Which? magazine has produced a list of 30 companies and organisations it found to be using high-rate numbers such as 0870 and 0845, including the DVLA which apparently made £3.4 million last year from punters calling in.

The list includes Tiscali, Barclays Bank, British Gas and the TV Licensing authority as well as the DVLA. They are all using 0871, 0870, 0844 and 0845 numbers and taking a percentage of the termination fee callers have to pay, which can add up to a nice little earner over time.

Last year Ofcom introduced "03" numbers to address this problem, and Which? is trying to shame the companies involved into changing their numbers to 03, or normal geographic codes. The DVLA told Which? it's planning to fall in line like really soon or right after it's had its tea, but when the existing number is bringing in several mill a year, it must be hard to make that a priority.

Companies claim it's up to customers if they want to call them, though it's hard to imagine anyone deciding to phone the DVLA on a whim, and many will assume the calls are included in the bundles. Services like SayNoTo0870 try to provide geographical numbers for companies, but as the amount taken from each individual is small, not a lot of people bother.

It is an underhand way to make money, though, and we can only applaud Which? and wish them luck. ®

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