Commenting on new research by Which? showing that consumers collectively waste £355million per year paying for handsets they’ve already paid off, Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at Uswitch.com, says: “Staying with your mobile provider at the end of your contract costs loyal customers millions of pounds a year. It’s in a bill payer’s financial interest to be fickle – because loyalty doesn’t always pay.
“People can take control and potentially save money by making a note of when their contract ends and searching for a deal that suits their usage. That doesn’t necessarily mean switching away from a network, but customers may find the best deals on the market are with a different supplier.
“One way to avoid paying over the odds for a handset is to go for a two-part tariff with separate handset and airtime. However, the airtime cost after the phone has been paid off can actually be higher than opting for a SIM-only deal with an existing phone.
“For example, on O2 Refresh, once the handset has been paid off after two years, customers will pay £24 per month for unlimited minutes, texts and 5GB of data. But they could save £6 per month for 1,000 UK minutes, unlimited texts and 5GB of data with giffgaff SIM-only or save £1.50 a month for 5,000 minutes, 5,000 texts and 6GB of data with Tesco Mobile, also on SIM-only.
“If you’re happy with your handset and not in need of a new phone, moving to a SIM-only tariff at the end of the minimum term is the best bet. It’s the easiest way to avoid paying off a phone at the end of a contract that’s already been paid for.”
Ailene Barr
Phone: 020 3872 5610
Email: ailene.barr@uswitch.com
Twitter: @uswitchPR
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Uswitch is the UK’s top comparison website for home services switching. Launched in September 2000, we help consumers save money on their gas, electricity, broadband, mobile, TV, and financial services products and get more of what matters to them. Last year we saved consumers over £373 million on their energy bills alone.
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