Using 0845 telephone numbers

Why Nationwide uses 0845 telephone numbers

Updated 17 July 2012: It’s not unusual for Nationwide to receive questions about our telephone service and why we use 0845 prefix numbers for our main customer contact lines.  It is very common to find organisations in both the private and public sectors choosing to use 0845 numbers.  We hope that the explanations given here will help to explain how our 0845 number use is intended to help members and boosts the service they receive. 

Why use a 0845 number?

The use of 0845 numbers allows Nationwide to manage calls in a way that means customers can usually speak to someone faster.  These numbers enable us to reroute calls if a local branch is closed, to give a more consistent service and to help control costs.  Many other organisations use 0845 numbers for the same reasons of customer service and manageability.

Does Nationwide benefit financially from using 0845 numbers? 

Nationwide does not use 0845 numbers to make money via ‘revenue sharing’ in the way that some utility companies and others have been criticised for doing in the past.  Most concern has centred around the widespread use by others of the 0870 number rather than the 0845 number.  While 0870 numbers can be expensive to call a 0845 number call is cheaper as it is charged at a low rate from any landline anywhere in the UK and is often entirely free to call.

Exactly how much does it cost a customer to call Nationwide using a 0845 number?

When calling a 0845 number from a landline most customers simply pay for the cost of a low rate call each time they contact Nationwide.  This is because the cost of a 0845 landline call is not geographically dependent and is exactly the same no matter where you are calling from in the UK, though this will vary depending on your calls service provider.  Nationwide believes this is fair as it means, for example, that if you are travelling around the UK or you live some distance from your local branch you will not pay higher call costs.

BT charges around 2p a minute during the daytime and less than 1p a minute during the evenings and at weekends.   But, importantly, many people who choose BT as their telephone provider get free 0845 calls as part of their package.  Customers on BT ‘Unlimited Anytime’ tariff can call 0845 numbers free of charge at any time of the day.  There is also an ‘Unlimited Weekend’ tariff giving free calls to 0845 numbers during the evening or at weekends and the Talk Talk ‘Essentials’ package also includes free calls to 0845 numbers. The cost of calls to 0845 if you use Sky or Virgin Media is higher at around 6p and 10p per minute.

Nationwide would always advise that customers who use mobile phones should check 0845 number costs with their service provider.  Although the higher costs are beyond our control there are consumer groups who remain active in their attempts to get the mobile phone companies to reduce their charges for calling 0845 numbers and the telephone regulator, OFCOM also has an interest.  We would welcome any reduction in call charges related to 0845 numbers from mobile phones on behalf of customers who choose to call Nationwide using a mobile phone rather than a landline.

Moving to 0800 numbers and making calls free for everyone would result in a very significant cost to the Society and its members.  Our research shows this would cost several million pounds to implement and millions more to maintain each year. As Nationwide is a mutual organisation such costs would ultimately be shared among all of Nationwide’s members, including those who never contact us by telephone.  Even then, mobile callers would still face a charge for calling a 0800 number, as most mobile operators charge in this way and do not recognise 0800 as free in the same way as landline operators do.

You can also apply for many of our products online, without the need of a phone call.

Where do I find the phone number of my local branch?