Barbara wrote on Sep 11
th, 2014 at 10:19am:
At long last, I've a "reply" from Eurotunnel, the CEO didn't bother to deal with it himself, passed to Customer Relations which in itself does not impress me.
…
I disagree with the interpretation of the regulations presented.
When calling a number …
"in relation to contracts entered into with trader, a consumer contacting the trader must not be bound to pay more than the basic rate".
It is of no relevance that some uses of a "non-basic rate" number are not covered by the regulation and that other contact numbers are available for other purposes.
Appearance of a number on a website is only indicative of a breach - the regulation covers contact by telephone, not use of the internet. If it is of any relevance that the same information as offered by a telephone number is also available on the website, then one must question why it is shown there!
The answer is surely - for customers to note the number so as to be able to get an update when they do not have internet access.
Looking at the webpage -
http://www.eurotunnel.com/uk/contact-us/ - my personal view is that a simple change to the text to reflect the comments in the "reply" would do the job - i.e.
Quote:For postsale and any other queries (including the latest travel information) please call +44 (0) 3457 35 35 35
This would remove the invitation for consumers to pay more than the basic rate in order to obtain travel information relevant to their contract.
With effect from 26 June 2015, all references to the 0844 numbers will have to include the statement
"Calls to this number cost x
per minute plus your phone company's access charge".
In the case of the recorded information number - 0844 463 0000 - '
x
' is currently 2p (it is 7p for the Reservations and Insurance queries number - 0844 335 3535). Given that the "Access Charge" for the recorded information number can currently be as high as 39p per minute, one wonders why Eurotunnel is happy to damage its reputation and the pockets of its current and intended customers, when the major beneficiaries are the telephone companies.