Useful Information & Say no to 0870! Hot Topics

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There's quite a few people posting in the Geographical Requests section requesting numbers that either exist in the listings or don't give any information on the company they are requesting for. We have to do some spade work that the poster should have done, such as finding the address.

To find a number follow these steps:

1. Check the Say no to 0870 database
Check the database of alternative numbers by clicking Search to find an alternative number on the home page. From there, you can either search by company name or non-geographical number. Entering a partial company name is always best. If you get too many results, either enter more of the name or a different word from the name.

Numbers in the top table (entitled Main Database) have been verified by us. Those in the table with the blue background have not been verified. That said, there is always the possibility that numbers change anyway and the best way to report incorrect numbers, whether verified or unverified, is to post a message in the Geographical Requests section of the forum.

2. Search the internet for a number
When I look for a number I usually use Google. Some tips for searching are as follows:

• name of company and telephone dialing code, eg
  "direct line" 0113
• post code and dialing code, eg
  "S12 3CD" 0114
• if the name of the company is a common phrase, it's worth adding other terms, like 'insurance' or a location/street name, eg
  "direct line" insurance 0113
• try the dialing code in international format, eg
  "direct line" "44 113"
  or
  "direct line" "44 0113"
• don't just search UK pages, try selecting 'web' for worldwide search.
• is the company/brand part of a bigger company? If so, try searching for them.
• does the company have more than one site? Search the post and telephone codes of any sites you find.

Putting quotes in searches groups the words together. For example, a search for

direct line

(without quotes) will get different results to

"direct line"

(with quotes). Similarly when searching for post codes use quotes.

It is also worth looking at the Internet Archive. It provides snapshots of pages back to 1996. See Reply #6 below for more information.

Another thing to consider is if the company has changed its name or if it's a particular address or shop, then maybe it has been taken over. It may be that the new owners have kept the same telephone number.

3. Post a request
If you have no joy finding what you're looking for you can make a request on the forum here.



Select Search Forums at the top of the page. I suggest you put one word of the company's name into the search field. If you get too many hits you may have to narrow it down by putting in more terms. I also suggest that you search only in Geographical Requests section and only subject titles (as opposed to within messages).

When posting a request give as much information as possible. Make the title of the thread the organisation/company's name. Include the following if you know it:

• the non-geographical number you are looking for an alternative for
• a full address including post code
• website address
• type of business
• whether the company has changed its name or been bought out
• in the case of a shop, for example, whether it has changed occupants and who used to be there
• any other useful information you can think of

Only add a number the database if you have found a geographical or freephone alternative!

If you have a geographical or freephone number, select Click here to add a new alternative number on the home page. Fill in the appropriate boxes and press 'Add Number'.

   Hi you'all,  Some good tips there. However Dave, since normally you wouldn't have a geographical dialling code, only a non-geo, it wouldn't help in a  search would it! I did a Google search on your example for "direct line insurance", with and without an 0845 in the search and couldn't find a geo no. anywhere. How do you find a geo dialling code of a company. Would you have to have their address or area code?

Some companies change to a NGN and change their geographical number. For those, it's highly unlikely that a search of the internet will find the new geographical number.

Quite often you will find old pages which were written before the company changed to a NGN. Another source is old letterheads and other correspondance you may have.

Large companies have many lines, quite often with consecutive numbers. A clue to this would be finding several numbers all starting with the same prefix. Try ringing neighbouring numbers, you may find what you're looking for. This may mean dialing 50 or 100 numbers or more.

When you do this, bear in mind that minimum/connection calls charges will apply to each number which connects (answers), if you are not on an inclusive package. On BT Together Option 1 that is 5p in the day time (between 8am and 6pm) and 5.5p at evening and weekend.

When you find a number not listed on this site which works, make sure you add it to the listings.

One website that may be of use is:

http://www.archive.org/

This is the "Wayback machine", and is a site that regularly archives the whole web as it is. You can see what many sites looked like back to at least 1999. In many cases, this is before firms introduced 08 numbers, so you can see their old geographical number. Of course, the number may no longer be valid, but in some cases it will.

It isn't always easy to use. Some pages are missing, and links are often broken.

Just another tool in our armoury for finding numbers!

I won't make the unfair comment about you needing a bigger one - SCREEN that is ! I realise you're working with the restriction that a TV screen imposes.

I think that what you say is a fair comment. Hopefully Daniel will pick up on that & move it to a button further up the screen for those amongst us with bad eyesight, etc. & forced to work at Low Res (640x480)

Just wanted to add this site as an instant method of finding the geographic code for a town:

http://www.ukphoneinfo.com/section/tci/locator.shtml

Also a superb resource for finding out the cost of a call.

Probably by dialling an 0870 or 08X etc number and looking at the Connected Line Identification.

Like CLI or Caller Display, but the other way round. Good practice would probably suppress the real or electric number and so not give the delivery number away, but....

For companies with many outlets/branches, some are happy to provide geographical numbers. You could ring a branch which is listed in the database and request the geographical number for the one you wish to contact.

Tesco are one such company where each branch has geographical numbers of other branches. Tesco's head office isn't so helpful as they only give out 0845 numbers.

I've just verified the Going Places branch numbers by ringing one of the branches.

Remember to add the number to the database when you find it. Also, find the geographical number from online directories such as BT Directory Enquiries or Yell.

Put the location in the 'Other Info' field, ie in the form Town - Street/Locality.