Vodafone and EE is delaying the reintroduction of EU roaming costs

The reintroduction of roaming charges in Europe has been postponed by three weeks by Vodafone.

The phone company had intended to implement post-Brexit roaming fees on January 6, 2022, in line with other networks.

However, it stated that further testing time was required, and that the modification will now take effect by the end of January.

EE has also postponed its roaming costs, which were supposed to start in January, until March.

Before the UK left the EU, consumers could use their mobile plans’ calls, messages, and data allowances in any EU country. However, the December 2020 EU trade deal offered mobile carriers the option of restoring charges.

The Three network has also stated that it will introduce roaming costs between the United Kingdom and Europe, albeit this is not expected to happen until May 2022.

As a result, only O2 has yet to announce plans to reintroduce roaming fees among the major mobile networks.

Vodafone stated that it was not ready to implement the new system, which was the cause for the delay.

“We have pushed back the introduction of roaming charges to the end of January, giving time for further testing to ensure the best possible experience for customers purchasing our £1 per day bundles. Until then, customers will continue to be able to roam without charges.”

Vodafone’s best price is £1 per day, but only when purchased in an eight- or 15-day bundle. The usual scheduled rate is £2 per day, which matches the anticipated pricing of EE and Three.

Unspecified technical delays, according to EE, triggered the change in plans.

“Making big changes to billing systems in mobile phone networks is always risky,” said Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight and founder of the Mobile Phone Museum.

“The backlash and negative publicity for any network operator that does not get it right would be immense if a customer ended up with an eye-watering roaming bill.

“Given the current Covid situation it’s not like lots of people are travelling, so the operators are not going to be massively exposed on unexpected roaming costs.”