Charity blitz on phone companies that continue to bill for paid-off mobiles

Mobile phone firms charging for handsets that customers have paid off face being clobbered with tough rules.

Ofcom is concerned that 1.5 million on bundled deals continue to pay the original price after the minimum contract period ends.

Providers do not tell them they have paid off the handset, and need to pay only for calls, texts and data.

Ofcom yesterday said it was “unacceptable” that providers were not open about the costs of each part of the package.

It is now consulting on ­making firms break down the cost of each.

It will also look at what extra information should be given to customers.

Providers could be forced to automatically move customers to a cheaper SIM-only plan once they reach the minimum term of any contract which includes a handset.

Or they may have to reduce the monthly cost to reflect that the handset element has been paid off.
Citizens Advice estimates four million users have been charged £490million for handsets they already own.

The charity said EE, Three and Vodafone routinely continued to charge customers for handsets after they had paid them off in full.

Gillian Guy, of Citizens Advice, said: “This move could make a real difference.

“While greater transparency around pricing would be a step in the right direction, what ­people really want is not to be charged for products they already own.”

Ofcom is seeking comments on the proposals by November 7.

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