Mobile broadband users 'will avoid bill shocks after holiday'
Mobile broadband users 'will avoid bill shocks after holiday'
By Tim Bisley (Thu, 25th February 2010)
People who use mobile devices - such as handsets and laptops - to access broadband connections while they are out of the country are set to benefit from new legislation which will make it impossible to suffer a 'bill shock'.
Some mobile broadband users may have previously experienced a significantly higher than expected invoice from their provider after logging on to Facebook, Twitter or email while on holiday.
But the new regulation will see a €50 (£44.12) limit imposed, with the broadband connection cut as soon as this charge is reached.
Users can choose to have a higher limit set which will enable them to continue web browsing or simply allow their access to be ended at the €50 mark.
Mike Wilson, mobiles manager at moneysupermarket.com, says the limit set in the legislation "is generally enough to handle emails with attachments, keep up with Twitter and do some browsing. Depending on your provider it may stretch to some light downloading as well".
Mr Wilson points to 3's £1.25 per MB and Orange's €2 for 2MB offers as examples of current deals which may be attractive to mobile broadband users.
The price comparison site gives some advice to people using mobile devices to access the internet, such as always checking the roaming tariff with providers before departing the UK.
It also recommends avoiding heavy downloading when overseas and considering that a quick call could be cheaper than a series of text messages.
A recent survey by O2 suggested that people in the UK may be better off signing up to the mobile firm, as it was found to be the fastest mobile broadband provider in London and several other major cities.
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