118 calls capped to protect elderly and poor as fees hit £20
DIRECTORY enquiry calls will be capped at £3.65 from April to protect consumers from sky-high fees.
Some firms charge almost £20 for a 90-second call with nearly two out of three bill payers being unaware of the costs.
Directory enquiry numbers, which begin with 118, are still used by more than a million people a year – many of them elderly.
The most commonly used number is 118 118 – advertised by two 1970s-style runners – which charges £11.23 for a 90-second call.
Ofcom said cheaper services were available but people tended to use the most memorable numbers.
Risen
Jane Rumble, director of consumer policy at the communications regulator, said: “Directory enquiry prices have risen in recent years and callers are paying much more than they expect. Our evidence shows this is hurting people, with some struggling to pay their bills.
“Capping 118 prices will significantly cut the cost of many calls and bring them back to 2012 levels.”
Ofcom based the cap on its own research into what customers expected to pay.
But Martin Lewis, founder of website MoneySavingExpert, said £3.65 was still too high.
He said: “It’s likely older, more vulnerable people use it most – £3.65 seems still too much, £1 would be about right.” People aged 65 and over are four times as likely to call 118 numbers than those aged 16-34, and are far less likely to have internet access. The number of 118 calls has been falling at a rate of about 40 per cent a year.
Ofcom found that about 450,000 people each year pay £2.4million more than they expect for the calls.
The regulator’s previous review in 2012 found “little evidence” of people paying more than expected.
The directory enquiries phone service was changed in 2003, putting an end to BT’s 192 monopoly.
The change was intended to bring down charges by increasing the competition.
Numbers were originally allocated on a lottery basis and without charge to businesses applying for them.
US firm The Number paid the company allocated the 118 118 code £2million at the time, believing it would stick in people’s minds.