With the value of the pound falling alarmingly in recent times, holiday makers and business travellers alike are growing increasingly concerned that their foreign excursions are becoming ever more expensive. As a result, those venturing overseas are more willing than ever to take advantage of whatever cost savings are available across a range of products and services.
Costs that are often overlooked however, are those associated with keeping in contact with colleagues, friends and family, whilst away from the UK. And this could well be because the majority of people don’t realise quite how expensive it is to ‘roam’ with their mobile handset. How many people for instance, are aware that they could well be incurring charges of well over £1 a minute on incoming call traffic as well as similarly exorbitant rates on those calls they make back home?
One way to save money when roaming abroad is to use a SIM card appropriate to the destination country. Companies such as Cellhire can help travellers keep in contact for less, by supplying these SIM cards for the duration of their trip.
International SIM cards cost just £5 a week. And the subsequent savings are significant. Incoming calls are free in most destination countries, meaning that relatives and colleagues back in the UK can keep in touch without adversely affecting the mobile bill. Outbound calls, both in-country and back home are also heavily discounted; up to 90% cheaper than roaming with an existing UK handset.
So given that this seems to be an easy way to cut costs, what’s the catch? Are these cards easy to use or is the whole procedure something of a hassle?
Well, the SIMcard simply pops into any existing UK handset, or should customers prefer to, they can actually hire a temporary mobile phone to go with the card. After that, the experience of making calls is the same as it is back in the UK.
From a cost perspective, customers only rent for as long as they need, so there are no long term contracts, no minimum call spend requirements and no top-ups needed as with pay-as-you go, because the Cellhire solution is post-paid for convenience.
Finally, anyone who is expecting an important call or is frightened about not being available on their usual UK mobile phone number can actually retain their number for the duration of the trip. Incoming calls are automatically forwarded to the temporary SIM, meaning that customers never miss a call whilst they are away.
Whilst it’s true that recent European legislation has brought the cost of roaming down somewhat, people travelling long-haul or travelling within Europe for any more than a couple of days are still likely to make worthwhile cost savings by renting an international SIM.
