Reduced mobile charges for travellers in the EU

Good news for travellers abroad this summer, they can expect their phone bills to be much less once they return from holidays. Roaming mobile charges for calling and data roaming have now been reduced in the European Union as of July 1st, 2010.

Having a mobile phone while travelling is an indispensable luxury. Travellers need to be able to get in touch with their hotels, airline companies and make last minute plans and reservations while abroad. The cost of making a call abroad was not a pretty sight until now, thanks to new regulations implemented last week.

Travellers in Europe can relax while they make necessary calls while abroad, thanks to the European Commission, mobile phone operators have been forced to lower prices on outgoing calls, incoming calls, text messages and data roaming.

A new maximum of 32p/min. will be applied to all calls made inside the European Union, down from 35p/min. The rates for receiving calls from abroad within the European Union have also changed, in favour of travellers. It is cut to a maximum of 12.5p/min. instead of 15.5p/min.

Mobile phone operators also must put a £41.50 (50€) limit on data roaming charges unless a customer requests otherwise. Warnings will be sent to customers as soon as they are 80% of the way to reaching the data roaming limit and once there, the internet will automatically be cut. Even though the charge for browsing the internet is the same, this feature will now prevent travellers from racking up long and expensive bills for using the internet unintentionally.

These changes come after repeated complaints from travellers returning home from their holidays only to find mobile phone bills totalling hundreds and in some cases thousands of pounds!

Img: gonzalobaeza / flickr cc