Virgin (1300 768 103) have responded to customer feedback over their high excess data usage rates, and reduced them.
Click here for the best mobile cap plans.
Previously, once you had exceeded your data limit for the month, Virgin would charge $2.00 per MB, making it very easy to quickly rack up a huge bill. Depending upon a customer's personal settings in their account, they may not receive alerts letting them know that they'd gone over their usage for the month. The result? Customers might not notice that they'd gone over their limit until their monthly bill arrived – with a fee, at Virgin's old rates, of $2000 per GB.
Thankfully, these days are over now: Virgin have reduced their excess usage rates to 20.5c per MB.
A spokesperson for Virgin said: "We acknowledge that excess data can be really stressful and as a result we think it's only fair to lower our excess data rates to reflect the increasing use of smartphones in Australia."
This will be welcome news for customers who have wanted to sign up with some of Virgin's great plans but been scared off by that excess data rate. To get you started, here we take a look at some of Virgin's best plans:
The Virgin Post-Paid Fair Go $29 Plan is great for a light user, offering a slim $190 worth of included value for texts and calls and 250MB of data, along with free voicemail in Australia and free calls and text messages to other Virgin numbers. Notably, this plan is one of the few in Australia that allows you to rollover unused call and text credit to the next month. You can also get a great range of phones on this plan, including the favourite LG Optimus 3D for no extra handset cost per month.
On the other end of the scale, if you're a heavy user, the Virgin Post-Paid Topless $89 Plan is the one for you. Offering unlimited calls and text messages, free voicemail, cheap international rates to certain countries, and a whopping 4GB of data, the Topless is Virgin's unlimited plan and it more than covers your needs. As you would expect, there are a great range of phones on this plan – we recommend the brand new HTC One X for no extra handset cost.
Click here to read a review of the HTC One X.
If you're more of a mid-range user, someone who uses your phone for lots of texting, medium amounts of surfing but mostly on social networking sites like Facebook, and the occasional call, check out the Virgin Post-Paid Fair Go $49 Plan. It includes $400 of included value for calls, unlimited text messages, 2GB of data, and free voicemail in Australia. Like the $29 plan, it allows you to roll over your unused credit from month to month. There are some great phones on this plan, including the Apple iPhone, but we particularly recommend the Nokia Lumia 800 for no extra handset cost.
To sign up for any of these plans, or to find out more, call Virgin on 1300 768 103.
There is, however, a cloud in this silver lining: excess data rates are reduced, but not abolished. And they're still quite hefty – in this hypothetical, if a Virgin customer went 1GB over their data usage for the month, they'd be paying $200 for it – still a substantial amount, and one that the TIO is less likely to step in and intervene with as opposed to that initial $2000 figure.
Click here for information on avoiding bill shock.
Excess data rates are, unfortunately, the devilish details that you're going to run into with just about every plan, and Virgin have undercut a lot of rival providers with this fee; TPG and Telstra both charge 25 cents per MB, and Optus and Dodo charge 50 cents per megabyte. Virgin have definitely made an effort to put themselves at the bottom of the game, and sometimes that's the best you're going to get. Keep an eye on your usage, make sure that you have alerts set up, and hopefully you'll be fine enjoying some of Virgin's great low cost plans.
If you're really concerned about excess data rates, we recommend Amaysim, who have the lowest rates in the business.
The Amaysim Unlimited Plan, for $39.90 per month, gives you unlimited calls and texts, including to 13/1800 numbers, along with 4GB of data. If by chance you go over that data, Amaysim will only charge you at a rate of 5 cents per MB. The plan is also available on a 0-month contract, and allows you to port over an old mobile number. Call Amaysim today on 1300 302 942.
If you have any further questions or are worried about finding the best plan for your mobile, feel free to give us a call on 1300 850 518.