Fixed Gap Widens

Both the minimum local call cost and monthly rental for a land line are now nearly a third cheaper in Guernsey.

Recently Jersey Telecom announced that it is increasing the rental cost of a landline by 4.35% (50p a month for most customers). The core line cost is now £11.50 per month. The minimum cost of making a local call is 7p, after which a per minute rate is charged.

Sure, which operates the Guernsey fixed line network, has also recently completed an annual Price Change Review. In Guernsey there will be no increase to the cost of exchange line rental for the next three years, fixing it at £7.99 per month for all customers. The cost of local calls in Guernsey is just 4.8 pence, no matter how long you talk.

Gregory Jordan, Sure’s Commercial Director for the Channel Islands, commented:

“It’s difficult to know whether those charges are justified because Jersey Telecom isn’t obliged to publish regulated accounts. The simple fact though is that higher charges mean a poor deal for customers and a less competitive economy.”

He added:

“We cannot influence the cost of fixed line rental, but at least our FirstDial Home product is bringing call charges closer in line with prices which we feel are reasonable in Guernsey. We will continue to battle to offer better value to telecoms consumers.”

Sure offers its own residential phone service which provides a simple ‘smart box’ to divert calls onto its network. First Dial Home offers a series of discounts based on Jersey Telecom’s headline rates, including:

The minimum call charge for FirstDial Home customers is 5p, compared to 7p with Jersey Telecom. There is also no connection or setup charge, no monthly fee, no fixed term contract and there is no need to change your home phone number.

There is a similar FirstDial Business product for Sure’s corporate customers.