Will EU roaming charges be coming back in 2019?
Now that the Prime Minister has confirmed that the UK will be leaving the EU’s Digital Single Market (DSM) as part of Brexit, the uncertainty of roaming charges has yet again become a popular topic of discussion.
The DSM is part of the Digital Agenda for Europe 2020 and its main purpose is to eliminate digital regulatory barriers between EU member states. This is what led to the end of roaming charges across the European Union. But if the UK is not part of the DSM will the same rules still apply?
It is being presumed that the charges will come back into place unless a deal can be made.
Sky News have reported that a spokesman has said: “The Government is committed to securing the best deal for British consumers. Arrangements on mobile roaming would be subject to any negotiations, however, a future partnership between the UK and EU is clearly in the interests of both sides.”
This seems like an important issue to cover as by the time Brexit comes into place we will have been enjoying ‘roam like home’ for two years, so it will be a big blow to UK phone users.
A wholesale carrier, Bics, have estimated that data roaming traffic across the EU surged by more than 600% following the introduction of the Roam Like At Home policy.
However, Vodafone and Three have already stepped up and announced that regardless of the outcome of negotiations between Britain and the EU, they will not reintroduce roaming charges. As a result, it is likely that the other big players will also follow suit.
But you can rest assured that no matter what happens in regards to EU roaming charges, Tariff Analyser will always provide accurate analysis of all roamed calls, texts and data usage, ensuring that your customers are on the best deal and the correct out of bundle charges are calculated.
We hope that the EU roaming outcome will be positive but, either way, regular tariff analysis for customers can help you keep on track.
