http://www.lep.co.uk/news/Fury-at-39ripoff39-police-and.3186155.jp

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Lancashire police is planning to introduce new charging phonelines.
The constabulary has confirmed it will introduce an 0845 code for its non-emergency number, which takes up to 1.5 million calls a year, following advice handed down nationally.

Today, the Evening Post can also reveal that a number of councils in Lancashire are also using the phone lines.

Although not officially classed as premium rate, the new numbers are up to 4p a minute more expensive to call from standard BT landlines and can cost up to 35p a minute more using a mobile phone.

The move goes against advice handed out by the government's Central Office of Information, which says that public service providers should keep local dialling codes.

It follows a revelation that at least four GPs surgeries in Preston had abandoned their 01772 dialling codes in favour of more expensive 0844 numbers.

A spokesman for Lancashire Constabulary said that the decision to introduce the 0845 as a non-emergency number was taken at a national level and will be in force from November.

Superintendent Bill McMahon, who is overseeing the new system, said: "This new system will help us answer calls more effectively without the caller hanging on the line for too long.

"Our target is to answer all non-emergency calls within 40 seconds, but due to the sheer volume of incoming calls, this is occasionally difficult to achieve.

"This new system means that more callers will be answered, albeit not always by someone working in their local communications room."

A spokesman for regulator Ofcom said it had just completed an investigation into how these numbers are advertised.

She said: "We have clear guidelines that all adverts for services operating 0845 or 0870 prefixes must make the cost of the call very clear. We have powers to investigate any evidence of that not happening."

Calls to Lancashire County Council now go to the Red Rose Hub, in Bluebell Way, Preston.

Assistant director of customer access at the county council Gabby Nelson said this meant people in all parts of the county paid the same, adding: "There is parity across the board."

Preston Council has two 0845 numbers, the Guild Hall box office and the payments line.

A spokesman said: "We are currently reviewing telephone services."
In Lancaster those paying their council tax by phone have to call an 0845 number since the council closed its two cash offices in 2005.

A spokesman said: "It is supplied by an external company not based in the district. A local code would not be practical."

They said the council had no intention of introducing further 0845 numbers for services.

Currently public calls to Lancashire Trading Standards are made on an 0845 number and diverted to Consumer Direct.

A spokesman for Trading Standards said: "Consumer Direct was introduced by the Government, and welcomed by Trading Standards, as a nationwide service with a single recognisable number. The cost is the same regardless of where you live."
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Tidb wrote on Sep 8^th, 2007 at 1:24pm:



The cost is the same regardless of where you live on an 01 number!!

I have had several  conversations with Lancs TS and they still  call 0845 "local rate" even though I have proved to them that it is not..

On Thursday this week, I think it was Thursday, Jim Potts, LCC head TS officer had a spot on radio Lancashire where again he plugged the Consumer Direct 0845 number, adding "this is a local rate number"
For gods sake, if the boss of Trading Standards cannot/will not get it right, how are consumers going to know the true cost??

Thames Valley Police were forced to reveal their geographic number by a Freedom of Information request reported on this Forum here : --- http://www.saynoto0870.com/cgi-bin/forum/YaBB.cgi?num=1123761070/15

"idb   Supreme Member
 Re: FOI response - Thames Valley Police
Reply #17 - Jun 6th, 2007, 3:19pm Quote  Quote from idb on Sep 29th, 2005, 9:17pm:
I have now submitted a complaint to the Information Commissioner regarding TVP's failure to provide the requested information.

After twenty-one months, the IC has now responded with the following:

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Re: Freedom of Information Request – Thames Valley Police

Thank you for your recent email.

I have been in contact with the Police regarding this matter and have been informed that there is now a telephone number on its website that can be dialled by those unable to dial 0845 numbers.

This number is 01865 841148 and routes the call to the same system as the 0845 number. As I understand it, your grievance regarding these numbers stems from your inability to dial the 0845 number from outside the UK. It seems that the Police took your comments and concerns seriously and have responded by providing a telephone number."  


This has set a precedent which surely all Police Forces will have to follow ---- so you should request their geo number as soon as possible.

Quote:


But surely, if you withhold your caller ID from within the UK, they would HAVE to allow the call to be connected? Caller ID between countries is flakey at the best of times - in the US, I sometimes see 44xxx on calls from the Uk and sometimes 'Private Caller' (ie unknown Caller ID). Same on calls from Australia or New Zealand. Since it is so flakey, I cannot see how National Rail could possibly bar UK calls that are made without a valid caller ID?

I suspect the problem is that a lot of people either don't understand how to withhold Caller ID from being transmitted - or are too lazy to learn! 

mikeinnc wrote on Sep 13^th, 2007 at 1:03am:

See the thread on this here: http://www.saynoto0870.com/cgi-bin/forum/YaBB.cgi?num=1116613395/0

If you want to try it for yourself, the number is 020 7278 5240, although this is getting off-topic for this thread now!

jgxenite wrote on Sep 14^th, 2007 at 11:42pm:


Then how do I get CLIs from all the mobile phone numbers that call me on my landline including some overseas mobile numbers?

jgxenite wrote on Sep 15^th, 2007 at 8:15am:


It should never actually be sent to the terminating device, though it does usually get  through the telehone network as far as the final exchange, which strips the number before ringing your phone - since mobiles operate differently to landlines, not having  local exchanges all over the country, I can quite see them doing it at the central switch for all calls.  Generaly, however, it does, get presented to the termincating telco, pricacy flag set or not.

Since it's a standard feature of NTS systems to be able to switch the call around depending on originating phone number, witheld flag or not, and since the rail service has it's own telco, I can easily believe that they have managed to put the same arrangements in place for the geographic number.

You could try using the "make a free trial call" on www.voipcheap.com front page.  You don't need an account; enter your number and their number and they'll connect you both, connecting as an international call   Just get your enquiry completed within a minute...


Back on topic ... Manchester use a local number, 0161 872 5050, and always have done, for non-emergencies.  I'd imagine it would be very difficult for them to withdraw that, thankfuly, due to the vast number of places and notices and documents that quote it ...

irrelevant wrote on Sep 15^th, 2007 at 1:36pm:


Sheffield is the same - South Yorkshire Police non-emergencies is 0114 220 2020 (quite memorable if you ask me ).