agentq wrote on Sep 5
th, 2009 at 4:23pm:
... If a company only publishes an non geographical number then I will email them saying that unless they provide me with a geographical number or agree to call me then I won't call them and they lose business. Its amazing how many will then provide you with the number.
That is exactly what the 03 range is there to avoid. It enables use of a single non-geographic number (reflecting or projecting a national presence) without obtaining subsidy from callers and with regulatory support for the fact that no telephone company may charge more than the cost of a call to a 01/02 number.
03 numbers are underused, because the absence of the subsidy makes them more expensive to adopt, even though every 084 user has the equivalent 034 number reserved for them. Furthermore, BT has clouded the issue by charging all Call Plan customers for the premium on 0845 calls, by making them inclusive in its packages. Some have copied this dodgy cross-subsidy idea, whereas others continue to properly reflect their costs by charging a premium for 0845 calls.
Nobody includes 0844 numbers (as used by GPs) in their inclusive packages.