Why Did O2 Charge Me £14 For 0845 Calls? - The Guardian

Home » Are 0845 Calls Free On O2 » Why Did O2 Charge Me £14 For 0845 Calls? - The Guardian

Maybe your like

Skip to main contentSkip to navigationClose dialogueNext imagePrevious imageToggle captionSkip to navigation
End call key … there’s no need to dial costly 0845 from a mobile.
End call … there’s no need to dial costly 0845 from a mobile. Photograph: Sam Toren/Alamy
View image in fullscreen
End call … there’s no need to dial costly 0845 from a mobile. Photograph: Sam Toren/Alamy
Consumer championsMobile phones This article is more than 8 years oldWhy did O2 charge me £14 for 0845 calls?This article is more than 8 years old

The network is unable to to get to the bottom of themysterious ‘service calls’

Miles BrignallMiles BrignallTue 30 Jan 2018 07.11 GMTFirst published on Tue 30 Jan 2018 06.59 GMTSharePrefer the Guardian on Google

Having checked my mobile phone usage over Christmas, I was confused to find that on two different days in December I’d been charged an extra £14 by O2 for “service calls” to 0845 450 0130.

Thinking that this was some sort of scam, I called O2, but it doesn’t seem to be able to get to the bottom of it – though the company has offered a refund of half the cost.

Advice please. KS, by email

Last year mobile phone users were being warned not to return missed calls to unknown 0845 or 0843 numbers after a spate of cases which resulted in large sums (as much as £300) appearing on bills.

Having now looked into this properly, O2 is adamant this was not the case here. The number you called turned out to be that of a home emergency services firm, though you may have thought you were calling another brand. As a gesture of goodwill, O2 has refunded you in full.

Note: there is no reason to be calling 0845 numbers from a mobile. Most firms now have standard 01 or 03 numbers that are included in calls packages.

Meanwhile, if you get a missed 0845 call, ignore it. If it’s important, they will call back or leave a message.

We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at [email protected] or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions

Explore more on these topics
  • Mobile phones
  • Consumer champions
  • Consumer affairs
  • Consumer rights
  • Telecommunications industry
  • features
ShareReuse this content

Comments (…)

Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion

Most viewed

Most viewed

  • Money
  • Property
  • Pensions
  • Savings
  • Borrowing
  • Careers

Tag » Are 0845 Calls Free On O2