Uswitch comments on Vodafone launch of inclusive roaming across 40 destinations

Commenting on Vodafone UK’s latest roaming announcement, Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at Uswitch.com, says: “It’s like buses. You wait for one and then three, or in this case, four come along at the same time – with Vodafone’s roaming charge proposition following closely on the heels of Tesco’s Home from Home announcement, as well as strong offerings from Three and iD.

“The virtual networks have been paving the way in offering inclusive roaming charges, so it’s encouraging to see one of the major networks finally addressing what has been a major bugbear to UK consumers for years.

“The European Commission has forced networks to act, but the bill shock that has spoilt many a summer holiday should hopefully now become a thing of the past.

“Vodafone’s proposition stacks up favourably against the other deals on the surface, but does have some significant shortcomings when you look more closely.

“They are offering inclusive roaming largely across European countries, so customers jetting off to popular international holiday destinations, such as the USA and Australia, could still be heavily penalised for using their mobiles abroad.

“According to our research, more than one in ten customers who’ve been outside the EU in the past year have received a higher than normal bill, averaging £103. It’s about time ‘inclusive’ meant ‘inclusive everywhere’.

“As a major global network, Vodafone has relationships around the world, so you’d imagine they’d be able to secure more favourable international pricing.

“Also, confusingly, the amount of data you can use abroad is not the same amount you have to use when you’re at home. For example, an 8GB tariff only gives you 2GB of roaming data to use within these inclusive destinations.

“And, while Vodafone is unique in offering 4G roaming in 32 destinations across Europe, customers are likely to hurtle towards those shallower data limits whilst abroad.”