Jumat, 29 Juni 2012

Mobile roaming rate caps from EU from Sunday but only in Europe

Mobile roaming rate caps from EU from Sunday but only in Europe

By Tara Evans

PUBLISHED: 08:25 EST, 29 June 2012 | UPDATED: 09:03 EST, 29 June 2012

As a cap on the cost of calls, texts and internet data within the EU comes in and on Sunday we ask why can’t networks extend this protection to the rest of the world? And what are the phone firms doing to help customers?

More than a third of holidaymakers have been hit by ‘shock’ mobile bills after a holiday abroad, according to data from uSwitch.com.  

The average bill is around £125, meaning in total UK consumers have paid out £1.7billion to networks, for using their phone overseas.

EU caps: The new rules for mobiles come in on Sunday - but why can't firms extend them to the rest of the world?

EU caps: The new rules for mobiles come in on Sunday - but why can't firms extend them to the rest of the world?

Unsurprisingly 30 per cent of holidaymakers forget to turn off their data roaming while on holiday â€" which leaves some customers with unexpectedly high bills.

More worryingly, almost 29 per cent of phones are never switched off during a holiday, leaving them vulnerable to high charges from automatic updates, voicemails and apps updating in the background.

What about the new rules?

From the 1 July new European Commission regulations come into force giving greater protection for those traveling within the EU.

From Sunday the cost of making a mobile call in another European Union country will fall from 30p a minute to 24p, while a text drops to just 7p from 10p.

Mobile firms will also have to cap internet charges for the first time. The cost of data is to be limited to 58p per megabyte for customers â€" a large drop as some currently charge up to €4. 

There is also an overall cap on data roaming with networks only allowed to charge customers up to €50 for internet usage.

But these charges only count if you're in a country in the European Union. Anyone travelling outside this area can still rack up large bills as these caps do not apply. 

The reason why mobile firms have not extended these caps to the rest of the world is plainly because they also don't have to.

Only two of the firms offer bundles for outside of the EU and not one offers a cap on calls and texts - the mobile providers say this is because of cost of investing in technological enhancements.

What about the networks, aren’t they doing anything?

In line with the new caps, and under orders from the European Commission and telecoms regulator Ofcom, mobile firms have introduced a new range of products to help customers when travelling abroad.

However, the majority of these travel features only cover customers within the EU and don’t extend the protection to telephone calls or texts, leaving customers vulnerable to high bills.

From Sunday, Orange is launching a new bundle for calls, texts and data within the EU. It gives customers 50 minutes, 30MB and 100 texts for £15 (until 5 August, after then it will cost £20.)

Orange are also launching a new ‘Travel Angel’ app, which will be available to customers with Android, Apple and Blackberry â€" this will help customers keep track of their usage while on holiday.

Outside of Europe customers Orange offers a different range of bundles and sends text messages to customers if they start using data.

ORANGE DATA ROAMING


T-Mobile has launched a range of travel boosters for customers, starting at £1 for MB and up to £10 for 50MB for access within Europe. The booster lasts for 30 days or until all the data has been used.

But customers will pay much more for access when travelling outside European countries, especially as some locations will prove hugely expensive. For example, while 10MB of data costs £2.50 in Europe it costs a colossal £75 if you’re in Hong Kong or Chile for 20MB.

HOW MUCH DATA?

1 plain text e-mail = 20 KB
1 photo, file, or document = 500 KB
1 Web page = 180 KB
1 minute using a connected app or game = 3 MB
1 minute of streaming music = 1 MB
1 minute of streaming video = 3 MB
1 MB = 1,024 KB
1 GB = 1,024 MB

Virgin Media customers already receive a text message telling them they need to purchase a pass to connect to the internet.

It launched a new range of bundles for customers to access the web while on holiday in Europe earlier this week.

They cost £3 for 5MB, £5 for 10MB, £10 for 25MB and £30 for 100MB and are valid for three months, or until the data has been used up.

Last week Three Mobile launched a new bundle for customers going on holiday where they can pay £5 per day for unlimited internet while they are in the EU.

In May, O2 announced a new travel package for pay monthly and business customers from July â€" where they can purchase 25MB of data for £1.99 per day in the EU.

While Vodafone launched its EuroTraveller service that allows you to use your tariff minutes, texts and data abroad for £3 a day and if you don’t use your phone, you aren’t c harged.

Will these measures stop high bills?

The changes are good news for customers who are travelling within the EU as all networks have now announced bundles and deals.

However, some deals are better than others and it's still worth doing your homework before you go on holiday.

This should also serve as a warning to those travelling outside the EU - where the caps do not apply.

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