- Brits will spend 15 million minutes calling loved ones abroad on Christmas Day
- TalkTalk’s international calls package available for just £2.99 per month
- UK phone users could save £2.3m by using TalkTalk’s deal
British families will spend 15 million minutes phoning loved ones overseas this Christmas Day*, according to analysis from phone and broadband company TalkTalk.
The company’s research shows that the most popular country to call at Christmas is Australia, followed by the USA and Canada. Apart from New Zealand, which is the joint-ninth most popular country to call, all the other countries in the top 10 are in Europe.
Countries with traditionally large British expat populations, such as France, Spain and Portugal, are expected to receive a high number of calls, along with Germany, where many members of the armed forces are still based. Ireland and Poland, two countries with large immigrant populations in the UK, are also in the international calling top 10.
A survey of TalkTalk customers who regularly call overseas** found that 35% of them will make more international calls over Christmas than normal, as they ring friends and family to celebrate. More than a quarter (26%) say they make international calls once a week or more, regardless of the time of the year.
And while 43% of those surveyed said they will make their international calls on Christmas Day, 25% will ring on Christmas Eve and another 23% on Boxing Day.
Siblings are the most frequent recipients of a call from home, with 53% of people surveyed calling overseas doing so to catch up with their brother or sister. More people said they would be calling friends overseas at Christmas (35%) than children (33%) or parents (18%).
Meanwhile TalkTalk’s research found that, if every UK phone customer used TalkTalk’s international call boost this Christmas, phone users could save an estimated £2.3m.***
According to the TalkTalk survey the most popular countries to call this Christmas are:
Country Percentage of TalkTalk customers surveyed who will be calling friends or family there this Christmas 1 Australia 39% 2 USA 35% 3 Canada 18% 4 Ireland 14% 5 Spain 12% 6 Germany 8%= 7 France 6%= 7 Portugal 6%= 9 New Zealand 4%=9 Poland4%
Tristia Clarke, commercial director at TalkTalk, said: “Christmas is traditionally the peak time for international calls – for some people it’s one of the only times they catch up with their friends and family around the world, while for others it’s a time to share family news and have an extended gossip. That’s why we’ve created an international calls boost for £2.99 a month, allowing people to call 36 countries for as long as they want for an incredibly low, flat price.”
* Based on data of the total length of international calls made by TalkTalk customers and on TalkTalk’s share on the UK phone market.
** Survey of customers signed up to TalkTalk’s international calls boost.
*** Based on average cost of a call per minute to top 10 international destinations compared to cost of TalkTalk’s international calls boost for 15m minutes of calls.
TalkTalk’s international calls boost provides unlimited calls to 36 international destinations, anytime, for £2.99 per month, along with discounts of up to 95% on call charges to all other international destinations.