Newcastle upon Tyne residents waste over £6.6 million on mobile phone deals

If you're busy planning your wedding then no doubt budgeting is currently one of your top priorities. That's why we HAD to share these worrying statistics, which show just how much Newcastle upon Tyne couples are wasting on the wrong mobile phone deal.

Whether you are basing your mobile phone contract on the latest Apple product to hit the market, or the offer on a blackboard outside a phone shop, you appear to be overspending.

As a nation we are throwing away a whopping £1.55 billion per year by choosing the wrong deal. Mobile comparison site HandsetExpert analysed 4.7 million deals to identify when customers would be better off forgoing a Pay Monthly deal and buying a handset and SIM separately.

Of the 51.7 million adults in the UK, 78% own a smartphone, and when you break that down to the 23 million 18-44 year olds in the country, the figure goes up to 91%. In Newcastle upon Tyne, contracted mobile phone users are kissing goodbye to a not insignificant £6,674,334.

HandsetExpert's research showed that British mobile users would be better off, 65% of the time, choosing a SIM Only deal and buying their handsets separately, rather than buying the phone and contract together on a Pay Monthly deal.

On average in the UK, buying a contract with a smartphone is £92 more expensive than buying them separately. Doing so is usually the much cheaper option, but it takes a little more time and money upfront than buying a bundle.

Over half of Brits would benefit from making the effort it seems, as the research revealed that 57% of those with a phone contract are on the wrong deal.

"The number of mobile phone deals has shot up over the years, which makes it even harder to find the right one," says Dr Shahrum Gilani, who founded HandsetExpert. "While having lots of choice is generally good, it shouldn't be used as a way to divert customers away from the best price and deals. Our research shows that customers are still paying over the odds on their mobile phone bills.”

For more info visit www.handsetexpert.com