As announced in Budget 2014 back in October – anyone in receipt of the “Household Benefits Package” will soon see that their Telephone Allowance has stopped from 1 January 2014.
This telephone allowance was worth €9.50 per month – so many pensioner and low income households will see their next landline bill increase by €19 (assuming bi-monthly billing).
Many older peple are probably still using Eir as their landline provider – but maybe this bill increase will prompt them to look for cheaper landline deals. We did a quick comparison of basic landline prices to see if there are cheaper options than Eircom.
Landline Prices
The price for line rental and all off peak calls to landlines from Eircom is currently €30 a month for new customers (No broadband included). Existing customers may be paying more.
Sky also charge €30 for line rental and all off peak calls to landlines – but they also throw in broadband with a 2Gb data limit at no extra charge. No dish or TV contract is required . You can call join Sky Ireland Here
Is it Cheaper to Ditch the Landline?
Some of the people affected by the rise in their phone bills may consider ditching the landline altogether and using just a mobile phone instead. These days – more and more of our calls are made to mobile phones and these calls can end up costing a lot when made from a landline. Most landline “bundles” don’t include calls to mobiles but several of the mobile phone call plans do include calls to landlines and mobiles in their “inclusive” minutes.
Some price comparisons at the links below: