Avoid high phone bills after holidays in Lesbos

Telephone network

If you are in Lesbos, your telephone can automatically connect to a Turkish mobile network. That happens if the Turkish network is better and more stable than the Greek network. Your mobile telephone then automatically selects the best network. 

Costs

Turkey is not part of the EU, so other rules apply for calling and using the internet than in the EU. If your telephone automatically connects to a Turkish network, you will pay extra for the use of mobile data. You then arrive home to the receipt of a high telephone bill. 

Tips

Avoid high telephone costs with our 6 tips: 

• Set a data limit. You will receive a notification if you go over your data limit.  
• Choose the network to which your phone can connect. That way you can be sure you are using your normal internet and call allowance.
• Check with your telephone provider to see if telephone networks from outside the EU can be blocked. Some providers offer this service.
• Adjust the internet settings for streaming services, for example. Opt to allow the apps that use a high volume of data to work via WiFi only.
• Switch off all automatic updates.
• Do you want to use a network outside the European Union after all? Be sure to purchase a data bundle for mobile internet and calls from your provider. These bundles are cheaper than individual mobile packages.

Protection

Telephone providers must protect you from unexpected high telephone bills. As soon as you use a high volume of data in a place where this is (very) expensive, the provider automatically blocks use of data. You will receive a text message from your telephone provider. You can undo the block by sending a text message back. This is called bill shock protection. 

Note: foreign providers do not always pass your data usage on to the Dutch provider. In such cases, your mobile telephone provider cannot warn you of a high bill. 

Complaint

Have you received a high telephone bill from a foreign country? And do you think your bill is incorrect? Then let the telephone provider know you do not agree with the bill. If the telephone provider does not act on your report, then contact the Dutch Foundation for Consumer Complaints Boards. The foundation's website explains how to lodge a complaint.