Thinking of changing Telephone Service Provider?

The information below is intended to assist you if you are considering changing your home phone provider only in the UK and is not meant for business lines. This information may be of interest to consumers in the US as well. Do I have a choice of service provider for my telephone services? Yes. Competition in the English telecoms market means there is a variety of telephone service providers to choose from. Prices do vary across service providers so it is wise to shop around. Some operators can offer you packages covering both line rental and calls (Single Billing), others can offer you the facility to maintain your line rental with one operator while having your calls with them (Carrier Pre-Selection). Some phone companies' have services that also allow you to avail of discounts for certain types of calls - eg international, long distance or local calls - on a call by call basis (Carrier Select). Why should I consider changing my telecoms company? There are a variety of service providers in the market and an alternative supplier may offer better value services that suit your particular telecommunications needs. Prices for line rental and calls can vary amongst service providers. What questions should I ask before I change? You should review a few of your most recent telephone bills and establish your calling pattern (i.e. what type of calls you frequently make and at what time of day) and then shop around and ask the different companies about their call charges. It is important to note that once you have switched your telephone provider your previous supplier cannot contact you in relation to your voice calls for a period of three months. I have made my mind up to switch operators, what do I do now? Switching is easy. You just have to sign an authorisation form or confirm your consent over the telephone (a process known as Third Party Verification). Third party verification is an industry agreed process that allows you the flexibility to sign up with other companies for Carrier Pre-Selection (CPS) over the phone. Your new service provider will take it from there. There will be no disruption to your telephone service and no need for anybody to visit your house. You can keep your telephone number and your directory listing. It is important to note that you may need to contact the losing operator in advance of changing service provider to check to see if any cancellation notice or cancellation period/penalties apply. What do I do if there is a fault on the line? Your should contact the provider of your line. I have a BT phone line but, but have been informed that I cannot switch provider. Why not? There are a few areas in UK where BT has a "postcode anomaly", or which are served by a non-digital exchange. This may be the case in your area. The provider you have chosen may therefore not be able to supply home phone services to you. Does 1471 still work? Yes, 1471 (a service that provides details of the last call made to you) will work as before.