BT 1280 override question

Inigo_Montoya

Hello

I currently use Onetel as my provider - they took over BOTH the line rental and call charging from BT

What happens if I use the BT override prefix 1280 before a call ? (Im specifically thinking of that new 1p per minute mobile calls promotion which are MORE than 1p if I use Onetel as they charge more than the BT rate for the 0844 access number)

Obviously BT stopped sending me bills when Ontel took over so would they start billing me again for calls made if I started using their network for some calls ? Or should BT not allow use of the override prefix in this case because they dont charge me even for line rental anymore ? Or is the 1280 prefix still routed through the Onetel network because they took over the line rental from BT ?

BTW there is also the added complication that Onetel recently stopped charging me any line rental by accident i.e. maybe they currently think BT are charging me line rental and that only my calls are charged by them

Finally FYI I tested the 1280 prefix by phoning a freephone number and it works - Im just wondering if Ive found a way to get free calls all the time, lol ?

regards

drek

If u dial 1280 & make a call - u will be charged by BT. (& don't forget they have a minimum charge for every call)

Never fear..... someone - sometime - will send u a bill for ALL line rental....

matrix999

Where did you see this promotion offered by BT for 1p per min?

Inigo_Montoya

drek wrote:

If u dial 1280 & make a call - u will be charged by BT. (& don't forget they have a minimum charge for every call)

Never fear..... someone - sometime - will send u a bill for ALL line rental....

Hi

If what you say is true how exactly will BT charge me when I dont even have an account/agreement with them anymore ?

Sorry but I would prefer some hard facts as opposed to what appears on the face of it to be unsustaniated speculation

Im not saying you are wrong but I simply can't see just how BT are going to charge me without a BT account / bill ?

And yes Onetel may well realise their line rental mistake in the end but I think you comment saying they will DEFINATELY realise this is not correct - the billing is all automated and there system is saying they are not responsible for line rental so I think I have a decent chance of "getting away with it"

regards

Inigo_Montoya

matrix999 wrote:

Where did you see this promotion offered by BT for 1p per min?

Its not BT - its cleverates - you have to call there service via an access number which is billed to your CPS provider (unless you use an override prefix) which in my case is Onetel

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=127600

Steve_xx

Inigo_Montoya wrote:

Hi

If what you say is true how exactly will BT charge me when I dont even have an account/agreement with them anymore ?

Sorry but I would prefer some hard facts as opposed to what appears on the face of it to be unsustaniated speculation

Im not saying you are wrong but I simply can't see just how BT are going to charge me without a BT account / bill ?

And yes Onetel may well realise their line rental mistake in the end but I think you comment saying they will DEFINATELY realise this is not correct - the billing is all automated and there system is saying they are not responsible for line rental so I think I have a decent chance of "getting away with it"

regards

Onetels Condition 3.4 of seems to seek to prevent your using other operators for your calls. You will not be able to use BT by predialling their 1280 acess code due to the fact that you no longer have an account with BT.

Conditons 12.2 and 12.5 make for interesting reading. It seems that you could actually incur a charge for a line repair.

3.4 If you are a Line Rental Services customer and elect to use another provider for some or all of your calls we may at our sole discretion decide to (i) bar your use of indirect access codes, (ii) charge you a higher fee for your use of the Line Rental Service or (iii) disconnect the Line Rental Service

12. Faults with the Line Rental Service

12.1 If you suffer or suspect a fault with the Line Rental Service then you should contact our Customer Services Team. If you try and contact any Third Party Operator it is likely they will ask you to contact us.

12.2 You agree that you will be responsible for all charges that you incur or we incur on your behalf in repairing any fault with the Line Rental Service unless the fault is the result of any act or omission of us or a Third Party Operator or is due to fair wear and tear.

12.3 If we decide that an engineer should be sent to your premises in connection with a fault and that engineer arrives within an agreed appointment time, you will incur an administration fee if you are not available at the agreed time.

12.4 If an engineer attends a fault and decides that the fault is with equipment owned by you then you will be charged for any work carried out and the engineer may disconnect the equipment.

12.5 Any charges incurred by you in dealing with faults with the Line Rental Service shall be at the rates published in the User Guide or on our website.

Portlandbill

You also agree to put all your calls over their network when you sign up for line rental,to get it at the cheaper rate.
See condition 2.2 (iii)

See t&c here http://www.onetel.co.uk/index.php?node=tc-res-landline

Inigo_Montoya

thanks for the pointer to the T&C so I know for a fact I am breaking my agreement with them if I use a prefix code and what the possible consequences are - its interesting to note though that they currently think Im NOT a line rental customer because of their mess up with my line rental

the question does remaion though that the prefix 1280 has definately not been barred as yet so who actually charges me should I risk using it ???

With other operators like call18185 you actually have to register to use the prefix code sevice so they can bill you but as I said in my first post the 1280 code is useable right now without registration BUT I have no account or billling arrangement with BT ?

Is there another Onetel line rental user around who could test the 1280 prefix code as Im wondering if I only have access to 1280 because of the line rental mess up ?

redux

Several people have already pointed out that you are not supposed to be using other prefixes, but you seem to be ignoring them.

I can't quite see why you are devoting so much attention to the question - are you actually disappointed with Onetel's charges for 0870 etc? If not, then use them, and the question doesn't arise.

And if you don't like their charges overall, then move elsewhere.

Inigo_Montoya

redux wrote:

Several people have already pointed out that you are not supposed to be using other prefixes, but you seem to be ignoring them.

I can't quite see why you are devoting so much attention to the question - are you actually disappointed with Onetel's charges for 0870 etc? If not, then use them, and the question doesn't arise.

And if you don't like their charges overall, then move elsewhere.

if you read my original post you will see I was interested in using the cleverates access code for cheap mobile calls

The Onetel rate is more than the BT rate for the cleverates access code - hence I was wondering if I could use the 1280 prefix code to get the cheaper BT rate - this lead onto me thinking about how BT would bill me for using 1280

BTW Im not "ignoring" the people who say it breaks the T&C of Onetel to use a prefix code when you are a line rental customer - Im taking that information under consideration

I would only "ignore" people who get on their moral high horse and say I shouldn't under any circumstances risk breaking the agreement - I would point out again that currently Onetel do NOT think Im a line rental customer (due to an oversight on their part) so it can be argued that I am not actually breaking any rules

pricefighter

I think you will find that if you move your line rental to another supplier,you can still put 1280 in front of your number,but its obviously not billed by BT as you are no longer with them.It will be billed by your existing line rental provider at whatever rate they deem to be appropriate.