Holiday makers rack up mobile phone bills, and risk getting into debt, whilst in the sun

There was a time, believe it or not, when we didn’t have mobile phones. Even stranger, a time without Facebook. And, although you might not remember it, a time when going on holiday meant the only contact you had with the outside world was a quick call from a telephone box which gobbled up all your foreign currency.

Oh how times have changed.

It now seems our addiction to keeping track of the gossip back home is costing hundreds if not thousands of pounds to UK holidaymakers who have their mobile phones attached to their…well…everything. An unexpected debt like this is the last thing anybody wants when they return home from their holidays!

According to Uswitch, 1.3 million holidaymakers are currently at risk of being charged just for turning their mobiles on when being abroad – never mind the charges they’ll get when they start using it! The research also confirmed a whopping 22 million people take their mobiles on holiday with them and of that number, nearly 70% won’t even bother to check the costs they might incur when using their phones on their travels….they’ll just wait until the bill arrives when they get home…..genius ;)

Despite new regulations for mobile phone use in European holiday destinations, which have capped the maximum charge at 32p per minute and enforced a £41.50 cap for data roaming costs, any additional expenses like this can badly affect anyone living on a strict budget.

Our view? Well – it’s all very nice seeing the updates our friends post from their iphones and blackberry’s on Facebook – but at what cost? And is it really vital to be calling and texting home at such high costs when in the good old days, a post card and a phone box used to do just fine?

Take out poll and let us know if this year you’ll be taking your phone on holiday with you? Or, are you going cold turkey in the sun?

Why not read our blog post about people who get into debt for the sake of their holidays abroad.