These days it’s essential for children to have a mobile phone. You need to know that you can get in touch with them when you need to, particularly in the event of an emergency. If there is an emergency when your child is at school, you probably won’t ring the school. Instead, you’ll go straight to their mobile. The issue here is that means your child has control of a device that can rack up a massive bill. There have been reports of parents being faced with bills worth hundreds and that’s what you need to avoid. Here are some of the ways you can prevent ‘bill shock’ from your kid’s phone.
Pay As You Go
This might be the best option because that way you will be in complete control of how much is being spent on the mobile phone each month. While anyone can top up, if your child does decide to add more to your phone, they’ll have to either ask you or use their own money. It saves you from getting a massive unexpected bill. If there is no money on the phone, it can not be used which saves you from a costly headache. However, the disadvantage of this is that if the money runs out, they won’t be able to use it when they need to. That’s why it’s best to compare different pay as you go SIM Only Deals from Your Phone Reviews to find the right one for you. Ultimately, you need to make sure that your child has the right number of minutes, texts and data that they need through the month.
Unlimited Plans
If you do have an issue with an expensive phone bill, it’s likely due to the fact that you are on a pay monthly contract. There are plenty of advantages to this type of contract. For instance, you can typically upgrade your phone when a new model comes out without needing to pay the full price of the handset. However, this is where the big bill comes from. With a pay monthly contract, you’ll pay for how much you want to spend per month, but there is often nothing stopping your child going over this in either data, calls or texts. To make matters worse, once you exceed your limit, you can expect the cost to be substantial and not at all budget friendly.
The solution to this would be an unlimited plan. With an unlimited plan, you can get unlimited calls, texts, and data. Attempting to get all three on a pay monthly plan will cost a lot of money, but at least you’ll know exactly how much you’re paying each month.
Parental Locks
You might want to look at the possibility of setting up a parental lock on the phone. Some phones allow you to do this through settings while for others you will need to contact the provider. One reason to get parental locks set up would be to avoid in-app purchase charges. This is one of the main causes of ‘bill shock’ for parents because remember, apps can cost a lot too. Some apps allow you to make purchases in a game or application without inputting payment info each time. Instead, the cost just gets added to your monthly bill, and these purchases can come with massive price tags. With a parent lock, you can block this possibility.
Some providers will also allow you to cap the amount that you can go over a pay monthly contract. While children will still be able to go over their monthly bill, the level which they can exceed will be greatly restricted.
Monitoring Solutions
You can also check whether providers offer monitoring solutions for bills. Some providers have apps that can be downloaded to the phone. Your child can use this to monitor their level of data, texts or calls to make sure that they do not go over the amount provided on their contract. Alternatively, it’s possible that you can also get a report delivered straight to your email. This can tell you how much data or minutes your child is using over a set period of time or what apps they have downloaded. The benefit here is that you will be able to correct situations before they get out of control and make sure that you don’t have to worry about a massive bill. Bear in mind these reports can also provide information on what sites your child has accessed through their phone, and this can also be useful.
We hope you find this information helpful and that you can avoid the dreaded bill shock that can arrive when you trust your child with a mobile phone.
