Rip-off Britain costs mobile users dearly

How not to pay more than the rest of Europe when phoning from abroad...

Oftel is warning consumers of the high cost of international roaming charges just in time for Christmas. The telecoms watchdog claims British consumers using pre-pay mobiles are paying twice as much as users from France, Germany, Italy and Sweden to use them abroad. Oftel says customers are not aware of the high level of charges. It recommends frequent travellers investigate swapping their SIM card for one from a local operator. Alternative operators, which specialise in international services can also be cheaper. Sending text messages instead of voice calls is also cheaper. The regulator hopes that better-informed consumers will push prices down. Oftel is talking to the European Union about the possibility of Europe-wide regulation.