Save money on your seasons greetings

Everyone wants to get in touch with family and friends overseas at Christmas and the New Year – but no one wants to be faced with a huge bill. With this in mind, independent price comparison and switching service uSwitch.com gives advice on the best ways to lower home telephone bills.

Tip 1: Save up to 81% by switching your home phone provider

Even for consumers who only make the occasional call abroad it still pays to look around for a cheaper deal. International calling costs vary greatly by home telephone provider. Virgin Media customers on their standard tariff are stung with the heftiest international call costs. For example, they would fork out £3.52 on a 15-minute call to Germany (126% more expensive than with BT Together Option 1) and £2.92 on a call to Australia (87% more expensive than with BT Together Option 1).

TalkTalk is offering its customers, for a limited time, inclusive calls to 36 overseas destinations as part of its standard phone tariff for just £10.50 a month line rental. Sky Talk and Tiscali Talk also offer discounted and free international calls on their higher cost call plans.

Tip 2: Get calls for free by upgrading to an International Calling Plan from just £1 a month

Consumers who call abroad a little more frequently should check to see if their current provider offers an international calling package. BT Together Option1’s 10.8 million customers could save over 67% on calls to Australia and the US by opting to take the BT International add-on for just £1 extra each month.

Great deals can also be had by paying an extra £5 a month on line rental and going for the BT International Freedom or the Sky Talk Unlimited packages. These ‘bolt-ons’ cover calls to a number of overseas destinations for free. In fact, with BT paying an extra £5 a month on line rental is enough to cover just one half hour call to India.

Tip 3: Cut 92% off the cost of a call by using the Internet

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a technology that enables calls to be made over the internet. If both parties are using the same technology, then calls are free. If a customer with VoIP makes a call to a normal landline, a significantly reduced rate would apply; calls to Australia, Germany, Ireland and the USA are on average 92% cheaper than with the standard BT Option 1 making this the ideal solution for frequent callers.

There are different ways to use VoIP, depending on the provider you are with. Skype customers make calls directly from their PC, using a special headset and software that needs to be downloaded. Vonage customers connect a dedicated VoIP box to their broadband modem, then connect their standard home phone to that box and make calls in the conventional way.

Ofcom predict that there are now around 500,000 active VoIP users in the UK who have already felt the full benefit of cheaper calls. However, new users need to be aware that the quality of calls is sometimes affected by internet traffic levels, and, crucially, not all services enable calls to be made to the emergency services.

Tip 4: Consider A Pre-Fix Option

For consumers who don’t want to switch provider, or simply don’t call abroad very often, a good option is to use a pre-fix code. This provides customers with a special number to enter before making an international call. The call rates are much cheaper than basic landline call plans – consumers can save up to 81% on a standard overseas BT call.

Primus customers using the Planet Talk Instant package can knock on average £3.41 (89%) off the cost of an international call with Virgin Media.

Steve Weller, Head of Communications Services at uSwitch.com, comments: “It’s clear that VoIP is a great way to save money on calling abroad. However, the sophisticated range of international calling plans and other landline options show that there’s no reason to write off the traditional home phone just yet. Christmas is an expensive time of year and a few pounds here and there can really mount up – so if you have family or friends abroad that you wish to call, plan ahead and make sure you don’t miss out on savings by not shopping around.”