Calling a Satellite Phone from Vodafone Mobile

[JustMeJezza]

Hello,

I've asked Vodafone how much it would cost to call an Iridium/Telnor Maritime Satellite phone from my Vodafone Pay Monthly phone - that's a phone number beginning "00 870". For avoidance of doubt, that's 00870, not 0870 - it's not a UK number, and it's not listed anywhere on the Vodafone site for 'calling abroad from the UK' as far as I can see. Examples of such numbers are listed here: https://allthingscruise.com/cruising-friends/contact-a-cruise-ship/cunard-line-ltd-contact-a-ship/ 

I would also appreciate the same information for calling an Inmarsat Satellite phone.

I've had two very different answers from Vodafone - neither of which I think is correct.

This was raised 8 years ago here: https://forum.vodafone.co.uk/t5/Archive/Voice-Calling-Satellite-Phones/td-p/414851 but I assume that this answer has changed over the years. 

Could you please advise me ASAP?

[SimonWilding]

Firstly, that first link is "dead" and just goes to a holding page.

The 00 at the start of the number signifies you are caling an overseas number - 00 is the access code for calling an overseas number. Vodafone's maximum charge for calling an oversea's number is £2.00 per min as below:

International Europe Zone £1.50 per minute

The Rest of the World £2.00 per minute

 https://www.vodafone.co.uk/cs/groups/configfiles/documents/document/vfcon072758.pdf

[JustMeJezza]

The link to the old forum post is still working for me and for my friends, and these numbers are charged differently to geographical international numbers by all the other networks, including landline operators.

These are not standard international calls, they are calls to satellite phones. Inmarsat is not a country, they are a Satellite phone operator, the same goes for Iridium. They both have their own, unique international dialing codes. 

If you're sure that they're charged as international calls and capped at £2 per minute, Vodafone are massively undercutting every other network out there.

[SimonWilding]

Hi,

it's the link to the cruise site that isn't working, not the forum (I did say it was the first link)

While I know that satellite phones are "not a country" from memory they are classed as overseas calls because of the 00 access code at the start of the number. I'm also sure that, while it is more expensive to call a satellite phone than an overseas landline number, it is the account holder of the satellite phone that pays the extra in the same way that if you are abroad in a nonEU country and someone calls you, they pay the standard call charge and you pay the difference.

I am taking from memory and maybe things have changed, but i'm pretty sure that's correct but the VF website is pretty useless on the subject!

[SimonWilding]

OK this may help

https://www.vodafone.co.uk/explore/costs/travelling-abroad/

using this link select maritime (cruise, ferry ship) as your country of origin this confirms that using your mobile on the ships satellite network will cost you :

Make a call	£2.40 a minute
Receive a call	£1.80 a minute

to phone the UK.

I can't imagine calling the same network from the UK will be much different......

[JustMeJezza]

Oh... I'm really sorry for not reading your reply as carefully as I should have, and I appreciate your response. You're right that the VF site is rather rubbish on this.

Having used them myself, I can say with confidence that from my experience the satellite phone user (recipient) doesn't normally pay for incoming calls beyond a very small charge ($0.25ish USD per minute). EE charge £5 per minute for these calls, and BT charge between £4 and £6 per minute depending on the contract from a landline. O2 seems to also charge either £4.20 or £5 per minute depending on the contract.

This is why I am somewhat doubtful as to the £2 per minute cap. 

Vodafone online support chat agent insisted it's £0.55 per minute despite explaining again and again that it's 00870 not 0870, and that it's a satellite phone, not a domestic or geographical call.

I do appreciate your help with this nonetheless. 

[SimonWilding]

No worries, hope you get it sorted!