UK operators challenge EU roaming caps, and fail

Four of the UKs mobile networks have taken a case to the European court to try to get overturned rules which cap the amount that the networks can charge customers for calls made abroad.

In 2007 the EU imposed rules which forced networks to limit the amount they charged for calls made and received within Europe in order to make things fairer for consumers. The caps had to be in place by July 1 this year, so that from the start of next month calls made can only cost up to $0.39 per minute and calls received can only cost up to $0.15 per minute.

The caps were something of a PR victory for the EU, and EU Commissionaire Viviane Reding - showing that the organisation had the power to defend consumer rights. The networks, however, argued that the EU did not have the right to impose such caps, and that the caps were not necessarily the right solution. Other alternatives, such as caps on wholesale rates, could potentially have had the effect of controlling retail prices, they suggested.

However, the European Court of Justice ruled that the EU had every right to put retail price limits in place, and that the caps were appropriate to the situation; meaning that for calls at least, roaming within Europe should not be too prohibitively expensive. There are no such caps in place for data roaming, though - and although networks are required to check with customers once the bill hits €50, they can charge whatever they like per MB, so as usual the warning is, be careful with data usage abroad.