Does this sound right to you?

Skell.Nonch

I recieved a letter from BT telling me they were going to collect £60 per month for my bills. Although I could not afford it with only my wife working and being in recipt of housing benefit and council tax benefits , I agreed to this because a phone is essential where I live. This payment scheme began in September this year. I have just recieved another letter from BT saying that from November this year this has now risen to £82 per month. The reason given is because of the calls. I don't call any foreign numbers , no premium rate numbers , and very few mobile numbers. We also have the free evening and week-end calls. When I try to call BT to find out what is happening , all I get is a call centre in India where English is not is clearly not an essential qualification!. It is like trying to juggle soot. Are there any BT numbers that I can call that will allow me to speak to someone in plain English other than the illegible drivel that you normaly get. This issue realy gets to me !!!!:mad:

Heinz

Change to Monthly Whole Bill Direct Debit.

That way you pay monthly for your calls in arrears (not an estimate of what your call charges will be) and your line rental in advance.

You need to identify where your excessive calls charges are coming from and work out how to reduce those. I assume you use 18185 for any non-inclusive 01/02/03 calls and avoid 084/087/070 numbers unless absolutely necessary but the direct debit amounts appear to indicate you're making quite a lot of calls (line rental is £13.90/month so even the £60 amount would indicate about £46 worth - which is astronomical IMHO).

spike7451

BT did the same to me last October,I had agreed to pay £25 a month which was round the same,give or take a couple of quid per bill,of what my monthly bill was.Between the time I made the agreement & the next bill,they increased it to £37 a month without telling me. (They tried to take the money on 1st November & I didn't get my bill until the 6th of the month.
As I had budgeted for my two direct debits,car insurance & BT,I'd left enough in the bank to pay both,but because BT tried to take more,their payment bounced as my insurance had already been taken.
When I called their useless Indian call center,I was told that BT had told me the payment was going up.
When I asked...In the next bill I was told...But I haven't got my bill yet said I...But we have told you in the bill he said..WHICH I DON'T GET FOR ANOTHER 5 DAYS!! I literally yelled at him!
Trying to get that thru the thick skull of the BT rep was like banging my head against a brick wall..!
So when I explained to yet another Indian person,that my average bill was £19 & we agreed on £25,where was the justification on increasing it to £37?..That he couldn't answer.
So I moved to Primus that month.I will never use BT services in my home again!

Skell.Nonch

Thank you Heinz and thank you Spike.
I do not do DD'S anymore due to a past nightmare experience where a motor insurance company was taking TWO payments a month instead of one. My bank however refunded me but never again !
Forgive my ignorance but I don't know what you refer to when you say using 18185. The only 084 No I use is the 0845 which I believe is free. Like Spike said , you can't get through to the call centre staff due to a total ignorance of English. I find it very difficult to try to have a conversation with someone who can't even pronounce your name. They are charging me 3 months line rental in advance but I guess that is normal. The problem with BT is they have you by the balls and they know and prey on that fact unless you are fortunate enough to live in a cabled area. I can't even use a mobile at home due to no signal !!!.

Heinz

Skell.Nonch wrote: »

I do not do DD'S anymore due to a past nightmare experience where a motor insurance company was taking TWO payments a month instead of one. My bank however refunded me but never again !

Forgive my ignorance but I don't know what you refer to when you say using 18185. The only 084 No I use is the 0845 which I believe is free.

They are charging me 3 months line rental in advance but I guess that is normal.I can't even use a mobile at home due to no signal !!!.

Although I appreciate your reasons, not using DDs means you are cutting off your nose to spite your face because you are throwing away potential savings. I have been using DDs since they were introduced and have never had a problem. Statistically, it's likely your insurance company duplicate call will be the only one you ever have. Having said that, I've reached the age where my bank balance can stand such problems and, being on a fixed income, I check my accounts online regularly and would spot an error within a few days.

18185, recommended for years by Martin, enables you, amongst other things, to make 01/02/03 calls, at any time and regardless of duration, for 5p each. www.18185.co.uk

0845 calls of up to 60 minutes each are not free but, on your E&W BT calls plan, are inclusive evenings and weekends. During weekday daytime, they'll cost you 12.5p connection and 2.042p/minute.

Quarterly line rental in advance is what BT like but I objected to lending them that much for 3 months so changed to (and recommend) Monthly Whole Bill Direct Debit - so I only ever lend them one month's line rental.

I have no mobile signal on '3' in my home but 02/Giffgaff, T-Mobile, Orange and Vodafone work perfectly (with varying signal strengths because of the location of their respective aerial masts). Have you tried other mobie networks?

Back to basics though - why are your call charges so high?

Skell.Nonch

Thanks again Heinz. I wish I knew the answer.I do have broadband with BT as well , but I don't think that explains the costs.
Line rental for 3 months £41.70
Broadband and calls. 3 months £48.00
Total line rental and basic charges £106.56
Maybe they are right .
Sorry for forgetting to mention I had BT broadband as well.

Neil49

You should also make use of Say No to 0870 as they also cover 0845 numbers (to name just one).

If you want to make use of 18185 during daytime hours (or use any contract minutes on a mobile) you can dial an alternative 01, 02 or 03 number provided by this site. Sometimes they also offer an 0800 number you can use.

http://www.saynoto0870.com/

macman

Separate out your call charges and broadband so we can identify what you actual exclusive call costs are.
You still haven't said which call tariff you are on-this is fundamental. If you are spending more than £5 a month on daytime callls to landlines, then you should be on an Anytime package, not on an E&W tariff.
As Heinz says, if you have been under the impression that 0845 calls are free, then this may account for some of your huge excess.
PS: why have BT 'got you by the balls'? There are dozens of other providers you can switch to without having cable access.

JimmyTheWig

Do you get itemised bills?