!0 Downing Street have now issued their response:-


"Thank you for the e-petition about mobile phone operators charges for 0800 and freephone telephone numbers.

The independent Office of Communications (Ofcom)(new window) is responsible for numbering policy in the UK.

Most Freephone numbers begin with "080" followed by a further eight digits. Freephone numbers can also begin with "0800" followed by a further six digits and these are usually free to the caller from fixed landlines. However, with regard to mobile phone network operators, the decision whether or not to charge for telephone calls to Freephone numbers is a commercial one for the mobile companies.
Most mobile phone companies do charge for calls to Freephone numbers. Some operators have an automated announcement to advise the caller of the charge before the call is connected. Callers are therefore fully informed about exactly how much the call will cost them.

The mobile company Orange provides free of charge from the Orange network more than 240 charity and helpline numbers, including Childline, supported by the Telephone Helplines Association. Orange does not charge for voice calls to 0800 numbers, except those identified as calling card services, but data calls are charged.

Other mobile operators have made provision for free calls to some roadside recovery services and Childline 0800 numbers. T-Mobile provides free calls to AA, RAC, Green Flag and Childline. O2 provides free calls to Childline, Bullying Helpline and Crime Stoppers.

It wouldn't be so bad if 0800 was treated in the same way as geographic calls, with the airtime taken from bundled minutes (as happens here in the US), but from what I recall, the costs of calling 0800 are the same or similar to the costs for calling other 08 numbers.

So, for most cellphone users, it is more advantageous to call a geographic equivalent than to call an 0800 number.

Ofcom=useless+joke organization

loddon wrote on Jul 18^th, 2007 at 7:00pm:
This isn't entirely true.  Last time I had cause to ring a so-called freephone number from my mobile (o2) it did advise me the call wasn't free but said it was charged at 'standard' rates.  How many customers know what o2 mean by 'standard' rate?  That could easily be implied as being same price as a geographical but only if you check their website do you find out that it's 15p/min for PAYG and 20p/min for contract customers.  What is 'standard' about that?

Can anyone else on other mobile networks confirm whether you're informed of the actual price of the call beforehand or just the fact that its not free and charged at 'standard' rates?  (you can disconnect before the call starts ringing to save being charged  )

Heinz wrote on Jul 19^th, 2007 at 4:59pm:
..Could this be why Tony Blair isn't in charge anymore or one of many reasons.

Besides, you don't know exactly what Ofcom have told the government.  Ofcom may have said that mobile providers state the cost of the calls, etc up front but I doubt if Ofcom actually knows what the mobile networks announce when their customers call freephone numbers.

bbb_uk wrote on Jul 19^th, 2007 at 4:48pm:


Calls to geographics are charged at 20p a minute on my O2 calling tariff so that would be "standard" rate to me. I thought 0800 numbers were included in my free minutes, but when I tried to call one, it said it wasn't free and I had to remove the 0 (making it 800 xxxxxx) before I could call. Weird...

NGMsGhost wrote on Jul 20^th, 2007 at 8:28am:


I'm on one of their "ye olde" contracts before they stopped including 0870 numbers, and I assumed 0800 was included too. Maybe it wasn't... however, I will be mightily peed off if they've taken 08xx numbers out of my free calls without telling me...

NGMsGhost wrote on Jul 20^th, 2007 at 8:28am:
TBH, I'm surprised o2 included them for so long after all the other networks stopped.  Voda stopped including theirs years ago if I remember correctly.

If you have inclusive x-net minutes on any network you can call 0800/0808/0500 numbers and 0845 numbers as well at Evening and Weekends only by using the www.pre-dial.com 07730 access number. Click on Free Destination list for details.

O2 old ( Tariffs) contracts still include ngn numbers in their inclusive minutes apart from 0871. At the present time if you ask O2 they will still put you on an old tariff including these numbers.