Unhappy Brits feel ripped off by mobile roaming charges

A SURVEY commissioned by VoIP service provider, Truphone, has found that most Brits are unhappy with 'roaming' charges in the EU. Plus 37 per cent don't even know how much it costs until they get back home.

The EU parliament is supposed to vote tomorrow (9th May) on a proposal to drop roaming charges by as much as 70 per cent.

However, as Truphone CEO, James Tagg, says, "Reducing an outrageous sum by 70 per cent still leaves a large sum."

The survey, carried out by Gfk NOP, found that over 33 per cent of those surveyed expected to use their UK phones while on holiday. A surprisingly low number, only six per cent, said they expected to use their phones while on business in the EU.

A higher percentage, 16, expect to 'roam' with their phones outside the EU, although the report doesn't say how many of those will be in the USA.

Tagg also points out that the EU initiative is only concerned with voice calls - it doesn't tackle the cost of sending texts while 'roaming' abroad.

He's hoping, however, that the latest VoIP technologies will exert such price pressure on the mobile operators that they will be forced to "do away with roaming charges".

As Tagg says, consumers can "use the Internet to carry mobile phone calls, making many phone calls worldwide as free as email."

Crucially, even if the EU does succeed in forcing mobile operators to drop their prices by 70 per cent, one in eight people will still view them as a 'rip-off'. µ