I was in a call box today

it said put in 40p

I thought its gone up I thought it was 30

anyway I made a call

it rang for about 8 times then a voice came on
the caller is not at home
please speak after the tone etc

I did nt want to leave a message so

I hung up

I did nt get the 40 p back

I felt cheated

I phoned the BT operator

I said ok its fine for people to have

answer phones but why can t BT put some

software on the line that gave 3 or 4 beeps that would warn us and if we did nt want to go to the answer phone then we could

hang up and save any charge


the operator ummed and arred

we have done our part of the bargain we have got you thru to your friend

the fact that he has a n answer phone on line is nothing to do with us

sick as a parrot and 40p worse off I gave up the ghost

BT with all its zillions could put in some warning software as easy as abcc

but as things stand at present taken all over the country they are prob pocketing a cool million a week from this game

its really a form of theft when you think about it

Goose-fraba
Goose-fraba
Goose-fraba

...

Write and complain to BT and say its a disgrace that they robbed you of 40 pence. Say which pay phone it was and the number of it and the number you dialed as evidence and how long you were on the phone for.

thanks for the advice, but I should nt

have to do that all bt need is some

simple software that will give you 3 or 4 beeps leading into an answer phone

to give you the choice

Its a massive rip off across the country

its a form of theft

BT are right. The minimum charge is 40p, provided you get connected. You CHOSE not to leave a message.

Interesting idea, but how would BT's equipment determine whether the call's been answered by a machine or a person? AFAIK answering machines don't send a "Hello, I'm an answering machine" signal back to the exchange.

Personally i don't see what you are moaning about.You still got through to the person you were trying to phone.It just so happened you got their answer machine.That isn't Bt's fault.

That's just saying if you phone someone on your mobile & you get their voicebox you shouldn't be charged for the call.

If anything get the person that you were trying to phone to refund you the 40p.

It really bugs me that people don't know how to use answer machines.

Most of the messages I get in my voicemail are the sound of someone hanging up. They then complain that they cannot get through to me.

Then there are the people that do speak, they say "hi, it's so and so, call me back when you get this." Why can't they say why they are calling? It doesn't take much and it means that I can be prepared to answer their questions or give them the info that they need, before I call them back.

rant over.

And why are you typing so weird? hitting the enter button half way through a sentence all the time?

i wondered that too. maybe he's using a mobile device with a 1" screen

anyway, i've often pondered about the amount of money that bt must make now that they've given practically everybody free call minder (1571) service!

As has been said, BT did their bit and connected you so it's fair enough that they charged you for it.

BTW, how come this is in this forum?