DESPITE THE EU’S claims that mobile users will no longer be shocked by the cost of their calls abroad, travellers taking the ferry are still being charged high rates for calls made on board. Ferry passengers pay up to three times the regular roaming rate for a mobile call, according to Newstalk’s Breakfast Show.
Demot Jewell from the Consumers’ Association of Ireland said that some callers have been charged €5 a minute.
EU roaming regulations which impose fixed maximum tariffs across the EU came into effect at the start of July. But a loophole in the law means that the mobile service used by ferries is not covered by max roaming charge limitations.
RTÉ reports that the service used by Irish Ferries and Stena Line said that call charges are determined by the user’s mobile operator, but special satellite technology involved in making the call pushes that price up.
