what are the charges for 0870 and 0845 telephone no's?

Answer 1

0870 Numbers
These have their own special pricing arrangements and for most read expensive:

* Up to 25 times a normal call cost. On BT's basic package, calling a landline during the day costs 3p/min (local and national rates no longer exist), yet calling 0870 numbers is 7.1p/min. With Toucan Telecom a normal 20 minute evening call costs 3p, but it's 78p to an 0870 number.

* Not included in ‘free calls' packages. If you're on an ‘inclusive calls' package, either on your home phone or mobile, almost invariably you'll still need to pay to make 0870 calls.


0845 Lo-Call Numbers


Don't confuse Lo-Call with local; numbers starting 0845 aren't cheap and, again, aren't included in the ‘free calls'. For someone calling from a BT line in the evening, you'd pay 30p for a half hour 0845 call compared to 5.5p for a normal call.

Sadly many small businesses actually pay to have these numbers, misled by old promises that they “look more professional and attract custom”, without realising that these days their customers have to pay more.