First: have you tried all the different Halifax numbers in this forum?

Best to try and make it difficult for them.

Have you tried emailing and getting them to call you? If they don't reply to emails promptly you can call head office and use that as leverage. Get your own 0870 number so it costs them to call you!!! Try and build up a relationship with a named person who agrees to reply to your emails or call you when required.

Write them endless letters with questions - and force them to write back to you. This is a great waste of time for them. Tell them if they want to speed things up they need to either call you back or give you an geographic number.

Write to them and inform them that their operators are breaking consumer trading law by lying about the cost of the calls. Threaten to report them to the local trading standards office. (See other posts on this forum). Best to send them a recorded delivery letter looking official to their legal department.

Tell them you are going to post an audio file to the web of their operators lying and breaking the law. We should set up a website for such things!

Get a small tape recorder and record the calls where they tell you the calls are local rate - inform them that you are doing so when you start talking to them! I think you need to tell them to comply with the law. But it always gives them a big shock!!!

Write to the MD of the company explained clearly why 0845 numbers are such a rip-off etc... They will try and fob you off - but write again and correct the lies they have been told by their telecoms company.

Or you could just lie! Call the main switchboard and say you are calling from abroad and you cannot get through to the 0845 number (many foreign telcos block such numbers). Withhold your number first.

Always get them to put things in writing via a letter. So if they tell you that 0845 numbers are local rate - ask for that in writing.

THE BIG BUT FUN OPTION:

If I had a mortgage - and the time - I would write to them and tell them I am moving my mortgage to another company who does not use rip-off numbers. (First giving them the change to give you a working geographic number or a refund on your call costs). Give this as your sole reason. Then state that you consider their use of 0845 numbers and unfair contract term etc... and they should not charge you a fee etc... to move your mortgage. Then if they do charge you a fee; state you are paying it under protest and don't agree with it.

Then when you have moved your mortgage sue them in the small claims court for the return of the fee!!! I'm sure that someone from this forum would come along to fight your case and explain to the judge all about the 0845 number rip-off!

But for this to work they would clearly have to have refused to reply to your letters or emails.

Do they keep you on hold when you call the 0845 number?

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Go online and get them to call you   http://www.halifax.co.uk/home/index.shtml ;  click on "quick finder search box" highlight phone numbers, click go, on the left hand side is a list,click on "we'll call you" click on  "mortgages" then enter your phone number, job done

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Some do but I would guess most don't

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I'm assuming that the number you called was 01422 380880; you didn't say

What you need to remember here is that these dep't numbers were set up on before the rate for Local & National numbers was made the same in July 2004. Like many companies in the UK, the staff training has not been updated to reflect the change as there is NO benefit for them to do so. As interested parties, we all keep up with this information for our own benefit, but it's amazing how many people still don't know about it !

As a shareholder I complained to Customer Services, who also didn't know about the rate changes and said that they would pass the updated info to the relevant training manager.  I believe !! 

Don't forget also, as I have said many times, that the majority of UK residents DO NOT have an inclusive call plan, and therefore the 0845 number is NOT more expensive for them.
!!   

I will do some further investigation for a direct number to the Mortgage dep't, but as it could be in various locations, re-routed by the 0845, it may not be successful. The 0845 if busy goes to the next available number. If the Geo is busy, TUFF !! Unless you have another, which could also be busy, etc.  Get the picture ? You either want cheap or an answer !

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Not quite true.  For people on BT Together 1, 0845 is indeed the same price as a geographic call during the daytime (and evenings?), but at the weekend, any 0845 call over 5 minutes is more expensive than a geo call.

For people on non-inclusive deals with operators other than BT -- e.g. OneTel Standard UK Talk, 0845 is often more expensive than a national call.

For mobiles, 0845 is often more expensive than a geo call, although in some instances it can be cheaper!  (e.g. a very light user of Virgin mobile will pay 15p/min geo but 10p/min for most 0845).