Spain set to ban high-tariff customer service lines: No more 901 or 902 numbers

Despite public pressure, many companies still use higher-rate or even premium-rate numbers for their customer service departments, which can give consumers quite a shock when they see their phone bills.

This is especially the case with 901 and 902 numbers, given that, at first glance, the caller may not register that they involve a charge at all – free-phone numbers start with 900, which looks a little too similar, and also means those who do not realise the former combinations are higher-rate lines may assume they are cheaper than a regional call or even free of charge.

Making a national call from a landline phone – to anywhere in the country – is normally free of charge, depending upon the telecommunications company involved, but ringing a 901 or 902 number from a landline is typically about 56 cents for a five-minute call plus IVA (value-added tax) at 21%.

Calling a 901 or 902 number from a mobile phone varies according to the network operator, but is on average about €2.82 plus IVA at 21% for a five-minute call.

But as most customers know, they will normally spend longer than five minutes on a call – even though 'hold queues' for Spanish companies in general are not very long, at busy times it can take up to five minutes to get through and then, if the call is a complaint, can take at least another 10 or 15 to resolve.

And yet calling a regional number from a mobile phone can cost just a few cents, or even be free of charge.

Alberto Garzón, from United Left – a party which merges with Podemos to become Unidos Podemos ahead of general elections and is therefore now part of the national government coalition – says having to pay a premium tariff to call a company's customer service department is 'a clear case of abuse' and is 'fairly generalised'.

The situation has become worse since the pandemic hit Spain, given that firms whose customers would normally visit them in person to complain or ask questions were unable to do so during lockdown and are discouraged from doing so even now if they can avoid it, meaning calls to higher-rate or premium-rate numbers have risen sharply since March.

'Standard' number availability required, but high-tariff lines in addition not illegal

National law already requires all companies to offer customers a contact number which does not carry a cost higher than that of a standard regional landline number, referred to as a 'basic call tariff'; additionally, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled in 2017 that 'the cost of a call to a customer service helpline operated by a business in connection with a commercial contract between the two parties may not exceed the cost of a call to a landline on national territory or to a standard mobile telephone line'.

This said, Spanish law, and European law, do not prohibit a company from using a high-tariff line in addition to a regional landline number for the same department, meaning firms can 'get away with' publishing a 901 or 902 number in addition to their main national line.

Some of them will display the high-tariff line in a more prominent place, since there is no law against doing this, either.

Also, companies sometimes use the loophole allowed by the reference to a 'basic call tariff': Except for those customers whose network operators offer free calls to all national landline numbers, a 902 number is actually cheaper than making an inter-regional call – such as ringing a number in Andalucía if you live in Catalunya.

What most customers do not realise, though, is that although a 902 number is cheaper than a national call, it is considerably more expensive than ringing a standard landline within the same province.

902 numbers invented for customers' benefit when 'trunk calls' were expensive

In fact, 902 numbers were originally set up to benefit the customer, allowing them to call a company based outside their province at a cheaper rate than they would pay for a national trunk call.

But given that nowadays, most network operators set blanket tariffs for any national number, whether calling one's next-door neighbour or ringing the Canary Islands from the Basque Country, 902 numbers are now redundant; it does not cost any more to make a trunk call than a local one, so a 902 prefix does not save the customer any money – instead, it costs them extra.

Companies benefit from using 901 or 902 numbers, or other higher-rate or premium-rate lines, because their network operators make more money from them and, in exchange, offer the companies extra services and perks.

And arguably, it is unethical for a company to earn perks and benefits for giving a poor service which triggers a complaint call from a customer, and equally, morally wrong for a customer to have to pay an extra tariff on top when the goods or services they have already paid for are not up to standard.

No specific timeline has been given for banning high-tariff customer service numbers, but Garzón says it is clear the existing legislation covering these is out of date and needs to be amended to reflect modern telecommunications practices.

His department is working on a new General Consumer Defence Law which will cover this and a wide range of other issues.

The premise the forthcoming law is based on is that no consumer should ever have to pay extra costs to be able to exercise their basic rights, and that resolving a complaint or issue with a company should not be a 'privilege' based upon affordability but, instead, accessible to everyone.

Second photograph by the national consumer organisation OCU