How much would you expect to pay from a directory service? 30p? 50? What about from a mobile phone? When it comes to directory enquiries services, many people don’t even consider the fact that they are paying considerably more for information than they need to. Instead of using free websites or preferred network services, clients on landlines are paying up to £1 just to look up a telephone number. For people on mobile phones it can be double that. These calls only take a minute or two at most, so why is the extravagant amount going by unnoticed?
Part of the problem is that even if a caller knows about the initial connection fee or one-off charge, he might forget about the rate per minute. When the initial charge is as high as £1.75, maybe the cost of 59p per minute seems significantly lower. More likely, though, people just aren’t used to calculating their phone bill at a minute-by-minute rate.
Many of us pay a monthly fee without thinking about which calls made it higher or lower. With directory enquiries services, though, the fee per minute can be more than double what you would pay normally. More than 1/4 of directory enquiries callers ask to be put through to the phone number they want to call, even though that could cost them over 70p per minute to conduct that phone call. The best thing to do in that situation would be to write down the number, hang up, and call through your own network. Or have the directory enquiries service text you the phone number instead.
The other problem with mounting phone bill costs is that the advertised rate is for landlines only. Many people read up on the costs of using a service, but end up paying half again or even twice as much, just because they called on a mobile instead. This is proving entirely too expensive for the public, especially when there are alternatives. It’s worth it to listen to advertisements if the line you call is free to use. Or go online at yell.com and look up the number at no cost.
Directory enquiries services are occasionally necessary, but they don’t need to be so expensive. Use them only when you have to, and then only briefly. Make use of internet searches and free services and your wallet will thank you.