Signed up for BT Line

laffer

I signed up for the BT line and free package (weekend calls) for 12 months as I needed a new line. Can I go with Sky Talk for £5 a month for there package of calls or will BT charge me everytime?

Unfortunatley when you get a line with BT they make you commit to a package but I would like to sign up to Sky if I can and avoid them for my calls (happy to pay line rental to them).

Heinz

laffer wrote: »

I signed up for the BT line and free package (weekend calls) for 12 months as I needed a new line. Can I go with Sky Talk for £5 a month for there package of calls or will BT charge me everytime?

Unfortunatley when you get a line with BT they make you commit to a package but I would like to sign up to Sky if I can and avoid them for my calls (happy to pay line rental to them).

You are not contracted for a package with BT You are contracted for line rental for 12 months (the Unlimited Weekend Plan - and the free weekend 01/02/03/0845/0870 calls which come with it - comes as a free addition).

You can immediately sign up for Sky Talk Unlimited as your CPS calls provider - but cannot switch to Sky's line rental too without paying BT a large penalty fee for breaching your contract.

The drawback is that Sky now uses WCLI (Wholesale Calls Line Independent) so, although (as with any CPS calls provider) your line rental remains with BT, you will not be abe to use the 1280 prefix to override Sky and send some calls (e.g. free 0845/0870 calls at weekends) via BT. That means that you'd have to pay Sky's excessive charges for such calls and that you cannot make the necessary number of calls via BT to 'qualify' for free Caller Display and/or basic 1571 (but please don't use 1571).

Update 3-8-09. Sky now includes 0870 calls in its Sky Talk call packages.

http://www.sky.com/Assets/PDF/StaticFiles/5434510.pdf

laffer

Thanks Heinz. So it is best to stay with BT then? I mainly make international calls so was looking for something that would cover than and as I am about to go with Sky for broadband I figured the £5 I would be saving on Broadband for being a talk customer could be spent on phone package which would include international calls.

Heinz

It's a personal preference but, if I spent more than £5/month on international calls (I pay 1p/minute using 18185 for the countries I call so that's more than 500 minutes) and Sky Talk Unlimited covered the countries I called, I'd consider signing up with them as my CPS calls provider. In your case, you could then consider changing line rental to Sky as well after your 12 month contract with BT expires. I think you'll have to pay £5 for Sky broadband but that's probably cheaper than the penalty charge you'd have to pay BT.

ellielovesem

Heinz - Are you able to clarify this 'Unlimited Weekend Plan. Only £11.25 a month line rental with Direct Debit and paper-free billing, for new and existing residential customers making at least one chargeable call a month with BT'. I'm wanting to go with this plan so I can take Sky Talk but how do I make this one chargeable call per month?

Just read your 6 steps, very informative, thanks!

laffer

I do not mind using 181815 but my understanding was that BT blocked this service?

Heinz

ellielovesem wrote: »

Heinz - Are you able to clarify this 'Unlimited Weekend Plan. Only £11.25 a month line rental with Direct Debit and paper-free billing, for new and existing residential customers making at least one chargeable call a month with BT'. I'm wanting to go with this plan so I can take Sky Talk but how do I make this one chargeable call per month?

The workaround appears to be a BT Chargecard - with calls billed to your home number.

Update 17/8/09. BT company representative has now done an about-turn on this and confirmed that chargecard calls do NOT count as chargeable calls. http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...3&postcount=11

laffer wrote: »

I do not mind using 181815 but my understanding was that BT blocked this service?

On the contrary, BT is the only line provider which cannot bar the use of such override numbers (you meant 18185 BTW).

clickclash

laffer wrote: »

Thanks Heinz. So it is best to stay with BT then? I mainly make international calls so was looking for something that would cover than and as I am about to go with Sky for mobile broadband I figured the £5 I would be saving on Broadband for being a talk customer could be spent on phone package which would include international calls.

I would say its better to stay with your current provider until you fulfil your contract obligations and dont waste the money on leaving early.