MILLIONS of EE customers will see mobile bills hiked by 2.2 per cent from March 30 – but there are ways to get around the increase.
The rise means pay monthly users will pay an extra 58p a month on average – although this could be as high as an extra £2.29 each month for those on pricier contracts.
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EE says the increase is based on the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation for December 2019.
Pay-as-you-go users, EE broadband customers, and BT users – which EE is part of – won’t be hit.
But if you are affected, here’s what you can do to get around the hikes.
If you’re in contract – haggle your price down
If you’re still in contract with EE you unfortunately won’t be allowed to leave your contract penalty free as a result of the increase.
That’s because all mobile providers are allowed to up contract prices once a year in line with inflation – as long as they told you about this before you signed up.
You’ll usually find this detailed in your contract or sales staff may have warned you in store or over the phone.
Mobile users can typically only cancel their contract if an increase is what regulator Ofcom deems is “of material detriment” to them.
As this increase is in line with inflation you’re unlikely to be able to argue the material detriment clause, but there’s no harm in trying providing you can back it up.
How does text-to-switch work?
A NEW process makes it quicker and easier to leave your mobile company by giving you control over how much contact you have with your existing provider.
This is how it works:
Text ‘PAC’ to 65075 – and keep your mobile number
- Text ‘PAC’ to 65075 to start the process
- The existing provider will text back within a minute and send the PAC number which will be valid for 30 days
- The provider’s reply must also include information about any early termination charges or pay-as-you-go balances
- The customer then gives the PAC number to their new provider
- The new provider must arrange for the switch to complete within one working day
Text ‘STAC’ to 75075 – and get a new mobile number
- Most people want to keep their number when they switch but one in six do not
- Text ‘STAC’ to 75075 to get a service termination authorisation code
- The rest of the process is the same as above
Text ‘INFO’ to 85075 – and find out more
- If you are unsure about whether you will have to pay early termination charges text ‘INFO’ to 85075
- You will only receive this information
If not, your best option will be to haggle your price down. Use a mobile comparison site, such as Billmonitor to see if you could save by switching elsewhere.
Then take this to EE and argue that cheaper prices elsewhere, alongside a price hike, mean you’re not happy with the service provided.
If you’re out of contract – also haggle if you want to stay
It’s always easier to haggle over your mobile bill if you’re out of contract, as then you can threaten to leave.
The fear of losing a customer often encourages service providers to offer loyalty discounts or add on extra perks.
EE is one of consumer site MoneySavingExpert.com’s top firms to haggle with. According to its latest poll of 167 people, EE customers reported a 76 per cent success rate.
Again, compare prices elsewhere and then come armed with the facts when you’re talking to a customer service rep.
If it won’t budge on price, see if you could get extra minutes, texts, data or freebies such as Spotify or Apple Music chucked in.
Switch to a Sim-only deal if you’re out of contract
If you’re out of contract, check if you can save by switching elsewhere.
Just bear in mind that EE is the first of the major providers to announce hikes, and it’s likely O2, Three, and Vodafone will follow suit in the next few weeks.
So you may want to wait until all the major providers have shown their cards before you make a decision.
You can either take out a new contract or, if you now own the handset outright, consider getting a cheap rolling Sim-only tariff.
These can start from around just £5 a month.
Even better, you can now leave your mobile provider simply by sending a text message, under new rules that came in last summer.
MPs have demanded banks and insurers publish the amount loyal customers are overcharged by.
The so-called “loyalty premium” sees the average person overpaying by up to £1,440 a year, according to research from Citizens Advice.
A super-complaint on the issue was lodged by the charity in September 2018 with the Competition and Markets Authority ruling in December 2018 that suppliers should divulge the size of their penalty each year.
