%    

Recalculation for 500 calls lasting from 6 seconds to 20 minutes, produces an increase of 14.2%

This price hike was cleverly disguised and announced under the camouflage of  ‘call option reductions’. The increasing use of non-geographical number, means that more calls will be excluded from BT’s call options anyway.

Totally outrageous kk and well done with the calculations - but its a sign of how sneaky this is that you are forced to resort to running it through a computer model.  And worst of all BT have even been allowed to increase the cost of a 1 minute day time call to an 0870 number from 7.51p to 10.51p.  Its hard to believe that Clueless Carter has actually allowed BT to further increase the price of 0870 calls, unless of course that's where he expects to land his next million pound a year job. ;)

Given that the owner of this website is actually clearly now a major financial beneficiary of the existence of the whole 084/7 NTS scam industry's (due to all the click throughs he earns on the daily site visits) and self evidently has no wish at all to campaign to bring it to an end I think its up to some of us to actually try and meet up and arrange a meeting with say a group of interested MPs/Peers at the House of Commons so the next time Stephen Carter's succesor and David Currie show up for interview they get a total roasting over BT deregulation that they claimed would cut call costs but has just allowed BT to rasie them! :o >:( :'(

See also this thread on the recent BT hikes.

BT recently covered the nation's billboards with messages, the most cynical of which has got to be "BT has cut its call package prices", with a web address (www.bt.com/millions) that leads to pages with more propaganda on.

NGM, whole minute charging will not apply to calls to 0870 numbers, it will only apply to UK geographical calls, international calls and UK mobile calls. The rate of 0870 numbers will go down to 7p/min during the daytime, but will still attract the "call setup fee".

kk, perhaps you can adapt your program to look at how much this will cost consumers who are calling mobile phones from BT landlines. At 13p/min for calls to the four GSM networks (O2/Vodafone/Orange/T-Mobile) during the daytime, with whole minute charging, an aborted call to an answering 'service' will cost 16p !!  :o

Dave wrote on Sep 30^th, 2006 at 12:00pm:

NGM, whole minute charging will not apply to calls to 0870 numbers, it will only apply to UK geographical calls, international calls and UK mobile calls. The rate of 0870 numbers will go down to 7p/min during the daytime, but will still attract the "call setup fee".

It was the addition of the call setup fee I was concerned about.  I didn't know the per minute rate had been cut from 7.51p to 7p.  So I suppose BT will claim that on an average 0870 call the caller is better off as they nearly always last more than 6 minutes.

I had wrongly thought the 3p connection was on top of the 7.51p per minute.

The other thing to note here is that Talk Talk have followed BT like sheep. They have also introduced whole minute charging and connection charges at roughly the same time. This is discussed here.

Dave wrote on Sep 30^th, 2006 at 12:15pm:

The other thing to note here is that Talk Talk have followed BT like sheep. They have also introduced whole minute charging and connection charges at roughly the same time. This is discussed here.

Nice you can reply so rapidly on that issue Dave but a pity I have received no comment on DaveM's vitriolic attack on a new lady forum member asking why one of the forum's listed alternative numbers didn't work.

I note the thread has now been removed to try and cover his tracks.

Hi NGM

The 3p connection fee is on top of the 7.51p per minute call rate for 0870

Hi Dave

Regarding your request (see post #2 above).

For 500 calls between the ranges 6 seconds to 20 minutes long:

500 calls now cost  £660.45    (5p min charge - no connection fee - call rate 13p/min - per second billing)
500 calls will cost  £707.02     (no min charge - 3p connection fee - call rate 13p/min - whole minute billing)  

A 7.2% increase.

kk wrote on Sep 30^th, 2006 at 1:53pm:

Hi NGM The 3p connection fee is on top of the 7.51p per minute call rate for 0870

Dave claimed that 0870 was actually going down from 7.51p to 7p per minute as well so I assume BT will claim the average result leaves the average 0870 caller better off as most calls are longer than 6 minutes?.........................

Its a shame that Dave still seems unable to make any comment on DaveM making a vitriolic attack yesterday on a new lady forum member in Geographical Requestss in a thread that has now been deleted.  And this wouldn't be the first time DaveM has done this kind of thing either. :o

Ofcom based its recent decision to release BT from price regulation, on a secret undertaking given by BT.   From October, BT will substantially increased the cost of calls - most wiil increase by 10 to 14%.  What sort of undertaking was given to allow this?

kk wrote on Sep 30^th, 2006 at 3:01pm:

Ofcom based its recent decision to release BT from price regulation, on a secret undertaking given by BT.   From October, BT will substantially increased the cost of calls - most wiil increase by 10 to 14%.  What sort of undertaking was given to allow this?

An undertaking as to Stephen Carter's next career move perhaps? ;)

BT claim to have reduced the price of 0870 calls, but the smoke and mirrors reduction is in reality a price rise. They claim to have reduced the price from 7.51p/min to 7p/min, but 99.9% of consumers paid 7p/min anyway.

Calculations for 500 random length calls from 6 seconds to 20 minutes, to 0870, now with the 3p connection charge:

No connection charge, but 5p min charge - £348.93 (average 70.41p) at 7p/min  (per sec billing)
3p connection charge, no min charge       - £369.30 (average 73.70p) at 7p/min (per sec billing)

An increase of 4.7% for 99.9% of consumers.

kk wrote on Oct 6^th, 2006 at 5:18am:

BT claim to have reduced the price of 0870 calls, but the smoke and mirrors reduction is in reality a price rise. They claim to have reduced the price from 7.51p/min to 7p/min, but 99.9% of consumers paid 7p/min anyway. Calculations for 500 random length calls from 6 seconds to 20 minutes, to 0870, now with the 3p connection charge: No connection charge, but 5p min charge - £348.93 (average 70.41p) at 7p/min  (per sec billing) 3p connection charge, no min charge       - £369.30 (average 73.70p) at 7p/min (per sec billing) An increase of 4.7% for 99.9% of consumers.

Suggest you send these figures to your MP and ask him to refer the matter to the Parliamentary Ombudsman as an example of Ofcom failing in their duties to promote competition and protect the UK Citizen Consumer.

Ofcom outline the procedure for complaining about them via the ombudsman on their own website:-

www.ofcom.org.uk/about/accoun/complaints/


Quote:

Other ways to complain Ofcom is accountable to Parliament. You may ask your Member of Parliament to take up your case on your behalf. Your Member of Parliament may also refer the case to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration (the Ombudsman). The Ombudsman is independent and impartial, and provides a free and confidential service. General information on making a complaint to the Ombudsman – which, under current legislation, can be done only by a Member of Parliament – can be obtained from: Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration Millbank Tower Millbank London SW1P 4QP Tel: 0845 015 4033 (enquiry line) Fax: 020 7217 4000 Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk Email: phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk

I had hoped Ofcom was out of date on the Parliamentary Ombudsman using an 0845 number but unfortunately can see that sadly they are not.  You might therefore care to throw in an additional complaint with your MP to get the Ombudsman to investigate their own inappropriate use of a number that hugely discriminates against citizens calling from overseas and mobile phones and from anyone with a fixed price 01/02 landline calling plan. :o

The fact that the Parliamentary Ombudsman uses an 0845 number surely says it all!