SOLVED Recommendations for termination to UK?

[markd89]

Hi,

I'm using Voip.ms for USA terminations which is fine. Calls to UK landlines are $0.53/minute and I plan to call the UK more.

Any suggestions on less costly providers?

Thanks!
Mark

 

[wardmundy]

@markd89: I would stay away from Localphone. A security issue on their side cost me over $200 in my account which they refused to reimburse. But that was years ago.

A much safer solution is Boss Revolution which has an app tied directly to your verified cellphone number. U.K. landline calls are 2 cents a minute, and they give you a $2 credit to get started. They also have unlimited calling plans to U.K. for about $2/month. And they warn you if you're about to dial one of the high-priced, so-called Premium numbers.

 

[Halea]

The UK has some very odd DIDs which indeed cost a small fortune to call! I won't get into describing those, but just say that at one point we blocked them all (and we continue to do so) because no normal destination should be using one of those oddball phone numbers - per me!
Now a "normal" call at 53 cents/mn is absolutely outrageous as the UK has probably the cheapest rates in the world next to the US. Ward's advice about using LocalPhone is a good one, but pretty much any other provider would provide you with routes competitively priced - even voip.ms. That's why I thought that you may be calling one of those oddball DIDs.
Use anveo direct, or callwithus (if you already have an account), or any other provider, if it's a plain vanilla DID you should pay a penny at most.

 

[wardmundy]

How to Identify U.K. Premium Numbers which cost 50¢/minute

When dialed from the U.S. using the +44 country code, premium numbers generally start with the following prefixes after the country code: [1]

• 090, 091, 098 (+44 9...): The most common premium rates used for major TV show voting, adult entertainment, psychic hotlines, and lottery competitions. [1, 2, 3]
• 118 (+44 118...): Used strictly for commercial directory inquiries and look-up assistance services. [1, 2, 3]
• 0871, 0872, 0873 (+44 87...): Technical support lines, corporate customer service centers, and booking hotlines. [1, 2, 3, 4]
• 070 (+44 70...): Personal "follow-me" numbers designed to forward calls to a hidden phone number. These are heavily associated with delivery scams. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Why Do They Exist?
A U.K. premium rate number is a special service telephone number used by businesses, entertainment lines, and support desks that charges callers a significantly higher rate than a standard call. [1, 2]

The high cost is a form of micro-payment. The business you are calling receives a portion of that high per-minute fee directly from the phone company to pay for the service, information, or support they are providing you over the phone. [, 2, 3, 4]

Because of the massive per-minute cost, international calling apps like Boss Revolution will always display a warning rate on your iPhone screen before connecting a premium call to prevent unexpected charges. [1]

 

[Halea]

It's actually worse than that. They have geographic, non geographic, special mobile and a bunch of other "types" of DIDs. In their eagerness to lead the world they have created an unimaginable mess. For 44 country code you have to limit your per minute rate to what you want to sustain, because I guarantee you that sooner or later some new type will be created siphoning tens of cents a minute or more. This is nothing new, it has been going on for at least two decades now.

 

[wardmundy]

@Halea: A stark reminder of the equally evil Caribbean phone scam:

The "One-Ring" (Wangiri) Phone Scam

If you are receiving missed calls from Caribbean area codes while residing in the U.S., you are likely being targeted by a premium-rate billing scam.

• The Trick: Automated dialers call thousands of random mobile numbers, ring exactly once, and disconnect. They rely on your curiosity to make you call the number back.
• The Surcharge: Because many Caribbean islands use the +1 country code, the numbers look like domestic long-distance lines. However, calling them back routes you to high-cost international hotlines. You can be instantly hit with a $20 connection fee and $9+ per minute rates. These fees are quietly added directly to your cell phone bill as "premium services".
• High-Risk Area Codes: Be highly suspicious of unfamiliar numbers utilizing the following area codes:
  • 268 (Antigua and Barbuda)
  • 284 (British Virgin Islands)
  • 473 (Grenada)
  • 649 (Turks and Caicos)
  • 767 (Dominica)
  • 809 / 829 / 849 (Dominican Republic)
  • 876 / 658 (Jamaica)

 

[kenn10]

For IncrediblePBX, its pretty easy to block calls to the Caribbean using one outbound route and a recording stating calls to the number dialed are prohibited. I use the same logic on FS PBX and FusionPBX systems.