Aeromobile Charges

[jwarburton]

I have just come back from the states.  Whilst over there I enabled data roaming as I had looked up data roaming charages and was happy with the costs.  On the flight home for take off I turned my phone off.  Once we were airborne I noticed there was in flight wifi so I turned my phone on to subscribe to the service.   As soon as I turned my phone on my phone connected to the Aeromobile service which I wasnt even aware of there was such a thing, I got a text message to say I was going to be charged £6 per mb of data.  In the time it took me to enable wifi and connect and pay for the in flight wifi service the apps on my phone had done around 3mb of background data and it looks like I have been charged £18 for this.  

I'm not happy with this charge as it's not a service I was aware of or even wanted.  At these prices it should be an opt in service not automatic.  I am going to pick it up with vodafone in a few days when my full bill is ready as I cant talk to them before that time apparantly but has anyone else had a similar issue?

thanks 

Jon

[BandOfBrothers]

Hi @jwarburton

I would agree to talk with Vodafone Uk but they may say it’s up to the account holder to take note of any aireline connection T&C and any notices. 

Vodafones support pages on this are >How-much-will-it-cost-to-use-my-phone-when-flying-or-sailing-on-a-cruise-ship-or-a-ferry.

And to turn Off Mobile Data to ensure only a WiFi Connection occurs. 

Vodafone Uk understandably have no control to what a device connects to. 

[AnnS]

Hi @jwarburton

If you had turned off mobile data and data roaming or better still put your phone on offline in flight mode before boarding the plane, this would not have happened.  Unfortunately, as your phone was online, as soon as you turned on your phone, it would have connected to the available network, in this case the airlines own network.

This a a genuine valid charge, you connected to the airlines network.  You can ask Vodafone if they will drop the charge but they would be under no obligation.

On the going abroad pages, there is the following:

[jwarburton]

I was very careful on this trip.  I had roaming off while I was in the states and only enabled it when I needed it. I had reasearched the costs associated with roaming charges in the US before I went.  I had no idea that there was an option to use your phone on a plane.  I knew the plane had wifi but not a mobile network.  I dont think I am the only one in this position.  With the prices at £6 MB it shouldn't auto connect you or there should be more done around awareness of these charges.

[jeffkinn]

This type of issue comes up from time to time, usually involving cruise ships but airplanes will increasingly become an issue as well. 

Airlines are usually pretty good at advertising on board mobile and Wi-fi Services as are mobile networks with the charges those services will incur. Also it isn’t necessary to exit airplane mode to turn Wi-fi on. They can both be on at the same time. 

You are unlikely to get any joy from Vodafone and, although it’s worth a shot,  it really isn’t anyone’s fault than your own. 

[Getafix]

The only way you would have connected to a Network, is when you switched Off your phone last, you did not switch Off Mobile Roaming.

So when you switch the phone On next time, it automatically connects to Network and Data if available.

This is no different to say if you land in UAE and switch On your phone.
Same goes if you put phone in Flight Mode.

My advice would be anytime before switching Off the phone or putting it in Flight Mode, always switch Off Roaming Data.

Furthermore, if you were not aware of Mobile Network being available, you should have not switched on the phone on an Aircraft in Flight. It would have been mentioned in the Safety Briefing.

[jwarburton]

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Getafix wrote:

The only way you would have connected to a Network, is when you switched Off your phone last, you did not switch Off Mobile Roaming.

I didnt switch off roaming as the next country I was going to was the UK.

So when you switch the phone On next time, it automatically connects to Network and Data if available.

 I dont dispute that.  What I didnt realise is that there was a mobile network on the aircraft and you almost need to treat it like a seperate country for roaming. 

This is no different to say if you land in UAE and switch On your phone.

The difference being is that I know I was going to another country and would have made the decision about the roaming before I got there.  Just like on my way out to the US.  I didnt turn on roaming until the last half of my holiday when I knew I needed it.

My advice would be anytime before switching Off the phone or putting it in Flight Mode, always switch Off Roaming Data.

 Good advice.  But I shouldnt have to learn about the fact that I can roam onto networks on flights by making a mistake.  I should be informed about the service.  A text message to say you're on a new network and hey while you read this we are charging you is not sufficent warning.

Furthermore, if you were not aware of Mobile Network being available, you should have not switched on the phone on an Aircraft in Flight. It would have been mentioned in the Safety Briefing.

The Safety briefing told me to switch off my phone or put it in flight mode for take off and landing which I did.  It was only after that when I saw the offer of the inflight wifi that I powered it back on

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[donnyguy]

I think this thread is going round in circles, I can truly see why you're feeling a little bit stung by the charges. The networks available on planes and ships do know how to charge but I have to agree with the points being made around it being what it is.

The airline provides the mobile network. You switched on your phone and connected to it. I understand that you perhaps didn't realise it was there and that you'd manage to run up such a big bill in such a short time but I don't see what Vodafone could do differently here unless you're saying they should stop phones connecting to a foreign network without popping up a warning say are you sure you want to connect. This isn't going to happen. Your point about the plane being like a seperate country is kinda true. It is. The technology behind all this is no different than being in any country on any network, nothing is different - other than the charges.

So the lesson learnt here is keep your data roaming off until you're sure you're in a situation where you're happy to switch it on.... and then of course turn it off when you're done.

I've conncted to Aeromobile on a few occasions when flying but always with the data roaming switched off for exacly the reasons you describe - it's a total rip off. 

But let's be fair, on board wi-fi is definitely 'well charged' by most airlines and back in the day, you could make phone calls from the sky if you swiped your credit card, those calls were also charged at a premuim rate.

But back on point, I don't see what Vodafone could have done differently here.

We live and learn.