Brits are wasting nearly around £5.4bn per year by opting for bad mobile phone contracts, new survey claims.
According a survey conducted by consumer advocacy group Which?, Brits are collectively losing out around £5.42bn per year by incurring extra charges for data, texts or minutes they do not use or by paying additional charges because of their phone package being too low for their use.
The consumer group found that 72 percent of the mobile customers could save an average of £159 a year by switching to a contract which better fit their needs, while 77 percent could save at least £50 a year.
42 per cent of those surveyed think there was a better tariff out there for them, while 48 percent of the respondents have never switched their supplier. Only three in 10 (28 percent) Brits said they actually trusted mobile phone services.
Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which, said “It’s shocking that consumers are overpaying by billions of pounds for mobile phone contracts that just don’t suit their needs. Mobile phone companies must do more to help people get the best deal, making switching hassle free and ensuring that pricing is transparent. If we don’t see mobile firms making voluntary improvements then we will ask the regulator Ofcom to step in.”
Looking at the survey results, Which? has called on mobile phone companies to take several steps to improve the consumer experience.
The consumer group suggests that mobile companies should offer to unlock handset for free, notify their customers before their contracts expire with the best deals for them as well as clearly show the monthly cost of the handset separately from the service charge.
Furthermore, Which? is also calling on UK’s regulatory and competition authority, Ofcom, to introduce a system where the network gaining a new customer from a rival mobile phone firm is responsible for handling the switch.
