Christopher Theunissen

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Guides > Telephone > Current

Operators

Operator	Access Number	Web Site	Customer Services	Description
BT	1280	http://www.bt.com	0800 150111	We need this for the line rental (£9.49). Other operators like NTL and Telewest can be used, but some indirect operators won't work on these and charges can vary. The 1280 prefix is necessary here because all our calls are automatically routed through Tele2. You would have to find out what prefix to dial for the provider you use like NTL or Telewest.
Tele2	1271	http://www.tele2uk.com	0800 376 1330 quoting MGM20034443 to qualify for 3 hours of free calls.	All our calls are automatically routed through Tele2 the using carrier preselection service (CPS). The main reason for using this operator is that national and local calls are charged at 2.5p/min during the day and 0.75p all other times, which represents a saving of up to 36% on local and 81% on national calls. Charges are per minute compared to per second for BT, but with such big savings, it still worked out cheaper.
First:Tele	1640	http://www.firsttele.com	0845 3661640	This was used initially used for some local, national and all non-geographic numbers, but it was used less when we started using OneTel and now even less since using Tele2. We might stop using it altogether now that it is only used for weekend calls to Tesco/O2/Cellnet mobile phones.
TeleDiscount	Dependent on destination	http://www.telediscount.com	None	This represents the biggest saving yet with overseas calls up to 98% cheaper, which is even cheaper than OneTel at 78%. You don't have to register to use this one, as the access number is actually a non-geographic number that will be billed through your normal BT account. Remember to prefix it like we have to with the BT access number of 1280 if you use CPS. Make sure you are always using their cheapest access number by signing up for their email newsletter at http://www.telediscount.co.uk/contact.php.
RateBuster	Dependent on destination	http://www.ratebuster.co.uk	None	This works identically to TeleDiscount above.
OneTel	dependent on destination	http://www.onetel.com	0800 9570700	We used this operator for international calls with a saving of 78% to South Africa, but changed to TeleDiscount at 92%. Now we only use OneTel for countries that I didn't think we would need to call so didn't list in the usage guide mentioned later.

Usage Guide

As of 01/11/2004, I have gone back to using BT, as they have reduced their prices so the savings no longer outweigh the administration overhead. Details of the original savings can be found here.

Call Type	Operator Prefix	Cost			Savings
Call Type	Operator Prefix	Day	Eve	W/E	Savings
Local	Nothing (BT)	3.00	5.50/hour ¹	5.50/hour ¹	0%.
National	Nothing (BT)	3.00	5.50/hour ¹	5.50/hour ¹	0%
Non-Geographic Local (084 0645 0345)	Nothing (BT)	3.00	1.00	1.00	0%
Non-Geographic National (087 03745 05415 07 0836)	Nothing (BT)	7.51	3.75	1.50	0%
Premium Rate (09)	Nothing (BT)	Varies	Varies	Varies	0%
Mobile	Nothing (BT)	12.60	11.81	3.61	0%
International:
Australia Landline	1280 08448 614141	2.00	2.00	2.00	93%, 93%, 93%
Australia Mobile	1280 09119 223 223	13.00	13.00	13.00	96%, 97%, 97%
Hong Kong	1280 08452 442 442	3.95	1.00	1.00	89%, 97% 96%
New Zealand Landline	1280 08452 442442	3.95	1.00	1.00	97%, 98%, 97%
New Zealand Mobile	1280 09115 011150	15.00	15.00	15.00	91%, 98%, 97%
South Africa Landline	1280 08447 202020	1.00	1.00	1.00	98%, 98%, 98%
South Africa Mobile	1280 09116 777777	13.00	13.00	13.00	81%, 79%, 78%
USA	1280 08448 610610	1.00	1.00	1.00	95%, 95%, 95%
Other	1878				Generally 78%.
Directory Enquiries (1 number)	118390	27.00	27.00	27.00	Varies
Directory Enquiries (up to 3 numbers)	118288	32.00	32.00	32.00	Varies

¹Local and National, Evening and Weekend calls cost 5.5p for the first hour, thereafter it reverts to charging 3p per minute. You can always disconnect the call before the hour is up and dial again though.

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