No way to block reverse charge calls so I can provide tenant with broadband?

buglawton

What stands between me installing WiFi for a tenant and not doing it is that even if outgoing calls on the linked phone line are barred, one cannot control reverse charge incoming calls that are accepted by the tenant. These can cost vastly more then even an international or premium number call.

Various forum posts going back some years indicate their is no proper solution and additionally there are scams where even premium numbers can be reverse charged.
I guess there's no change to the status quo on this, the telcos don't want to kill this particular cash cow even if the customer wants barring of all possible reverse charges?

The property is not connected to Virgin cable and I am not happy with the idea of fiddling with the phone socket which is sited in the main studio room.

I know that the tenant could sign up for broadband themselves but it involves delay/credit check and a contract for longer than the tenant might want.

Would be nice if like plumbing and elec, the WiFi were working on day one, especially if its a foreign student.

kwikbreaks

You surely take a deposit from your tenants don't you? Plus what about the contract? Most people use mobiles these days rather than landline so I'd expect your tenants to have one and be called on that rather than some landline number the caller would only know if told. If still concerned there is probably some way to set up a permanent divert to your number.

Quentin

I wouldn't worry too much.

Most students know how where get free wifi if they don't have it in their midden!

money_saving_matt

buglawton wrote: »

What stands between me installing WiFi for a tenant and not doing it is that even if outgoing calls on the linked phone line are barred, one cannot control reverse charge incoming calls that are accepted by the tenant. These can cost vastly more then even an international or premium number call.

Various forum posts going back some years indicate their is no proper solution and additionally there are scams where even premium numbers can be reverse charged.
I guess there's no change to the status quo on this, the telcos don't want to kill this particular cash cow even if the customer wants barring of all possible reverse charges?

The property is not connected to Virgin cable and I am not happy with the idea of fiddling with the phone socket which is sited in the main studio room.

I know that the tenant could sign up for broadband themselves but it involves delay/credit check and a contract for longer than the tenant might want.

Would be nice if like plumbing and elec, the WiFi were working on day one, especially if its a foreign student.

You can ask your supplier to add incoming call barring to the line, which should stop them from receiving any calls. The feature costs £1.20 to activate and no recurring charge (wholesale cost). This information is publically available in the Openreach price list.

buglawton

Thanks for that. BT clearly states that it will not block reverse charges calls. And I assume the same applies to Openreach. That's the dealbreaker.

Blocking incoming had indeed occurred to me but I'd not seen the price.
So incoming and outgoing have to be barred. Really naff!

Plusnet as one example seem to say that they can set a barring up but cannot guarantee it will remain :question:. Will have to see what they want to charge for a both directions barring.

[Deleted User]

Is there no option for BB without calls?

money_saving_matt

buglawton wrote: »

Thanks for that. BT clearly states that it will not block reverse charges calls. And I assume the same applies to Openreach. That's the dealbreaker.

Blocking incoming had indeed occurred to me but I'd not seen the price.
So incoming and outgoing have to be barred. Really naff!

Plusnet as one example seem to say that they can set a barring up but cannot guarantee it will remain :question:. Will have to see what they want to charge for a both directions barring.

Outgoing call barring won't stop the tenant from receiving reverse charge calls (and incurring you cost) but incoming call barring should stop the tenant from receiving any calls. There shouldn't be any monthy charge for either incoming or outgoing call barring, only a one-off activation fee (unless your supplier of choice decides to charge). If you apply both incoming and outgoing call barring then the tenant shouldn't be able to incur you any call charges.

Pincher

I shared my broadband with some lodgers once, and got a Fair Usage warning. One of them was watching movies using P2P, a lot, the other one was on SKYPE non-stop. When told about the warning, they just won't believe that my account can be throttled or even suspended, and that I could be fined for movie theft. They just think broadband is a human right, included in the rent.

You can also save them money by adding Anytime Calls, or inclusive overseas calls. They will never pay their share on time. They will go over the 60 minutes, call 0871 numbers thinking it's the same as 0870, and they certainly won't remember to write their calls down.

These spawns of Satan just want EVERYTHING included in the rent, and will never pay their share on time. When they get fed up with your chasing, they turn on you and start arguing it should be included, and downtime deserves a refund.

It doesn't take that long to activate an existing line. Let them get the contract in their own names.

Virgin Media does a nine month student contract,
and their broadband comes down the co-ax, so no phone.

buglawton

VM is what I wanted but is not connected to the address.

buglawton

money_saving_matt wrote: »

You can ask your supplier to add incoming call barring to the line, which should stop them from receiving any calls. The feature costs £1.20 to activate and no recurring charge (wholesale cost). This information is publically available in the Openreach price list.

Plusnet does not offer this. BT appears to but there no PIN to de-activate it so anyone can defeat incoming barring. (there is a PIN for the outgoing call barring de-activation).
I was within a whisker of going for BT broadband but for the lack of that PIN.

Looks like new tenants are going to be loaned a 3g MiFi and a 3 month PAYG data SIM and can decide if they want a contract themselves later.

money_saving_matt

buglawton wrote: »

Plusnet does not offer this. BT appears to but there no PIN to de-activate it so anyone can defeat incoming barring. (there is a PIN for the outgoing call barring de-activation).
I was within a whisker of going for BT broadband but for the lack of that PIN.

Looks like new tenants are going to be loaned a 3g MiFi and a 3 month PAYG data SIM and can decide if they want a contract themselves later.

I think there is some confusion between the different features available.

There is a feature called "Call Barring (Incoming and Outgoing)" that is in a different price list, and this is managed by the customer using their keypad. The outgoing barring is PIN-controlled but the incoming call barring is not. This single feature is charged by Openreach at 24 pence per quarter.

There are two different, standalone features:
Outgoing Calls Barred Except -1st Line -with 999 & 112 access
Incoming Calls Barred 1st Line

Neither of these features has a PIN as they can only be activated/deactivated by calling the supplier. For these features, Openreach charge a £1.20 setup fee and no recurring fee. If you were to set up these features your tenant would only be able to make freephone calls (and 999), and would not be able to receive any calls.

Alternatively, there is a more severe flavour of outgoing call barring called "Outgoing Calls Barred -First Line -no 999 & 112 access", which prevents any outgoing calls from being made (including 999). This is also a £1.20 setup fee and no recurring charge.

I would say with some conviction that Plusnet are able to offer all of the above features, but it might be that they're not in their standard price list so the first-line agent you speak to might not be aware of them.