<p>
	The axing of subsidy will hit 400,000, including the most vulnerable, but there are options, writes Aideen Sheehan</p>
<p>
	Almost 400,000 people are facing a massive hike in their phone bills this January after the Government decided to axe the free phone allowance.</p>
<p>
	Pensioners and carers had been getting a &euro;9.50 a month subsidy towards the costs of keeping in touch -- so their annual bills will soar by &euro;114 a year.</p>
<p>
	Organisations representing the elderly have reported a flood of calls from people worried about the hike in costs they face.</p>
<p>
	Active Retirement Ireland (ARI) says it has received many calls from worried pensioners and urged them to shop around and register their dissatisfaction with their local politicians.</p>
<p>
	While some were considering giving up their landline altogether in favour of a mobile to reduce costs, they should consider very carefully whether that would work, says ARI spokesman Peter Kavanagh.</p>
<p>
	&quot;We&#39;d love to be able to recommend that they rely on mobiles instead, but poor coverage in some areas and a need for landlines to operate most Senior Alert alarms mean that they&#39;re not an option for everyone,&quot; he says.</p>
<p>
	Age Action Ireland says many people were extremely worried about the impact of the cut on already tight budgets.</p>
<p>
	Spokesman Eamon Timmins urges adult children to assist their parents with shopping around as the plethora of offers and deals bundled with broadband and/or TV services made it highly confusing.</p>
<p>
	&quot;The reality is many elderly people aren&#39;t online which makes it a lot harder to shop around,&quot; he says.</p>
<p>
	Smart Consumer looked at some of the options for elderly people looking to minimise their costs while staying in touch with family, friends, and -- just in case -- emergency services.</p>
<p>
	Callcosts.ie</p>
<p>
	The regulator Comreg has a website which allows you compare the cost of different phone and phone/broadband services including many smaller providers.</p>
<p>
	Eircom</p>
<p>
	Eircom has a quarter of a million customers on the free phone allowance who will lose out but it does have cheaper packages available.</p>
<p>
	The company says its cheapest deal for &quot;vulnerable&quot; customers -- ie those on the free phone allowance who don&#39;t make many calls -- is Talktime Control which costs &euro;19.50 per month including &euro;5 worth of free calls.</p>
<p>
	However, the regulator Comreg puts a cap of 25,000 subscribers on this offer -- already 22,000 people have taken up the offer.</p>
<p>
	Its best mainstream package is Eircom Talk Weekend for &euro;25 a month, which includes 6,000 minutes of weekend local and national calls. Eircom says that, in general, this was better value than Talktime Control for anyone making more than an hour&#39;s worth of calls a month.</p>
<p>
	It also offers a bundled service of landline, broadband and mobile for &euro;45 a month which includes 150 minutes of mobile calls to any network and 150 texts. Customers can also avail of a new TV service offering around 30 channels for &euro;10 per month.</p>
<p>
	Digiweb</p>
<p>
	Digiweb has said it will give elderly people about to lose their phone allowance a free credit for the same amount of &euro;9.50 per month or &euro;114 a year if they switch to them.</p>
<p>
	The phone and broadband firm has a network covering around half a million phones in Cork, Donegal, Sligo, Dublin, Galway, Laois, Louth, Limerick and Waterford.</p>
<p>
	Digiweb&#39;s Talk Off-Peak package, which includes calls to all national, local, and UK fixed lines in the evenings and weekends, costs &euro;29.47 a month, while their Talk Anytime package with the same free calls available 24/7 is &euro;35.57, but pensioners would get &euro;9.50 a month off these.</p>
<p>
	The switch can be carried out remotely and you can call them at 1800 285828 to find out if your line is covered.</p>
<p>
	UPC</p>
<p>
	UPC offers phones for as little as &euro;6.50 per month -- but you have to have a TV or broadband contract with them to avail of it.</p>
<p>
	Their cheapest monthly deal is &euro;6.50, which is the basic cost before you make any calls, or you could opt for the Anywhere 100 package for &euro;14 a month which includes 100 minutes to landlines, mobiles or selected international destinations or Anywhere 200 which includes 200 minutes for &euro;19 a month.</p>
<p>
	UPC also offers broadband and phone packages from &euro;37 a month including free offpeak calls and 400 minutes of international calls.</p>
<p>
	Its TV, broadband and phone packages start from &euro;53 a month, though new customers can get a six-month introductory price of &euro;50 a month.</p>
<p>
	********************</p>
<p>
	Alarm Services</p>
<p>
	One concern about the phone allowance cut is that it will make it difficult for those relying on an emergency alarm service operated via their landline.</p>
<p>
	Irish company Tunstall Emergency Response says it has a new emergency alert system that works via a mobile phone.</p>
<p>
	This allows people to carry an alarm around their neck which uses a SIM rather than a landline to call for help in the case of an emergency.</p>
<p>
	This Lifeline Dual mobile system costs &euro;246 per year compared to &euro;344 for their landline system.</p>
<p>
	http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/latest-news/calling-all-those-losing-the-free-phone-allowance-shop-around-29790607.html</p>
