Money
Getting the best deal
Save £100s on...your mobile phone
Mobile phone users waste a staggering £30 billion a year by being on the wrong tariff - but with more than 300 different options on the market how do you go about getting the best deal, asks Teena Lyons
Step one: Get informed. Use websites such as OneCompare or MoneySupermarket to check on the cheapest tariff based on your mobile phone usage.
Step two: Check your own package. Most networks have a huge range of tariffs and just five minutes spent looking at your own usage could save a fortune. Some providers will help you with this - Carphone Warehouse, for example, has introduced MyMobileTariffChecker to help users find the most cost-effective option.
Step four: Never take no for an answer. If the answer is no - and it shouldn't be - consider changing to a new provider anyhow. It is possible to port your mobile number to a new provider while paying off your monthly fee until the existing contract ends. The trick is to reduce your package to the lowest tariff - either pay it off in one go or let it run until you are out of the contract period.
Step three: If you don't ask you won't get. Convince your mobile phone provider to give you a better-than-advertised package. If you are nearing the end of your contract term you hold a powerful money saving weapon - give me a better package or I'll leave. This works best around a month before your current contract ends. Use your information from stage one as the basis for your argument. Even if you are not nearing the end of your contract, special extra discounts are always available if you push.
Step five: Get organised. Some mobile package discounts are a combination of a reduction in the monthly fee - ie: the first six months at half price - and a cashback redemption that has to be claimed from the retailer on a particular date. Reclaiming involves filling in a form to claim the discount. Make sure it is in your diary because remembering to spend 10 minutes on the claim could save you £100s.
Step six: Watch the small print. Changing tariffs might involve locking into a new contract. Mobile contracts used to be just 12 months, but 18 months is now becoming more common. Make sure you are completely happy with the new terms.
* Teena Lyons is the former consumer editor of the Sunday Mirror. Teena's views represent her own opinions and are for general information only. Always seek independent financial advice.
