Fone Forum

I have received a text on my T-Mobile contract SIM informing me of changes coming on the 1st July 2015.


From the link given above:-

Opting into the service numbers add-on

If you regularly call service numbers, we offer an 084 and 087 add-on that gives you cheaper calls for just 1p per minute. For £3 a month (£2.50 excluding VAT) you’ll get 300 minutes to call numbers that start with 084 and 087. This will give you peace of mind that you will always have an allocated number of minutes per month to call service numbers.
If you are a pay monthly customer and would like to have this add-on added to your account, text YES300 to 1226. If you are a Small Business customer text YES to 1226.
We will add the add-on to your account from 1 July 2015, and you will receive a text message advising you that it is live.
Please note: this add-on is only available for pay monthly and Small Business customers. In certain cases, if you have an Android device you may receive a pop-up message saying you 'may be charged' for sending a text. You will not be charged for the text you send. This message appears due to a quirk within the operating system.

Opting out of the service numbers add-on
If you are a pay monthly, or Small Business customer and you’ve decided that you no longer want the 08 add-on, text NO to 1226, no later than 30 June 2015.

(Puzzlingly this shortcode shown as 1226 is sometimes displayed as 1234.
I do not know the reason for this.)

They may say "If you regularly call service numbers, we offer an 084 and 087 add-on that gives you cheaper calls for just 1p per minute." but I have a hunch this will only cover the access charge and the service charge will be extra. It's still a much better deal than 44p per minute plus the service charge of course even if this is the case.

You may be correct, of course, but there is no mention of that.

Although it reads as 1 ppm initially, it is actually 300 minutes of 084 or 087 calling for £3.
So I have rather taken it as simply being an additional 300 minutes - to be used for 08 calling.
AFAIK there is nothing said about existing inclusive 08 calling minutes starting to be charged, for either elements.

Only time will tell whose guess is right however.

Hi everyone,

Im new here so go easy on me! Ive read an internal document that was distributed from EE to all EE/Orange/TMUK stockists and dealers that confirms that both access and service charges will be billed and itemised seperately on your bill. I hoping that both elements are covered if you have a tariff or bundle that includes 08 numbers in your allowance but as mentioned earlier....only time will tell.

On a totally separate note, I have some tmobile contracts with inclusive 08 calls (3000 mins per month) which im looking to sell via transfer of ownership. If anyone is interested, please send me a PM.

Guys please rather than leaving these long notes please tell us,
Are going to be luck or not.

I'm with orange/ee, last year they gave me unlimited 08 calls for £2.5,
Last month they have taken out this from my contract and added on 0870 0844 0845 n 0800 just 1000
Minutes.

I have unlimited 08 add on on my EE line and I am currently paying just £3 per month. I received a text from them today saying that if I still want to benefit from cheap 08 calls then I have to opt in. But it's only 300 minutes for £3. Party is almost over, just over 5 more weeks to go.

Did they specifically say if you *still* want to benefit after 1st July or did you just get the standard messages that all EE users are getting these last few days?

The text was:

Hi. We recently contacted you about changes to call charges to Service numbers happening on 1 July 2015. We have noticed that you previously call these numbers so we want to let you know you can call 084 and 087 numbers from 1p per minute with our new Add-on. The Add-on is £ per month and gives you 300 minutes to 084 and 087 numbers. Text YES300 to 1234 to apply the Add-on from 1 July 2015 or visit http://ee.co.uk/ukcalling for more info. Terms apply.

Got that on a T-Mobile phone here that doesn't have an 08 add-on but 08 numbers are inclusive in the 1000 minutes monthly. I suspect they are sending this text to all customers who have called at least one 08 number in the past few months. It doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to lose the add-on, though it will of course be a lot easier for them to remove the add on than to remove 08 numbers from inclusive minutes, as in my case.

We shall see. Let's hope I get to keep my Add on :-)

Not directly relevant to users of the forum but interesting anyway, to me at least! One of my suppliers has declared the following:

"Our Access Charge will be shown in our Ancillary Voice Services price sheet and will be 0.5ppm for 09 numbers and 0.33ppm for 08s. DQ will be confirmed in due course."

I was of the understanding that the access charge was required to be the same for all number ranges, so either they have misunderstood or the rules are not quite how I've interpreted them.

I may have some good news about this.   :o

I called T-Mobile customer services, explaining that I am a "bear of very little brain", and complaining that their many texts to me had confused me.  A discussion ensued in which I was assured that there would be no change to my existing inclusive 08 calling allowance, and also both it, and the new optional additional Add On, would cover both the access and service charges for any 084 or 087 calls.  ;D

The usual caveat needs to be made that we have all experienced mistaken or false information being given out my poorly trained customer service personnel, but unless this proves to be just such a case, it seems to be good news for existing inclusive 08 allowances on EE contracts, and for the new Add On available from 1st July.  ;)

Good job mobileman  :)

The new Access Charge plus Service Charge system for 084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers applies only to retail tariffs. Business tariffs and, as in this case, VoIP services wholesalers can do whatever they like.

One business supplier charges calls to all 084 and 087 numbers at, I think, 8p per minute excluding VAT. In some cases this is less than the Service Charge that has to be passed on, which can be up to 13p per minute including VAT.

In time, I think flat rate call pricing may become more of a rarity. Ofcom's new system for retail tariffs mandates a flat rate Access Charge and a variable Service Charge each separately declared. Business tariffs may well adopt this too.

Once the point is reached where retailers, traders, passenger transport companies, government departments, public services, NHS services and financial services including banks and insurance companies have complied with the relevant regulations and guidance by moving to 03 and other "basic rate" or free numbers, most people will thereafter make zero minutes of calls to 084 and 087 numbers.

I can only assume that EE expect lots of people will buy this add-on because they think they need to make lots of calls to 084 and 087 numbers and then not actually make any such calls, EE thereby gaining £3 per month for nothing.

The economics of the deal make no sense at all. 300 minutes of calls to 084 and 087 numbers would otherwise run up an Access Charge bill of £132 and a Service Charge bill of up to £39 (at up to 13p per minute). Upon payment of £3 per month by the caller, EE is committed to pay out up to £39 Service Charge to the organisations being called. This deal therefore relies on other callers subsidising the additional costs incurred and perhaps explains why the Access Charge is otherwise 44p per minute.

Ofcom's changes are all about call price transparency via the separate declaration of Access and Service Charges. This deal seems to run counter to that by hiding the true cost of these calls by getting other EE customers who do not call these numbers to contribute to the Service Charge through inflated call prices for other calls.