Telstra is moving to ease bill shock with a total charge cap of $130 for voice calls to standard Australian numbers, but only for customers signing or re-signing up for a new Everyday Connect plan.
The cap means that if you are on a $60 plan and you exceed your voice call allowance, the highest you will be charged will be another $70 on top of your monthly charge - if you're on an $100 plan, you'll only be charged an extra $30 that month.
Of course if you are on the $130 tier, this cap doesn't really matter as the plan offers unlimited voice calls anyway.
But you should note, as we mention above, Telstra says that this is for "new and existing customers taking up a new Every Day Connect plan".
Getting in line
Telstra new cap for voice calls puts the telco more in line with both Vodafone and Optus, making its plans more competitive.
Optus My Plans offer monthly price jumps of $5 or $10 to a higher plan tier if a customer goes beyond their minutes allowance for calls - same for data. Vodafone on the other hand offers free voice calls to standard numbers all of its three Red plans.
"The safety net was introduced recently and is designed to protect customers from unexpected charges because you told us cost certainty is really important," Scott McGibbony said on Telstra's Exchange blog.
Telstra also recently reduced and simplified its international roaming charges.
"We know our work's not done and we're constantly looking for new ways we can better care for our customers," McGibbony added, alluding that more changes might be on the way.
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