Whether you are currently planning a holiday abroad or are someone who travels on business, it is easy to overlook what impact your travels might have on your mobile phone costs.
There have been a few changes over recent years, in terms of the charges that will apply, and it is important to understand the up-to-date position.
Prior to 2017, it wasn’t uncommon to hear of travellers who had been hit with shock bills of several thousand pounds for data use when abroad.
In 2017, the mobile networks introduced “Roam like Home” tariffs which capped some of the costs, especially when travelling within the EU.
Post-Brexit, however, the position has changed again with some charges re-introduced. What you’ll be billed will depend on which network you’re with, where you go and how you use your phone. It’s therefore easy to be confused about what to expect to pay.
To minimise your costs, here are some considerations for before and during your travels.
Before you leave home:
- Understand your data allowance. Check what your daily or monthly limit is, and know where to check on your handset, how much you have used.
- Check with your provider whether the country or countries that you’re travelling to are included in your current tariff or are within their listed travel zones. Some countries just aren’t covered under any tariff and if you’re going to one of those you need to know that, so that you can choose whether to buy a local SIM on arrival.
- Add an appropriate travel bolt-on to your tariff if there isn’t one already in place. This will usually have a daily fee, but is a known cost that is relatively small.
- Before you travel, and whilst connected to WiFi, download any videos, playlists, podcasts etc, that you may want to access whilst away.
Whilst you’re away:
- Use WiFi wherever possible and switch off data roaming.
- Switch your phone off (or disable data) overnight and at any other time when it isn’t in use. If the phone is left switched on, in normal mode, applications can be running in the background, continually refreshing and using your data.
- If you can’t avoid using data roaming, avoid heavy-use activities such as watching videos, uploading photos to social media, downloading music or opening email attachments.
- Be particularly careful when in transit, especially by sea, even if travelling between two countries that are included in your tariff. Whilst aboard a ferry or cruise ship, your phone will connect to the maritime network. The lack of phone masts means connecting to satellites, which is costly.
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