With dozens of landline telephone providers, it has never been easier to shop around to get the best deal on your home telephone.
However, many of the leading providers require you to commit to a contract when you agree to a deal.
It’s not unusual to have to sign up for a minimum of 12 months if you want to benefit from a low cost phone package.
So, if you want the flexibility to change your landline provider or review your deal regularly, no contract phone line deals might be for you.
What are no contract home phone plans?
When you sign up for a home landline phone deal, many of the leading providers require you to sign a contract for their service. This means that you have to remain with the same provider on that package for a set period - typically 12 months.
A no contract landline phone service allows you to benefit from both line rental and a call package without having to commit to a lengthy contract.
No contract phone plans are typically arranged on a rolling basis so you only have commit to a deal month by month. They are useful if you don’t want to commit to a long deal or you just need a landline for a temporary period.
What should you look for in the best no contract home phone service?
There are a number of factors that you should take into account when choosing a no contract landline phone service.
Firstly, you should compare the cost of the line rental and package.
Some no contract phone plans have a flat monthly fee for line rental and include a certain amount of 'free calls'.
So, for instance, you might take out a weekend, evening or international calls deal and pay a flat fee for your monthly usage (although you'll still be liable for calls you make outside of this).
Other no contract phone line deals charge a separate fee for the line rental and you will be charged extra for any calls you make on top.
While comparing both the calls included in the call package, and the cost of both line rental and inclusive calls is paramount, you should also compare the call charges that will be levied for calls that aren't included.
These are normally broken down into four main categories:
- Day (local & national)
- Evening (local & national)
- Weekend (local & national)
- International
An anytime call package will generally include a certain amount of free calls whatever time of the day you call, whereas an evening and weekend call package will just include free calls to UK landline numbers after a certain time in the evening, and over the weekend.
Beware that the cheapest no contract landline deals may not offer any inclusive or 'free' calls. However, if a short term contract is what's important to you then simply look for the provider that charges least for the type of calls you're going to make (whether this is as part of a package or a standalone line rental home phone deal).
When you're making your comparison always factor in the combined cost of line rental, call packages and the calls you're likely to make before you choose a deal as this is the easiest way to find the most economical option.
