An Oftel benchmarking study on mobile services has shown that UK pre-pay mobile users pay considerably more than European consumers to use their mobiles abroad.

The study, published in November, shows that UK prices for international roaming on pre-pay phones are much higher than, and in some cases double, those in France, Germany, Sweden or Italy. In the UK, 77% of customers choose pre-pay phones.

Oftel sees no clear reason for these high charges, and will be working with the European Commission on a cross-border project to bring down roaming charges across Europe.

A further problem is that consumers, according to Oftel research, are not aware of the high price of roaming. Tariff structures are also unfamiliar, for example, the fact that customers may have to pay up to £1.50 a minute to receive calls while they are abroad.

Oftel has encouraged operators and retailers to ensure that the tariff information they provide is clear and accurate, and has also published guidance to consumers planning to use their mobiles abroad in order to help them save money.

Prices for roaming for contract customers, however, compare well at a European level. In general - for services other than roaming - UK consumers continue to get a good deal.

For further information on the benchmarking report contact Sarah Evans (tel: 020 7634 5320/e-mail: sarah.evans@oftel.gov.uk).