Forgive me if someone has already pointed this out, but today I have just come across what I believe is the worst abuse yet of the supposed National Numbering Plan. Whatever was the point of having one at all, when such contraventions were to be allowed? I now begin to wonder whether the whole NNP thing was an intentional strategy to fool consumers into a sense of false security so that they could be ripped off afterwards, like lambs to the slaughter?

We have already seen the proliferating abuse of non-09 NGNs being used as Premium numbers WITH Queuing (when queuing was supposed to be prohibited with all Premium numbers). Now we have access codes being used as Premium numbers! This is quite unbelievable. The one I have just come across is clearly also deliberately chosen to ghost on another much used code, rather like ghost urls which are designed to catch any who mispell a well-used commercial url. This one is a so-called DQ number, 118866. It is clearly deliberately designed to catch anyone making an error in dialing the code 18866. It is apparently a premium rate DQ service run by Ring True Solutions. The rate is a £1.50 connection charge and thereafter calls cost 30p per minute. So if you dial it in error and then clear down immediately when you get an answer, it will still cost you £1.50p + the first 30 p. 

This is what happens when you have a corrupt regulator. These guys are cocking a snook at the whole regulatory system. I wonder how many other abuses like this there now are. Does anyone know of any others?

We really ought to complain in force about this, since this is clearly the beginning of even worse abuses.

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As requested, click here.

As I posted on the MSE site, it is £1.50 connection charge so I believe it is obvious they are only in it to con those people who accidently dial 118866 as at £1.50 connection charge they must be the most expensive.

I believe OfCOM should be informed of this misuse.  I may give them a ring tomorrow to see if anything legally can be done.

Just rung OfCOM over this and mentioned just how much they've increased their prices which makes them very uncompetitive and how I think they've done it on purpose because people are misdialling Call18866.

His reply is that we have to be more careful but nothing can be done because its just as if we misdialled a geographical number.  I then mentioned that there was a major difference of misdialling a geographical that would cost 5p max to one that costs £1.50 minimum!

He said there was no difference except just be cautious when dialling Call18866!

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BigJohn, I do believe that the DQ service 118866 was genuine as at first they only charged the average rate for DQ calls.  It looks they've been taken over by a company called RingTrue Solutions and since then increased their DQ calls to £1.50 connection charge.

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Good idea as thats probably best that can be done because OfCOM can't/wont do anything.

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You called them?  Is there a contact number for them then? ???

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This is not true of a DQ service.  You can dial any DQ service (from a BT line anyhow) and you can use them without registering.  The likes of Call18866/1899 are call providers/carriers that we use to 'carry' our calls over their network and therefore benefit from cheaper calls. It is these (Call18866/1899) call providers that ask you to register.

DQ 118866 was a legit company charging an average price for DQ enquries and I believe it wasn't intentional that they had similar numbers but from my research it appears that when it was taken over by RingTrue Solutions they increased the DQ charge to £1.50 connection charge from the average charge (generally around 50p connection charge).  That to me, indicates, they are not trying to provide a DQ service to us as they are nowhere near competitive at that price, but instead have realised people must have been dialling them instead of Call18866 and therefore decided to take advantage of our mistake.

I am sorry bbb_uk, but I feel you are confusing the issue. My point is that "DQ" services or any other services of this type should not be accessible via a code which can result in a charge via your existing main provider. This is a further contravention of the NNP and as such adds to all of the scams and deception which Ofcom continue to allow the proliferation of.

Any service of this type where a charge of any kind may be made on this basis should be on an 09 number according to the NNP.

I cannot understand why we have different length codes. Even the access codes 18866 and 1899 are different lengths!!! Has all this happened since privatisation? Is this the need to have more than 100 combinations?

It seems to me that it's a typical Ofcom bodge!

Not only that, the phone providers don't provide an option to bar calls to 118 DQ services. I read into this that the industry is now driven by its greed for profit, which has nothing to do with providing a telecommunications service. These DQ services are a complete rip-off, when you consider you can look up this sort of information online for free.