Millions Of Mobile Customers Ripped Off

Millions ripped off for mobile phones

Am I paying too much for my mobile phone? This is a question that a lot of people ask themselves when they get around to looking at where all their hard-earned money goes each month. The shocking truth is that many of the mobile phone providers have been deliberately fleecing their most loyal customers for years. Recently it has been reported that around four million customers are being billed for mobile phones they already own. This is costing people like you hundreds of pounds a year and making these company’s hundreds of millions of pounds in unearned profit.

Are you being overcharged?

Do you know whether your mobile phone contract has ended yet? If you don’t know (and most customers don’t) then it’s very possible that you are paying much more than you need to every month. Britain's biggest mobile networks, including EE (owned by BT), Three and Vodafone, continue to charge many of their customers for their handsets even after the cost has been paid off. We think it’s a total scandal that these companies are getting away with this behaviour. Imagine if your mortgage company kept taking money from you after you had paid off the balance. How would you feel about that? Most customers have no clue that they are being charged for phones after they already own them. They should only be paying for the calls, texts and data that they use but millions are being fleeced.

How much can I save?

On average customers are being charged £22 a month more than they should be. If you have a high-end phone like an iPhone or Samsung Galaxy then this could be up to £40. That’s nearly £500 a year. And like all of these nasty pricing practices its the most vulnerable people who are most at risk. Double the number of elderly people are being charged for a phone they already own for longer than 12 months, costing them hundreds when they often have a limited income or savings.

Here are the shocking facts

• 36% of customers continue after their contract expires.

• £554 is the extra cost to customers with high end handsets.

• These companies are making millions of pounds each year because they aren’t playing fair.

What can you do?

The first thing to realise is that if you have a contract with Three, Vodafone or EE that included a handset then you could automatically be overcharged when your contract ends.

• Use our mobile phone priceometer to see how much other people are being charged for the same service as you. That will tell you what a fair bill should be and how much you could be saving.
• You could then get on the phone and ask your provider to switch you to a cheaper SIM-only deal.
• Or you could use ismybillfair’s service and ask us to challenge your provider on your behalf. Find out how this works for you.
• If you are so appalled by your providers behaviour or you want to get a new phone contract, then you can always move to another provider. Have a look at the best mobile phone or SIM only deals available from our partner Confused.com and move to a provider who plays fair.