I changed phone deal to save money – then EE said I wracked up £94 in extra charges
In April, I was offered a new contract with more data for just £10 a month.
1
The contract was provided by EE as the two networks are merging.
I was pleased with the offer so I agreed and signed up.
But I was shocked when I received my first bill for March.
I was charged an eye-watering £56 - £43.34 more than in February.
The next month another shock bill followed, this time for £58.
Both times I was told that I had gone over my data allowance.
When I called and asked what I had used the extra data for I was told that the company does not have the information.
I thought this was unfair, especially as I had set up a £40 bill cap on my account.
I have spent hours on the phone trying to sort this out.
Is there anything you can do?
Malcolm Finch, via email.
A. We all use data to scroll on social media, surf the web and stay connected to our loved ones.
But in this situation your contract caused a disconnect between you and EE.
It is important to read the terms and conditions of a mobile phone contract before you sign up.
Although it may seem similar to your current plan, there could be higher fees or penalties if you make too many calls, use extra data or send lots of texts.
This is what happened in your case.
BT said you exceeded your data limit on your March and April bills.
You were charged for the data you used up to your spending cap of £40 a month.
A spending cap allows you to limit how much you can use your phone outside of your normal plan.
BT has agreed to refund you £79.98 for the additional charges as a gesture of goodwill.
A member of its team has also called to explain how the spending cap works so you do not get hit with a big bill again.
This case shows how important it is to set a spending cap that you can afford.
It should help you to limit how much you spend on roaming, picture messages and texts, which can stop you racking up extra charges.
If you have a spending cap in place then your provider should let you know when you are getting close to your allowance.
That's why I was very surprised that EE unwittingly let you rack up such a big bill, but I'm glad you have got your money back.
Squeeze team total: £224,628.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
3 minutes ago
- BBC News
Will there be a bank holiday after England won Euro 2025?
Downing Street has no plans for a bank holiday to mark the Lionesses' Euro 2025 win, the BBC made history on Saturday as they retained their title against World Champions Spain after a dramatic penalty shootout in Basel. A homecoming parade will be held in central London on Tuesday, with an open-top bus tour culminating in a ceremony outside Buckingham the government appears set to confirm there will be no bank holiday to mark the occasion, in line with what happened when England won the same tournament two years ago. Calls for a bank holiday after a major football success are not new, but none were held when England's men's team won the World Cup in 1966, nor when the Lionesses won the Euros in Keir has previously suggested he would be open to giving people a day off work to celebrate an England win, saying at the time that the 2022 victory should be "marked with a proper day of celebration".When the Lionesses reached the World Cup final against Spain in 2023, Sir Keir said "there should be a celebratory bank holiday if the Lionesses bring it home".Downing Street will likely have an eye on the economic cost of announcing an extra bank modelling has previously put the cost at £1.36bn, while accountancy firm PwC estimated the figure would be closer to £ Keir watched on from the stands as England clinched a win on penalties, after the two sides held each other at 1-1 after 90 minutes and extra kicks from Alex Greenwood, Niamh Charles and Chloe Kelly, as well as two huge saves from goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, were enough to see England emerge from the tense match prime minister described the team as "history makers" after the full-time whistle, adding: "You dug deep when it mattered most and you've made the nation proud."
Daily Mail
3 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Homemade scones sold at the National Trust's sites could soon become history due to job cuts
They've long been a highlight of any trip to a National Trust site, their mouth-watering flavour crowning a historical day out. But the delicious scones served at the charity's cafes are set to become a thing of the past amid sweeping job losses. Some National Trust venues are planning to stop baking their own sweet treats, replacing them with products brought in from a central source, The Times reports. This has led to fears the new scones will lack their signature homemade freshness. One sceptical volunteer suggested the cost-cutting measure would lead to 'severe disappointment' among visitors across the country. The move is a concerning consequence of the National Trust's decision earlier this month to remove 550 jobs in a bid to slash its wage bill amid soaring costs. The conservation charity, which looks after 500 historic houses, castles, gardens and parks, cited Labour's move to hike employer national insurance contributions, as well as a recent increase in the minimum wage, claiming these policies had cost it £10 million. The National Trust insisted that less than 10 per cent of cafés would be affected by job cuts. But Steve Thomas, of the Prospect union which is representing staff facing redundancy, said: 'Whether they are chefs or curators, National Trust staff are as integral to the experience of visiting our iconic historic sites as the properties themselves.' He predicted that the move could put some people off visiting affected sites. Tasty scones have long been a key draw of National Trust properties and have even inspired a popular book and a dedicated website. In 2023, Sarah Merker completed a vast audit of the snacks, usually accompanied by a dollop of jam and clotted cream, visiting all 244 of the charity's cafes over the course of 10 years. She discovered that the National Trust's least popular locations served the worst scones. The charity said: 'The proposed changes would affect less than 10 per cent of our cafés, all of which are smaller outlets where rising costs are making it increasingly difficult to be financially sustainable. 'We would still have food and drink available at these cafés, however, and in more than 90 per cent of our cafés there would be no change to what we offer.' It comes after the National Trust told staff it needed to reduce the pay bill as well as finding savings worth £26m. The plans are expected to create a reduction in jobs of around 6 per cent across the charity's workforce of around 9,500 people. At least 550 full-time workers could face job loses and the charity has begun a 45-day consultation with its staff. In its most recent annual report, published in September last year, it revealed that total visitor numbers rose to around 25 million for the 2023/24 financial year, up 5 per cent compared with the previous year. It also revealed that there was a 12 per cent increase in non-members visiting the sites, paying on the day for individual trips.
The Sun
3 minutes ago
- The Sun
Fury as bankrupt Birmingham council offering asylum seekers huge discounts on swimming, golf, trampolining & Villa games
BANKRUPT Birmingham Council is offering small boat asylum seekers hefty discounts on leisure activities — including swimming, golf and trampolining. The Labour -run authority, which is locked in a bin strike now in its seventh month, is giving migrants up to 25 per cent off through its Passport To Leisure scheme. 2 2 Migrants, many of whom have crossed the Channel by boat before claiming asylum on reaching the UK, can also get a fifth off on the use of council swimming pools. Martial arts classes are subsidised for migrants under the initiative, as are courses on trampolining, golf, gymnastics and football. The price of a trip to a council wellbeing centre for fitness, yoga, squash and badminton sessions is also cheaper. The council even offers £1 tickets to Aston Villa matches for migrant children, as long as they are accompanied by a full paying adult. In a further slap in the face for taxpayers, asylum seekers get ten per cent off at most council leisure sites, meaning cheaper trips to the theatre, museum and city's botanical gardens. Under the scheme, £3 is lopped off tickets to watch shows, such as Disney musical Mary Poppins at the Birmingham Hippodrome. The Passport To Leisure card is available to over-60s, full-time students, carers, disabled people and recipients of certain benefits. Birmingham — England's largest local authority district by population — already has a 'Be Active' scheme for asylum seekers which offers free swimming and gym sessions. The council is £3.9billion in debt and declared itself effectively bankrupt in September 2023 with the issue of a Section 114 notice, limiting it to essential spending only. It is also under fire over its handling of a bin strike which has seen mountains of rubbish pile up on the city's streets. Migrant hotel protesters take to the streets again as demonstrations spread across the country in weekend stand-off Unite union members are in a dispute over pay and proposed changes to some roles. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'This is a bankrupt Labour council, in the middle of a bin strike, racking up billions in debt, hiking council tax by 21 per cent, and their priority is trampolining perks for illegal immigrants. 'It is a slap in the face for hard-pressed taxpayers who are being forced to subsidise freebies for illegal immigrants who claim asylum having crossed the channel.'
