Virgin Media and O2 have announced that their customers will not face roaming charges when they travel abroad to countries in the European Union.
Virgin Media O2 has announced that customers on either network will not have to face roaming charges if they use data, calls, or texts while they are in the EU.
Following Brexit, there have been concerns that all British networks would reintroduce extra fees, as indeed several have already announced plans to do; Vodafone intend to reintroduce roaming charges by the end of January 2022, EE in March, and Three in May. Each of these networks will offer passes of a certain duration so that customers may escape the highest of surcharges, but an extra fee of some sort will be unavoidable.
However, the news of Virgin Media O2’s commitment will surely be welcomed by frequent travellers to the continent, and gives them a significant advantage over the competition.
The company’s decision was praised by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the following tweet:
I welcome the decision by @VirginMedia and @O2 to keep roaming free, meaning UK citizens can still use their mobile data, calls and texts across Europe with no extra charges. https://t.co/HSsN7pXRtv
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 10, 2022
Gareth Turpin, CCO of Mobile at VMO2, said (to the Telegraph): “With Covid still scuppering plans and disrupting day to day routines for so many, we’re starting the year by giving our customers some certainty: we will not be reintroducing roaming fees in Europe. Across both O2 and Virgin Mobile we’re maintaining our inclusive roaming so that our customers can travel to destinations all over Europe and use their data, calls and texts just as they would in the UK.”
We await to see whether this significant announcement will change the plans of other UK networks, or whether Virgin Media O2 can bring in new customers thanks to this attractive term of service.
