the fair telecoms campaign will feature in a piece on 5 live Investigates on BBC Radio 5 live tomorrow morning at 11am.

The topic will be the use of 084 non-geographic numbers by NHS GPs.

Listen on AM, DAB, online, Freeview 705, Freesat 705, Sky 0105, Virgin Media 905.

We will also be making the broadcast available online to listen again.

Thanks Dave for your post with the Where to find Five Live I looked on my Freeview but didnt recognise the Station because of the way it was shown just as letters, but after putting in the 705 I found it but too late to hear it live, so went to your online Link and listened to it later.

I was shocked to hear the bit about the Aunt's £90 quarterly bill of which £60 was to GP's 0844 probably through the line continuiously cutting off, or waiting on hold.

The trouble is that many Elderly are frightened of upsetting their GP so dont say anything and just put up with it.

I have now found this Link to the Programme
http://www.fairtelecoms.org.uk/radio-player.html?83

Starts at 20 minutes, 30 seconds in.

BBC London will be reporting on NHS GPs that are using 0844 and 0845 numbers in defiance of their contracts. A representative from fairtelecoms will feature on the regional news programme in a couple of minutes and again at 18:30, both on BBC One London.

fairtelecoms will be making the broadcasts available to watch again on the Video player on our website.

Dave wrote on Feb 12^th, 2013 at 1:30pm:

BBC London will be reporting on NHS GPs that are using 0844 and 0845 numbers in defiance of their contracts.

Saw it on the BBC London breakfast opt-out this morning.

BBC London 94.9 will be covering this story this evening at 17:50.

Saw it at lunchtime. You were excellent David. Very clear and concise.

The relevant portions of the Radio London item and the 6.30 London TV news item are now available on the respective fairtelecoms players.

If anybody has a recording of the 1:30 TV item, please let us know (david@fairtelecoms.org.uk).

Had a quick listen the other day to the R5 item. One point made by a caller was rather quickly dismissed, namely the possibility of legal action, something I have advocated for a long time. While class action lawsuits, which I think was the suggested route, may not even be possible under English law, it appears to me to be perfectly feasible for individual action to be brought against a surgery, possibly jointly with NEG and the appropriate health trust. All a litigant would have to show is that he/she was financially disadvantaged through non-compliance with the various guidelines. Unlike all the other bodies who continually wash their hands of this problem, a court is concerned only with evidence and facts and we should use these to our advantage. The caller's relative who spent fifty or so quid (can't recall the exact amount) should sue, and, in my opinion, the fair telecoms campaign should be advocating and supporting this course of action.

idb wrote on Feb 20^th, 2013 at 2:25am:

... in my opinion, the fair telecoms campaign should be advocating and supporting this course of action.

As I said in the broadcast, I believe the first priority must be for it to be recognised that all practices using 084 numbers are in breach of their contracts, and for this use to cease.

To achieve this it must be clearly determined that "having regard to the arrangement as a whole" calls to a 084 number cost more than calls to geographic numbers, in every case. This covers those who adopted 084 numbers after 1 April 2010 and prevents further surgeries from taking them on. For those who have retained these numbers past 1 April 2011 it must be recognised that the option of migration to the equivalent 03 number was available to them, and that this was a "reasonable" step to take, as specified in the terms of their NHS contract.

Once that has been achieved, the remedy required of each practice in breach must be determined and put in place. The most obvious element is prompt cessation of the use of the 084 number and its replacement, possibly with the 03 equivalent number for those with time to go on arrangements with system providers.

I would see the next step as being possible action for recompense. A NHS GP practice is providing services on behalf of the Primary Care Trust to which it is contracted. In theory the PCT could perhaps pursue the practice for damages on account of its breach of the terms of its contract and distribute the funds to patients - this is most unlikely!

One or more patients could take action against their PCT on account of its failure to perform its duty to enforce the terms of its contract with the practice - this would seem to be the course most likely to succeed, although I use the term "likely" purely in a relative sense when considering securing damages. The fact that not one PCT has yet served a notice on a practice in respect of its breach of its contract would undoubtedly make it very difficult for a patient to pursue a practice directly.

Given that we are still struggling to get the breach of contract acknowledged, although getting closer, I am reluctant to have the fear of serious financial consequences in the event of a positive result for us potentially representing a further impediment to progress. If this were an "open and shut" case, then the situation would be different.

The potential for the matter to be settled in the courts by someone proceeding with Judicial Review against a PCT or the Department of Health, has been open for the last two years. I have not yet come across anyone ready to pursue this, nor a team of lawyers ready to take on the task on a pro bono basis.

The fair telecoms campaign would be keen to support any such proposed action, as it would any activity with a reasonable chance of success that offset any potential risk of damage to the cause.

Support and advocacy are two very different things.

There are much lesser formal actions which we have advocated, but have found ourselves wanting when it comes to providing the assistance which individuals require. I am personally very keen that we do not overreach ourselves by pushing beyond the bounds of our modest, if growing, resources.

Potential litigants over this issue should be aware the primary proponent of the use of 084 numbers by GPs itself follows a highly litigious approach. This has been demonstrated in relation to this issue, even when it was not directly involved. This shows that only those who have the time, money, skills and energy for a potentially bloody legal battle, over perhaps a narrow case, should consider getting involved in litigation. Sadly, we do not have any such amongst our number.