BA's unlawful 0844 numbers

Reply Subscribe

Thread Tools

Search this Thread

Jun 13, 2014, 5:00 am

#16

chris1979

Join Date: Apr 2005

Location: London

Programs: BA Lifetime Gold & GGL & CCR, HH Diam, Bonvoy Titanium, IHG Spire, Tastecard

Posts: 7,549

Quote:

Originally Posted by stifle

Correct. They can charge what they like for sales calls, the theory being that consumers are free to shop around. It is post sales calls that must be 01/02/03/080.

Yes, they are. You've answered your own question

I am told that ringing the "calling from abroad" number from a UK phone will get a recorded message saying you have to ring the 0844 number. I have never tried this and have no need to as I ring the silver line which is 0800.

calling the "calling from abroad" number from my UK cell phone for the Gold and GGL lines has always worked for me (and I often do the same for Amex and others).

Didnt realise I had answered my own question.

I guess I knew it for 01 and 02 ones but 03 numbers are still new so didn't know they fitted into same category.

Jun 13, 2014, 5:03 am

#17

chris1979

Join Date: Apr 2005

Location: London

Programs: BA Lifetime Gold & GGL & CCR, HH Diam, Bonvoy Titanium, IHG Spire, Tastecard

Posts: 7,549

Quote:

Originally Posted by nfh

Correct, but I tried this today and BA appears to have recently removed this restriction. However, this is not enough to comply with the legislation. The 0191 numbers (or any other 01/02/03 numbers) must now be published at least as prominently as any surcharged numbers.

as just said, never had that problem but just checked and Gold is 0800 which is included in my plan and GGL is not an 0191 number so I am not sure I've ever tried 0191.

Jun 13, 2014, 5:25 am

#18

SteveF

Join Date: Oct 2007

Posts: 4,679

Quote:

Originally Posted by chris1979

I get free calls on my plan but get charged 14p for calling the 'normal' BA 084... number.

Assuming that you have a smartphone, just use one of the numerous Apps which give you free (within your calling plan) access to 08xx numbers. I use WeQ4U.

Jun 13, 2014, 5:33 am

#19

sapper188

Join Date: Mar 2014

Location: Hampshire/Phoenix

Programs: BAEC Silver

Posts: 346

BA are still showing 0844 numbers to all departments, except Exec gold/silver/bronze but then if you have an issue with say flight/car they say to call the 0844 holiday number.

Jun 13, 2014, 5:34 am

#20

mjh0

Join Date: Sep 2013

Location: A hop, skip and jump away from MAN.

Programs: BAEC Gold, ex-VS Gold, ex-UA Gold, Premier Inn Platinum-Iridium

Posts: 1,114

Looks like someone in Compliance has dropped the ball...

Jun 13, 2014, 5:52 am

#21

Crampedin13A

Join Date: Aug 2002

Location: YYZ

Programs: BA Gold/Marriott Gold/HH Diamond/IC Plat Amba

Posts: 6,008

BA seems to be lazy when it comes to these types of things. In Canada when the law was finally changed so that every airline was required to include all taxes and scamcharges in their advertised fares BA didn't get around to it on their website for a couple of months although everybody else had complied on the required date.

Jun 13, 2014, 6:15 am

#22

visualAd

Join Date: Jun 2012

Location: London

Programs: BA Executive Club

Posts: 999

Airlines can do what they like, well that's how they sometimes behave.

I will be asking the next time I call BA why they are not complying. Maybe we should all do the same.

Jun 13, 2014, 7:09 am

#23

garethlewis

Join Date: Jun 2013

Location: MEL

Programs: QF, FI, BA, HHonors & Le Club Accorhotels

Posts: 401

calling 14101914907901 on a mobile gets you around paying the premium fee

Jun 13, 2014, 7:12 am

#24

DavidPM

Join Date: Jan 2005

Location: London

Programs: BA Gold

Posts: 159

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveF

Assuming that you have a smartphone, just use one of the numerous Apps which give you free (within your calling plan) access to 08xx numbers. I use WeQ4U.

I hadn't seen these apps and that's useful advice - thank you. ^

Jun 13, 2014, 7:27 am

#25

SteveF

Join Date: Oct 2007

Posts: 4,679

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidPM

I hadn't seen these apps and that's useful advice - thank you. ^

My pleasure

Jun 13, 2014, 8:02 am

#26

jimcbob

Join Date: Sep 2008

Programs: BAEC (Gold)

Posts: 700

Quote:

Originally Posted by nfh

084 and 087 numbers have been made unlawful for customer service lines with effect from today, 13th June 2014...

To be very technical about it, they have been prohibited in respect of contracts made on or after today. So there is actually nothing wrong in BA using an 0844 number if your booking was made before today.

Jun 13, 2014, 8:10 am

#27

NFH

Suspended

Original Poster

Join Date: Dec 2002

Location: London (LCY)

Programs: BA bronze, Hilton gold, Marriott gold, IHG plat, Meliá gold, Radisson gold, Hyatt disc, AmexPlat

Posts: 977

Quote:

Originally Posted by stifle

I was just coming here to post the same thing. Even Ruinair has managed to get an 0330 number in place.

I notice that Ryanair's contact numbers now comply only by the bare minimum. Ryanair now publishes a surcharged number for "new bookings" and a basic rate number for "post booking queries" for some countries, e.g. the UK, Austria, France, Belgium, Sweden, Norway and Finland. I assume that all these countries, like the UK, wisely chose to omit the exclusion for passenger transport services in their national legislation. For other countries, e.g. Ireland, Germany, Netherlands, Hungary, Italy, Spain and Poland, it publishes one number for "new bookings and general queries", so I assume that these countries neglected to omit the exclusion for passenger transport services from their national legislation.

Jun 13, 2014, 8:12 am

#28

tom tulpe

Join Date: Mar 2005

Programs: IHG Diamond Ambassador, Accor Plat, M&M FTL, BA Blue, QR Gold

Posts: 3,845

Quote:

Originally Posted by nfh

That is exactly why the European Union has banned this unfair commercial practice and why the UK extended the ban to cover airlines.

About time the UK got out of the EU, bloody Eurocrats telling us not to pay extra...
hang on...

Jun 13, 2014, 8:15 am

#29

worjackie14

Join Date: Dec 2013

Posts: 133

Quote:

Originally Posted by visualAd

Airlines can do what they like, well that's how they sometimes behave.

I will be asking the next time I call BA why they are not complying. Maybe we should all do the same.

I had no clue about this until coming on here today. There's been no communication at all from BA to contact centre staff about any changes in the telephone number. So the agent you ask will probably not be able to give you an answer.

Jun 13, 2014, 8:28 am

#30

stifle

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Feb 2009

Location: From ORK, live LCY

Programs: BA Silver, EI Silver, HH Gold, BW Gold, ABP, Seigneur des Horaires des Mucci

Posts: 14,279

Quote:

Originally Posted by nfh

It is unclear whether the above is correct. The law merely states that "a consumer contacting the trader must not be bound to pay more than the basic rate". It does not state anything about what number must be prominent, and it would be for a court to decide whether a consumer is "bound to pay" when a non-surcharged number is available.

I appreciate various guidance may exist which says other things, but it is guidance and no more. Only a court can interpret the law.

Reply Share

First
Prev
2 / 11
Next
Last

Forum Jump