JamesEB wrote on Aug 25
th, 2010 at 12:22pm:
I have been signed up to BT Privacy from the start and it requires the customer to make 6 chargeable calls per quarter for the caller display charge of £7.77 not to be applied. This is BT policy stated on their bills.
Firstly, the
BT Price List gives information on all of BT's pricing, although it may be said it is not set out in a very accessible or friendly manner. It also contains details of conditions for BT services. For BT Privacy at Home, refer to
Section 1, Part 31. There are four subparts, all of which are very short and so shouldn't take long to read.
Subpart 2:Eligibility and Conditions states:
Quote:In order to be eligible, Consumer customers must make at least 6 chargeable or inclusive calls per quarter with BT, (excludes calls made with BT Broadband Talk or Chargecard). Should these calls not be made, a charge of £7.77(Inc VAT) per quarter will be applied for the Caller Display service. Business customers are excluded from the BT Privacy At Home package.
Consumer customers who are billed monthly must make at least 2 chargeable or inclusive calls per month with BT otherwise a charge of £2.59(Inc VAT) per month will be applied for the Caller Display service.
The Caller Display element of Privacy At Home is subject to availability.
So it is six "chargeable or inclusive" calls per quarter, and there is no declaration that they must be of a certain duration. The
only exclusions are that these calls must not be made via a BT Broadband Talk connection (the VoIP service for BT Broadband users) or a call made with a BT Chargecard.
JamesEB wrote on Aug 25
th, 2010 at 12:22pm:
My calls are routed through my internet provider AOL and originally I telephoned a BT supervisor to enquire which calls qualified as chargeable calls. The supervisor told me I would need to make 6 alarm calls.
My current call to another BT supervisor was because on my latest BT bill it states Phone usage – you have made 6 calls – charge £2.14 (i.e.the alarm calls)
and then “the minimum calls have not been made. To avoid future charges make 6 chargeable or inclusive calls per quarter or more with BT” Charged £7.77 for caller display.
This supervisor said the previous supervisor was wrong and alarm calls do not qualify but not to worry as I could dial 1280 in front of my calls and this would route them through BT. I asked him how I could be sure as I said I had read elsewhere that this does not always work. He said it does work with AOL and I could be sure it worked if the person answered at the other end.
I made some calls with 1280 in front during a chargeable period specifically so I could see them on the bill (BT had applied the basic Weekend plan to my account). The person answered at the other as the supervisor had intimated but none of those calls showed on my bill.
So, does anyone know what are chargeable calls for the purpose of the Caller Display charge?
Out of interest, what is the number your alarm dials? Presumably you have the ability to either change the number completely or at least program in a prefix such as 1280.
The 1280 prefix essentially says "Please route this call via BT". CPS providers should obviously have the right to block their subscribers from hopping back to BT if they wish, perhaps for certain types of call.
What is totally distasteful is the way in which some are apparently disregarding the 1280 prefix and connecting the call themselves (and hence billing it themselves). If one particular CPS provider does not wish to allow (for example) 0845 calls via BT, then when 12800845… is dialled, it should play an appropriate message or tone to signify prohibition of the said operation.
JamesEB wrote on Aug 25
th, 2010 at 12:22pm:
SilentCallsVictim wrote on Aug 25
th, 2010 at 10:01am:
The fact that BT representatives cannot be relied upon to understand and explain BT charges is directly relevant, but has a wider importance.
The amount of wrong information being given out by BT staff which is relied on by customers to make financial decisions is a disgrace.
Without condoning BT representative for issuing misinformation, it is perhaps understandable that some (just like the public in general) may believe that prefixing a number with 1280 will always place a call with BT, and never the CPS operator. That's because the 1280 prefix was introduced for this purpose and CPS providers using it route the call just the same as if it were omitted is morally reprehensible.
This is clearly something that BT will be receiving many calls about, even though it is not its fault. To this end, it has published guidance at
www.bt.com/1280.
For further information on this, Google/Bing etc. CPS providers' names followed by 1280, i.e.
aol 1280
|
talktalk 1280
etc.