o2 My Europe Extra - Incoming charges for voicemails?
 

Though I should not be charged for ANY incoming calls, I have just been going through a stash of my bills and have realised I have always been getting charged for incoming voicemails (when my phone is off). This is even though I am in a normal o2 roaming partner country. If my phone had been on I would not pay to receive.

Has anyone else who has used o2 MyEurope Extra had similar experiences? I have queried this with o2 CS here in the UK, who didn't know a thing, but have finally concluded that these calls must be chargeable though they cannot prove this to me as being part of any of the terms and conditions. They are trying... but I am fighting it!

Can anyone advise?

p.s. http://www.o2international.co.uk/ter...gmyeuropeextra

Update: Just been told that a voicemail is not classed as 'incoming' but instead as 'outgoing' as it is a rediversion from the handset to the mailbox. Makes sense, and I know that's what it technically is doing... but then why am I not charged for incoming voicemails when I am in my 'home' zone?

Does anyone who uses VM and has free incoming calls on any of the of the frequently discussed Travel SIMs discussed here get charged for incoming voicemails?

Well charges for voice boxes are maybe older than GSM :lol:

Anyway, usually you're charged when the voice box is ON for busy or unreachable calls... so when you're busy or unreachable and you are abroad your line will call from another network (and roaming) the system of your voice box... if you switch off correctly the phone you won't pay anything

Just as an update to this. I have spoken to numerous people in Customer Services (including "supervisors") who have all assured me that incoming Voicemails are always charged. I have time and time again asked them to show me where in T's and C's it states this or at least to send this to me in writing, which they have not been able to do. In the end I just gave up even though my voicemail charges since starting the contract are substantial.

After a bit of casual browsing on the UK o2 site today I came across a page which is a summary page of rates for a particular country that I was visiting (Spain). To my suprise I see it clearly states "Receiving a Voicemail call" is FREE with o2 MyEurope Extra! http://www.o2international.co.uk/Sho...2&UsageLevel=2

Anyhow to cut a long story short, this is now being investigated by the same team who told me I would be charged and I am getting all of my Voicemail costs reimbursed. If anyone else is in a similar situation and using any of the o2 MyEuropeExtra schemes from any participating country I would advise you to do the same!

o2 myEurope Extra is really interesting... anyway i think that they told you that pay everytime to evoid extra cases... :D if you switch off correctly your phone when you're abroad you won't have any charge for the message

I would be shocked if the voice path to the voicemail box was actually home country to roaming country back to home country voicemail. It makes more sense that if there is no answer/busy in the roaming country, the call path from the home country to the roaming country is terminated, and the call simply goes directly to the home country voicemail without being routed through the roaming country.

This whole thing is getting very complicated as 1 month later I have not been refunded and initially they were again refusing to do so. I have again just spent 40 mins on the phone to them. To cut a very long story short, they state that they have very very few MyEurope Extra customers and that so far nobody else has complained about the voicemail charge. They have now advised me that from now on I will get charged but have FINALLY (reluctantly) agreed to refund me GBP40 as a refund for all the voicemail calls I have received whilst roaming (though I have absolutely no idea whether this is a realistic amount... and cannot be bothered to check!). Though they are stressing that this is not a "refund" but a "goodwill gesture".

Ronwi to get back to your point... this voicemail trigger is just what I have been arguing with them about! Unfortunately if the last GSM registration was abroad it will always seek you there first there and then have to be diverted back to your VM box. Allegedly the only way to do this free would be have a VM box in every country you are visiting, though they cannot do this for practical reasons. All a bit of a mess really.

How they have been arguing it with me is that though receiving a voicemail call is listed in their info pages as FREE (see the screen shot) it is the outgoing part of it (which always exists) that is charged. I told them they need to sort out the website! Don't you guys think the website is clear in saying receiving Voicemail is FREE (i.e no matter how they define that?)

I'm on O2 and when abroad, I set my phone to divert all calls to voicemail and I'm not charged for this.

Actually it is as you fear. if you have set up a conditional diversion to your mailbox, your home network (rather the HLR) will forwared incoming calls to the roaming network and only there it can be determined, if you're available or not. If you're registered the call is being connected and your phone rings (single roaming charges apply), if not the call is reforwarded to your home network (doube roaming charges apply) again.
You can evade this only by setting up a permanent diversion, so if you can't abandon your mailbox, just set up a permanent division to it, before you switch off your phone.
Btw to delete all diversions enter ##002# and pick up.

or switch the voicemail off completely

1760 off; 1750 on; 1710 does Call Alert instead

(I don't know if these work abroad, but I'd do it earlier)