A Vodafone spokesperson urged customers to check the list of countries covered before traveling and to use the telco’s app to activate and deactivate roaming, along with SMS alerts about roaming charges, on their messages. Advised to watch.
According to RMIT University technology expert Associate Professor Mark Gregory, customers need to check whether their destination is covered before they travel.
“That information is usually available on the carrier website,” Gregory said, and once you’ve gotten a big bill, there’s no turning back.
“You will not get any relief because under international agreements the telecom companies are required to make that payment, so they will go to the customers to get that money back,” Gregory said.
Rates may be significantly higher for destinations not eligible for these value deals. As an example of how quickly costs can add up, Vodafone charges $1 for every megabyte of data used, and it’s possible to use up to 1.5MB for every minute spent on social media. Telstra scales up to $3 per MB of data. Phone calls can cost $5-$6 per minute.
“Watching video will use up the most data. And those are the stops you’re going to get every time, countries that aren’t covered under telco plans,” Gregory said.
International roaming disputes have risen above pre-pandemic levels since July 2022, despite a decline in overall telco complaints, according to the Telecom Industry Ombudsman (TIO).
Ombudsman Cynthia Gebert said, “The proportion of complaints about problems with international mobile roaming has increased slightly, suggesting that complaints about this problem are not reducing at the same rate.”
A similar issue exists with cruise ships, with major telcos excluding marine roaming from price plans.
Cairns-based retiree Philip Hobbs learned this the hard way on a seven-day P&O ocean cruise last November.
Despite having three decades of work in maritime tourism under his belt, he was shocked to come home to a $1000 international roaming bill, despite the fact that his cruise ship didn’t leave Australian waters.
“We had a land data connection the whole time, so I don’t understand how this is international roaming,” said Hobbs, who disputed the amount and later received a one-time credit from Telstra, reducing the fee to $200. done.
Why the huge bill? According to a Telstra spokesperson: “A mobile device may try to connect to the strongest signal that the cruise ship’s mobile service may have. If this occurs, you will be roaming at pay as you go rates, Even if the nearest country is eligible for the day pass.”
Customers should be informed of this roaming connection, which is being charged higher.
“It’s a premium profit-making product, and that’s why people need to look at alternatives,” Gregory said.
Options abound for those visiting The Gap destination; Buying a local SIM card would have solved the dilemma for a while, but today most overseas transactions trigger an SMS authentication code to your Australian number, even if you inform your telco about your travel plans.
While telco roaming value deals are the easiest way to resolve the issue around foreign mobile number verification codes, although not the cheapest, it is not an option for those traveling to roaming black spots.
Some local providers offer international roaming packs that let you keep your Australian phone number while you’re overseas.
Gregory suggests putting your device in flight mode and connecting to Wi-Fi when authentication is required though antivirus software with VPN capability is a must to protect against hacking and malware.
Travelers who wish to dispute roaming charges should speak to their provider before pursuing this with TIO.
“If they can’t work it together, customers can contact our office for help,” said ombudsman Gebert. Just be prepared to present evidence: details of charges, phone plans, roaming packs purchased before leaving Australia, notifications received about charges, and relevant correspondence with your telco about issues including emails and call logs.
The Telecommunications Service Provider (International Mobile Roaming) Determination was last revised by the Australian Communications and Media Authority in December 2019.
Under new rules implemented in July 2020, mandatory notifications about roaming charges were expanded to include any roaming devices (not just those that can receive SMS), and plan service limits to consumers To be informed earlier about the maximum charges applicable after reaching – Within 10 minutes of activating a service.
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