The SayNoTo0870 Article Discussion Area

psychic_teabag

My line rental is BT and my default call carrier is talk-talk. (Formerly tiscali as part of what was once a cheap broadband deal, but price has been creeping up. Need to move, but have unfortunately used tiscali email address everywhere. Gradually migrating to a forwarding service.) I don't have 1571. I don't think I have caller display but I'll need to check that.

Hmm, not happy that BT have been charging me for not making calls with them. Haven't noticed it mentioned as an explicit charge on the bills. Surely this is going to affect everyone who has line rental with BT but with another default call carrier. I'm a little surprised that BT can get away with this, and that I have never seen it mentioned in large headlines on the MSE site.

Can you confirm that the information on http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/phones/0870-say-no#step2 about routing through BT is out of date - it's not one chargable call per month, it's two calls which can themselves be free. And you should be doing it regardless of whether you use BT to get free weekend 0845 calls.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/phones/home-phone-calls#quicktips mentions making two calls (chargeable or inclusive) to get free caller display and 1571, but doesn't make any mention of any other charges for not using BT for calls.

I-LOV-MONEY

Maybe I am on something different. I am with Talk Talk and I pay them the line rental and package for calls (broadband - free). Caller Display is now free.

DonnyDave

psychic_teabag wrote: »

Hmm, not happy that BT have been charging me for not making calls with them. Haven't noticed it mentioned as an explicit charge on the bills. Surely this is going to affect everyone who has line rental with BT but with another default call carrier. I'm a little surprised that BT can get away with this, and that I have never seen it mentioned in large headlines on the MSE site.

If you're not happy about it, then subscribe to the service from BT or migrate your line rental to another provider and pay that provider.

I know that BT offers free caller display and makes similar requirements for a minimum number of chargeable calls. This is simply an offer of a service to those who make few or more calls with BT. Any provider is free to make such a commercial decision and I can not support any demand for a change.

Heinz

psychic teabag, your problem is that Talk Talk's calls provision is no longer 'true CPS' and is now provided using BT Wholesale's WCLI (Wholesale Calls Line Independent). That means that, although you pay line rental to BT, use of the 1280 override prefix, which allows those with CPS calls providers to 'hop back onto BT', will no longer work for you because your calls are already being carried on the BT network.

I have read that some Talk Talk customers have succeeded in getting Talk Talk to put them back on 'true CPS' (I hear there's a thread on the Talk Talk forums) but I have no personal knowledge of that.

For you, it's irrelevant but BT's 'qualifying calls' have always been chargeable or inclusive calls (there's a symantic argument that those calls which are inclusive are really chargeable calls which are included in the calls package so the word chargeable should cover the requirement, but it's easier to use the c or i phrase) so, with the exception of freephone calls, any call will do. For those on BT line rental and make no calls but who want Caller Display and/or 1571 'free', I recommend making calls to a geographical number for the speaking clock at the weekend - but you cannot do that.

psychic_teabag

DonnyDave wrote: »

If you're not happy about it, then subscribe to the service from BT or migrate your line rental to another provider and pay that provider.

Sure. The thing I'm not happy about is the fact that I had no idea this charge was being made. Now that I know, I'm definitely going to do something about it.

psychic_teabag

BT's default free-weekend-calls is better than the talk-talk one I'm on. Presumably switching to BT will tie me into a 12-month contract, so I'll need to avoid doing anything hasty.

Anyway, no longer about my circumstances, but I'm still wondering if the information at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/pho...0-say-no#step2 about making one chargable call is correct for others.

The end of that section says that Sky are the only known provider for whom 1280 doesn't work - should talk-talk be added. It also implies there's a list of providers for which 1280 doesn't work - is that scattered through the discussion thread ?

Heinz

psychic_teabag wrote: »

Anyway, no longer about my circumstances, but I'm still wondering if the information at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/pho...0-say-no#step2 about making one chargable call is correct for others.

The end of that section says that Sky are the only known provider for whom 1280 doesn't work - should talk-talk be added. It also implies there's a list of providers for which 1280 doesn't work - is that scattered through the discussion thread ?

Yes, that's the stipulation - but, for those who can use the 1280 prefix or whose calls still go via BT, calling 020 7043 1320 twice* one weekend covers free Caller Display and/or 1571 too.

* Some discounted installations require ten chargeable or inclusive calls per month. Ten calls to that number take less than 2 minutes (don't you just love the LNR button?).

It's a question of which companies publicly admit to changing from CPS to WCLI. Only Sky has so far but, since then, Talk Talk, AOL and Orange (and, probably, others I've forgotten) have all been mention in discussions similar to this.

DonnyDave

Heinz wrote: »

It's a question of which companies publicly admit to changing from CPS to WCLI. Only Sky has so far but, since then, Talk Talk, AOL and Orange (and, probably, others I've forgotten) have all been mention in discussions similar to this.

Does what they (providers) do vary between exchanges? As in, whether they have their own equipment installed or not?

Heinz

DonnyDave wrote: »

Does what they (providers) do vary between exchanges? As in, whether they have their own equipment installed or not?

Sorry, I have no idea on that.

The only way to find out (too late of course) is to try the 1280 prefix and then check your BT online list of calls a day or so later to see whether the call did, indeed, 'hop back onto BT' as you wanted.

DonnyDave

Heinz wrote: »

Sorry, I have no idea on that.

The only way to find out (too late of course) is to try the 1280 prefix and then check your BT online list of calls a day or so later to see whether the call did, indeed, 'hop back onto BT' as you wanted.

Would dialling 17070 offer any clues? Does this work on CPS lines?