Cheapest Home Phones Call Price Article

dpf2005

I use the VarTec Talk UK plan which costs £9.99 per month inc.vat. For that you get 15 hours per month to any landline but also included are 0844, 0845 and 0870 numbers. In addition you get 99 minutes per month to any mobiles evenings/weekends. The service works through CPS so there are no prefix codes or diallers needed. You can also pay by direct debit instead of credit card. By the time you have messed around with prefixes, diallers and re-routing your 0870 etc. numbers back through BT I think you will have worked very hard for any small saving you might make. Details on https://www.vartec.co.uk

Lisa_H

dpf2005 - that tariff wouldnt help someone like me at all as I dont even spend £9.99 a month on calls. I think that's a lot of money especially if it's taking into account the 0870, 0844 and 0870 numbers coz if you look on http://www.saynoto0870.com it will give alternative numbers to non-geographic numbers, saving you even more money especially 18866. Ok, we are talking about the odd pence here and odd pound there but if you can do that on all bills you save loads AND you dont get ripped off!!!

dpf2005

Of course if you don't make many calls and wouldn't spend anywhere near £10 a month anyway, then clearly £9.99 per month is not good value. But for the higher volume user, (I use phone about 12 hours per month), it is a hassle free way to get all your calls at a reasonable price. I know there are websites like say no to 0870 numbers, but it's allextra work. I don't know how to avoid 0845 numbers. Using this tariff you can also make a lot of your international calls free if in your inclusive 15hours. lots of companies like Telestunt use an 0845 or 0870 number for access but then there is no further charge. There again, if you don't make any international calls at all then this facilty is useless for you. A case of horses for courses.

Barneygirl

I'm considering changing my all in home phone package and have just been advised Tesco.com are doing an anytime talk package for 12.47 a month. I think I am paying more than that with Onetel so this seems like reasonable value. Does anyone use it?

dpf2005

Barney girl, you are right, any number of calls on this Tesco tariff for just £12.47 per month, up to 70 minutes duration, but be careful you don't make calls to any non-geographic numbers, as THESE ARE NOT INCLUDED and are charged extra for. If you check on the Tesco website for the full price list and then go to the section detailing charges for numbers starting with 08, you will find:
0844 numbers cost 5.0p per minute at at times
0845 numbers cost per minute 3.6p, 1.2p, 1.0p day/eves/w-ends
0870 numbers cost per minute 7.5p, 3.9p, 1.75p day/eves/w-ends
A service which includes these numbers could work out much cheaper.

Bagnall

Hi Martin,

Fantastic site! What's as good as a pay rise? Saving money with Martin's Money Saving Expert!

Anyway, regarding phones, have you checked out skype.com?

Anyone reading this is using a computer and may also have broadband, a set of speakers, a soundcard and a microphone. If yes to all of these then check out https://www.skype.com. Not only can you "skype" another skype user free (if they are near their PC) but you can also "skype out" - this means call a phone or a mobile from your computer. It's a fraction of the cost of BT or NTL and even beats some of the recommendations in this discussion.

Best Wishes and continued success to you,

Richard Bagnall (Bagnall Software Consultants Ltd https://www.bagnall.co.uk)

P.S. I don't have shares in Skype or work for them!

sergeant121

Bagnall wrote:

Hi Martin,

Fantastic site! What's as good as a pay rise? Saving money with Martin's Money Saving Expert!

Anyway, regarding phones, have you checked out skype.com?

Anyone reading this is using a computer and may also have broadband, a set of speakers, a soundcard and a microphone. If yes to all of these then check out www.skype.com. Not only can you "skype" another skype user free (if they are near their PC) but you can also "skype out" - this means call a phone or a mobile from your computer. It's a fraction of the cost of BT or NTL and even beats some of the recommendations in this discussion.

Best Wishes and continued success to you,

Richard Bagnall (Bagnall Software Consultants Ltd www.bagnall.co.uk)

P.S. I don't have shares in Skype or work for them!

Richard, there was a thread about Skype (and other VoIP systems) earlier this month - see HERE.

Edinburghlass_2

Barneygirl wrote:

I'm considering changing my all in home phone package and have just been advised Tesco.com are doing an anytime talk package for 12.47 a month. I think I am paying more than that with Onetel so this seems like reasonable value. Does anyone use it?

You would be better using the Onetel or TalkTalk1+ offer which would give you free evening and weekend UK calls and signing up for 18866 for your daytime calls at 1p a call no matter the duration.

£12.47 a month is a lot of calls if you are only paying 1p a call through 18866.

Just noticed you are already with Onetel so they may not allow you to switch to the new offer ending at the end of February but I would phone them and say if not you are switching to TalkTalk and see what they say.

Bagnall

Sorry. I did search for skype in the message boards before posting, but didn't get any search results. Maybe I used search wrongly.

ArtRoc

Anyone had problems with misdialling 18866 and getting 118866 instead?
Unfrtunately it is one of the many directory enquiry services so instead of the 1p call that you were expecting you end up paying 49p and 9 p per minute!