Tag Archives | Meteor

What are 076 numbers? What’s the cost implications of calling 076 numbers?

saynoto1890_slider_1_faqIn my recent February 2016 – confirming the Geographic Alternative Numbers Updated Across the SayNoTo1890.com website, I indicated that there would be some follow ups to the issue raised by a number of users of this website regarding 076 numbers. As one correspondent said some time ago:

I have been lately waging my own battles with some government bodies over their use of non-geographic numbers and have come across the latest scam called 076 and 0761 numbers.

I’m not sure it’s a “scam” as such, but 076 numbers are now an issue for mobile phone users in the same way as 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers are. The costs are upwards on 30c per minute, but more particularly calls to 076 numbers are in most cases not deducted from minute bundles on mobile phone contracts. This is despite the fact that the introduction by such government departments was intended to reduce call costs for customers.

While there are a number of organisations who do provide an 076 contact number, it was likely when the Water Conservation Grant Section provided one last year that most people encountered an 076 number for the first time.

What is an 076 Number?

076 is the prefix originally by designated by COMREG for use when calling VOIP phones. VOIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol is effectively making telephone calls over the internet. You don’t have to be on the internet yourself when you’re calling a VOIP 076 number – you can call from any regular landline or mobile phone. And these days, you don’t necessarily need to be dialling an 076 number to call someone who’s using a VOIP service.

The key thing here is that given the distinction made by COMREG for the 076 numbers, mobile phone companies are using the number as a loophole (similar to 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers) to boost their earnings.

In most cases, you’ll see companies who use 076 numbers explaining that calling such a number will cost the same as a local call. In the same way that providers of 1890 LoCall numbers will say the same thing.

The key difference here, and what’s being left out, is “from an Eir(com) landline”. That’s how costs for 1890 numbers originated, and it’s now how 076 numbers are being priced.

Mobiles Are Different (as usual)

But as we all know, similar to calling an 1890 number from your mobile, you’re most likely charged the equivalent of a mobile to mobile call. And what’s of more pain and inconvenience, in most cases, calls to 076 numbers are not deducted from your minutes bundles on your mobile phone contract.

The mobile provider 48 is the most expensive for calling an 076 number, at 50c per minute. The cheapest that I can work out is with Meteor (either Pre-Pay or Bill-Pay). In both those cases, the cost is flagged as the same as their normal minute rate, which is 15c per minute. Similarly, Vodafone Pre-Pay and Bill-Pay price plans indicates that it’s the same cost as a normal call on a mobile to call an 076 number. Neither Meteor nor Vodafone deduct 076 minutes from your free minutes bundles.

As I’m sure you’re aware, it’s not always easy to find out this information given the variety of phone packages, and phone costs, and peak and off-peak – you’d almost think that your mobile provider didn’t want you to know. In fact, there is no information anywhere for any of the Three Mobile plans on how much it is to call 076 numbers.

Finally, Tesco Mobile will charge you 30c per minute to call an 076 number – on the more expensive end of the scale. But, but, on a more positive twist, they’re the only company to deduct 076 minutes from their free minutes bundles on Pre-Pay and Bill-Pay contracts.

What to do?

Basically we need to treat 076 numbers the same as 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers. That is, as much as possible, we need to hunt down and share geographic alternatives for 076 numbers.

But that’s easier said than done. I’ve today contacted these 4 government organisations who provide ONLY 076 numbers on their contact pages on their websites. The don’t provide any geographic alternatives, and they’re the most popular organisations for people to be contacting me here. These are:

  • Money Advice & Budgeting Service
    • MABS Helpline 0761072000
  • Insolvency Service of Ireland
    • Information and General Enquiries 0761064200
    • Case Management Division 0761064200
    • Bankruptcy Division 0761064232
    • Regulation Division 0761064234
  • Citizens Information
    • Phone Service 0761074000
    • Website Team 0761079000
  • Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI)
    • SUSI Support Desk 0761087874

So, if you have geographic alternatives for these numbers already, please let me know and I’ll update the website so others can benefit. Alternatively, if you know of other 076 numbers and other geographic alternatives, let me know and I’ll update the website.

 

LoCall numbers could cost you extra

It was this news article from Paul Kelly in the Irish Examiner that started my work on what eventually became the SayNoTo1890.com website. That’s 9 years ago now, and still nothing much has been done to alleviate the issue for Irish consumers (apart from this site obviously :-))

 

LoCall numbers could cost you extra - The Irish ExaminerLoCall numbers could cost you extra
By Paul Kelly, Consumer Correspondent
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
CONSUMERS are needlessly paying out up to €5 a time to ring “low cost” telephone numbers like those beginning 1890 — even though they could get the calls for next to nothing.

Banks, airlines, Iarnród Éireann and the Revenue encourage consumers to ring their LoCall 1890 telephone numbers at local call rates costing 4.9cent a minute in the daytime and 1.26c off-peak.

But dialling the numbers from a mobile phone could cost up to €4.90 for a 10-minute call while landline customers could similarly find themselves out of pocket. This is because popular landline phone deals like Eircom’s exclude LoCall 1890 numbers, Callsave 1850 and national 0818 calls from the offer of unlimited landline calls while mobiles have higher fees for “low cost” numbers.

Yet consumers can beat the trap if they dial the alternative numbers listed by many organisations on their websites or in phone books alongside their 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers.

For instance, customers on Eircom’s Talktime Anytime package, would pay 49c for a 10-minute call to the AIB phone banking 1890 242424 hotline as such numbers are not part of the offer of unlimited calls.

But if customers dialled the hotline on AIB’s alternative number of 01 6670024 then the call would be included in their €39.99-a-month fee for unlimited calls.

Similarly, an Eircom customer on the Talktime 15c package pays €25.99 a month for line rental and then 15c per landline call no matter how long they talk for.

But if they have to make a 10-minute call to Ticketmaster’s 0818 719300 number for booking a concert ticket then they will pay 82c for a daytime call or 49c in the evenings.

Had they telephoned the ticket company’s alternative number 01 4569569, then they would pay a standard 15c flat fee.

By dialling the national 0818 number customers are paying up to 81% more for the call than they need to as the Talktime 15c package only covers standard phone numbers.

From a mobile a 10-minute call to a Ticketmaster 0818 line costs up to €4.90 with Vodafone, €2.50 with Meteor and €3.10 with O2.

Subscribers to landline phone firms’ deals pay 6.35c extra every time they call the 1850 Callsave numbers used by the likes of Bord Gáis, ESB and the VHI.

But if they have all-inclusive packages then they can save by dialling standard numbers and avoid paying out extra.

Yesterday, the Consumers’ Association of Ireland (CAI) said that firms with 1850, 1890 and 0818 numbers should do more to make their customers aware of how to make their calls cheaper.

“More organisations are using these numbers as a convenient way for customers to get in touch yet these numbers can cost a fortune,” said CAI chief executive Dermott Jewell.

“Phone companies should include 1890 or 1850 numbers in their deals and should not be charging consumers extra as these are still landline calls,” he said.

Calling 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers from mobiles

HelpIn an earlier post, I wrote about calling 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers from Skype – basically the outcome was that you couldn’t and that you’d have to make use of the geographical alternatives provided here on SayNoTo1890.com.

When it comes to calling 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers from your mobile phone, the story is a little different. You’re perfectly free to call these numbers from your mobile, however, based on the information on the Call Costs page linked above, calling these numbers will cost you more than normal calls.

The first thing to note is that mobile calls to 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers do not get deducted from your inclusive minutes on your mobile contract package.

So, when you’re forced to pay for those minutes, you could end up paying between 3 and 6 times the cost of calling the same numbers from a landling. Check out the Call Costs page to see what it will cost you for the mobile package that you have.

However, if you use the geographical alternative numbers presented on this website instead of the 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers advertised by many companies, then you won’t have to pay any extra to make those calls. The minutes, because they’re to geographical numbers, will be deducted from your minutes in your phone contract package.

So, if you know geographical alternatives to 1890, 1850 or 0818 numbers that you personally use, and you’d like to share them with everyone, you can mail us here to let us know.

Powered by WordPress. Designed by WooThemes

free hit counter