Ofcom says it’s capping “rip-off” 070 numbers that 2.6 million people use a year.
The regulator said far too many people are being caught out by cheaper ’07’ mobile numbers and premium-rate ‘070’ ones
Telecoms regulator Ofcom has pledged a new price cap on 070 calls that catch almost three million people out a year.
In a new document, it’s put forward plans to cap “rip off” numbers that can cost the bill payer as much as £83p a minute on a landline – or £1.50 on mobiles a minute.
Ofcom said providers who hold 070 numbers can set their own wholesale termination rates for calls made to their numbers which often “harms consumers, as it leads to high retail prices”.
It added that many people are unable to distinguish 070 numbers from calls made to mobile numbers (which begin with ‘07x’ and are much cheaper to call), resulting in ‘bill shock’.
In a final warning, it said high wholesale termination rates provide incentives for the fraudulent misuse of 070 numbers.
The numbers are often used as a “follow me” service where calls are diverted from one number to another, allowing the person being called to keep their number private.
Ofcom estimates approximately 2.6 million phone calls were made to 070 numbers between April 2017 and March 2018 – with many of the most vulnerable people, such as those calling relatives in hospital, amongst those hit with the bill.
These calls typically cost between 49p and 83p a minute if being made from a landline. From a mobile phone, these numbers can cost between 4p and £1.50 per minute.
The regulator has put forward a 0.5p/min limit on the price providers pay for such calls and said this saving should be passed on to the customer.
An Ofcom spokesperson said: “These numbers are often mistaken for mobile numbers, but it’s important for people to know they generally cost a lot more to call. Those charges can lead to people receiving much higher bills than expected. So we’ve set out plans to address this by cutting the cost of calling 070 numbers.”
On 12 May 2017, Ofcom announced a Call Cost Review to examine the cost of calling 118 and 070 numbers, to ensure consumers are protected from high prices and unfair practices.
This draft statement is now being sent to the European Commission for their review with a view to introducing the cap 12 months after it’s given the green light.
News source: Mirror
