Yes, and they have now gone over to 0845 where we pay more and they pay more!

I noticed the comment under Fred's image, and I make no further comment !

The only way you pay more for an 0845 is IF you have an inclusive plan with a Telco, and I would hazard a guess that well over 60% of people in UK still DO NOT. Therefore, you cannot make a sweeping statement saying that WE PAY MORE if the majority DO NOT !!   

I do like the idea of the IR chasing tax on the revenue from the 0870. More likely they would ignore the person calling making them have to call back !

Quote:


Well seeing as EVERYONE on BT DOES have a form of discount on normal local-rate calls, at the very least on off-peak ones, then your comment would seem to be incorrect.

Off-peak you can call a local number for 5p/hour. 
0845 I believe is about 2p/min.  Id say thats a BIG difference. 

Also I think a lot of people DO choose specific inclusive plans as you can get 5p/hour peak-rate calls for about £5/month - which is cheap if you make a lot or long daytime calls.

It has always seemed to me that I use the phone less than most people, though even I am managing about £5/month since BT pulled the plug on including a couple of quid a month as free.

One of the reasons people don't change is because they are unaware of the cost of calls.Do BT now automatically provide bills showing the cost of each call?
Many companies give inclusive packages of one sort or another not to mention the exclusion of NGNs on mobile packages, not to mention 18866 and 1899.People using all of the above are paying more on all NGNs even 0845.
I think that all the companies dhould be obliged to follow the example of 18866 and 1899 and give the cost per minute at the time of making the call.
As far as awareness raising is concerned surely we should try and get the interest of the local press and any residents associations magazines  .

As with everything (utility bills, phone calls, etc.) which option is cheapest depends on an individual's usage. If most of your calls are made in the evening and last for more than 5 minutes, geographical numbers are cheaper than 0845. If you mostly use the phone during the day, you'd probably be better off on a (more) inclusive tariff.

Competition is all very well if the public understand it and/or are willing to change. But in reality they don't, which is how the privatised utilities make their money. That at least benefits people such as those who use this site, so maybe we should just keep quiet about it...

Personally, I'd choose the package that included free 0870 calls, as I mainly call companies and they usually quote such numbers - which is exactly what I tell the BT salesperson whenever they call to try and make me change to a more expensive package!