If you plan to spend a winter vacation elsewhere Europe This year, be prepared to pay more to use your phone when you’re out – because roaming charges are about to make a comeback.
Repeatedly stated before Brexit that they had no intention to travel to the European continent, EE and Vodafone It was recently announced that starting from January, customers will begin to pay for the use of mobile phones in the European Union.
At the same time, rival operators oxygen Hesan also told their UK customers that they are facing new fair use data restrictions elsewhere in Europe.
Collectively, these actions make experts wonder whether this heralds the return of huge roaming bills that ruined more than one vacation in the past.
In 2017, the mobile network of EU countries was It is forbidden to charge customers extra fees to use their mobile phones In other member states. Making phone calls, sending text messages and, most importantly, the right to use data quotas anywhere in Europe—just like at home—is one of the most popular European legislation in the UK.
However Brexit The trade agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union failed to include continued protection of roaming charges, which means that legislation preventing telephone companies from applying them no longer applies here. Eight months later, the initial accusations began to resurface. The regulator Ofcom told Guardian Money that it has no right to prevent it from happening.
This is what we currently know.
EE
From January next year, many EE customers who travel to any of the 47 countries/regions EE believes are located in Europe will face new challenges. A fixed fee of £2 per day, Which will allow them to access their phone calls, data and text messages in the UK when they are away.
The fee is initially paid only by the joining customer EE As a new customer or upgrade to a new contract on or after July 7, 2021. Customers who sign a new two-year contract before that date will be able to continue using it as before-in fact, until their transaction expires.
EE stated that, alternatively, customers will be able to sign up for their Roam Abroad add-on for £10 a month, which includes roaming in the EU, and then they will not have to pay a daily fee of £2. But if they fail to opt out after returning home, they will be charged a monthly fee.
None of these apply to visitors Ireland, They will continue to be able to use their calls and data traffic as if they were at home. The company said it has introduced these fees to “support investment in our UK customer service and leading UK network.”
Vodafone
This is very similar to the story of Vodafone.From January 6, 2022, new and upgraded customers who registered after August 11 this year Will need to pay a new £2 per day fee to roam like home In its 49 European destinations.
However, its customers can choose to pre-purchase an 8-day or 15-day roaming pass for 8 pounds and 15 pounds respectively, effectively reducing the cost to 1 pound per day. Vodafone said that a daily fee of £2 will apply to about 75% of monthly paid plans, with the rest including roaming as a standard.
Vodafone also provides free roaming services in Ireland, but subject to a reasonable data usage limit of 25GB, which is applicable to all destinations.
A Vodafone spokesperson said: “Existing customers will not be affected by these changes, and they will still retain their current price plans.”
O2 and three
Although both companies have stated that they currently have no plans to introduce the aforementioned fees, O2 stated that if customers use more than 25GB of data abroad within a month, it will charge additional “fair use” fees. At the same time, Three has reduced its fair usage data limit in Europe from 20GB per month to 12GB per month. If customers need to use more data, they will charge £3 for each additional GB.
Although most people will not notice this limit, those who spend a lot of time on YouTube or streaming sites can easily violate the 12GB limit, although according to government regulations, users will receive a warning text when they reach 80% and 100 Percentage of their data allowance.
What about the rest?
For now, you can continue to use your phone as before. BT Mobile, Plusnet, Tesco Mobile, iD Mobile, Sky Mobile, giffgaff with Virgin Media Recently, it has been stated that there is no plan to reintroduce roaming charges in the European Union. Anyone is guessing how long this position will last.
Ray Ali, mobile expert Uswitch.com, Said that the full re-introduction of roaming charges will be a “huge blow” to customers.
“After the incident Brexit, Leading mobile users to believe that there is no plan to restore roaming charges immediately. But as EE and Vodafone announced that they would recharge their customers traveling in the European Union, the house of cards began to collapse.
“It is unlikely that all providers will make this decision at the same time, because some providers, such as Three, make free roaming a major selling point for potential customers. Some providers piggyback on other larger networks-for example, if O2 decides to recover the cost, It may have a domino effect on those operating through their networks, such as giffgaff and Tesco Mobile.”
Stay in the EU for a long time-you may still be charged
Photo: Molchanovdmitry/Getty Images/iStockphoto
The EU’s “roaming like home” legislation mainly targets short-term stays. To prevent people living elsewhere in Europe from using UK services, most UK providers only allow customers to roam for free for up to six months. If this limit is exceeded, they will charge them for making calls and using data.
Many people who used to return to the UK frequently but found themselves trapped abroad due to Covid-19-such as some workers and students-found roaming charges on their bills this year: making calls and paying up to 25p per minute 10p Send text.
What about the rest of the world?
The cost of making phone calls and accessing data in other parts of the world has never disappeared, and it can be dizzying—up to £7 per MB of data, and up to £3-5 per minute for making or receiving calls. If you are not careful, your mobile bill may disappoint you more than your flight.
Morocco is a country that often attracts first-time visitors. For example, for Morocco, Virgin Media Charges Calls to the UK cost £5 per minute, and answer calls cost £1.50 per minute. The text sent is a 60p message, and the data is £5 per MB download.
