BT rip off again!

GSD4ME

I have just received my home telephone bill.
Total cost of calls = £4.91
Total Bill = £43.53!

Q: For someone like myself who uses the phone very rarely, is there a far cheaper option than the "BT Together Option 1 - The hour plan" that I am paying £29.36 for?
I would rather NOT change suppliers (and from the discussion below, they are not as reliable/cheap/up front as BT are, which isn't saying a GREAT deal I know)

heatherw_01

I have the same problem. I make no calls or only 1 or 2 but I can't be on light user as I use broadband.

If you don't use broadband, you might want to use the light user scheme.

jferguson

Suggest you look at your bill again.

Line rental should only be £31.50 for the quarter.

What extras are you paying for? Caller ID? Alarm Calls? etc etc.

This may be where you can make a saving.

debtbuster2K5

GSD4ME wrote:

I would rather NOT change suppliers (and from the discussion below, they are not as reliable/cheap/up front as BT are, which isn't saying a GREAT deal I know)

Fair enough, but I am with Talk Talk, free evening and weekend calls, then use 18866 during the day, with standard BT £10.50 line rental.

I find talk talk, 18866 and BT to be reliable and very efficient, with good customer service and communication

Regards

bbb_uk

Have you tried BT's Light User Scheme?

Based on your cost of calls you quoted then you would have got about £14 back in rebate per quarter. That is based on your calls not exceeding £5 per quarter.

For more info on BT's Light User Scheme then Click here.

As mentioned by heatherw_01, you cant use Light User Scheme if you have broadband!

heatherw_01

bbb_uk, that link goes to a different site.

bbb_uk

heatherw_01 wrote:

bbb_uk, that link goes to a different site.

Thanks for that. I had that many windows open I obviously copied the wrong link. I have corrected it now.

Heinz

bbb_uk wrote:

As mentioned by heatherw_01, you cant use Light User Scheme if you have broadband!

Or a mobile phone.

Or ..............

It is important to note that customers are not eligible for the Light User Scheme if they:

* have a telephone service provided by another supplier, either directly or indirectly
* have a telephone service provided by a mobile network operator, either directly or indirectly
* have more than one telephone line at the same or different address, for example at a holiday home
* have an ADSL
* have a line used exclusively for a burglar alarm (this does not include "lifeline" alarm systems which are also used as telephones)
* have an ISDN line or business line
* have a payphone line, residential BT rented cardphone or temporary line.
* have a line with incoming calls barred (i.e. your line only allows outgoing calls)
* have an incoming line only, because you owe money to BT.
* If customers have a second line because they are responsible for paying the telephone bill for a relative, they may be eligible.

jimclark1967

Heinz wrote:

Or a mobile phone.

How do BT know if you have a mobile phone or not?

JC

Nicholas

jimclark1967 wrote:

How do BT know if you have a mobile phone or not?

JC

They knew I had one because I was foolish enough to give it to them as a contact number when I rejoined them. Then I asked about the light user scheme and they told me because I gave them a mobile number I had alternative means of communication.:mad:

dag_2

If you want ADSL for at least 12 months, and you're sure you'll be using the phone for less than 6 hours a month every month - then I'd suggest ITPlus. Be careful though.

If you live in the West of Scotland, Irvine, Troon and Kilmarnock, or in North West England, Carlisle ,Lancaster and Morecambe, then WightCable North apparently offer a pay-as-you-go fixed line service, with no line rental and no installation charge - you only pay for the cost of the calls, and that's it.

They also offer 150kbps internet access for £14 per month (they call this "broadband", but I think that calling 150kbps "broadband" is stretching a point) - and 512kbps for £17.95 per month.

Unlike BT's light user service, there's nothing to say there's any restriction on the WightCable North pay-as-you-go phone service - so you might be able to get the broadband and pay-as-you-go phone together, possibly even if you have a BT line too. But I don't know, because I don't live in their area.