Survey highlights 118 errors

Some 118 numbers fared better than others

The Consumers' Association has said three quarters of new directory enquiries services were unable to answer simple enquiries correctly.

Researchers from the consumer watchdog, which publishes Which? magazine, called 16 directory enquiries services five times each.

They asked each one for three residential numbers - two with full addresses and one by area only - as well as two business numbers.

Four got all five queries right, but the worst service - Cable & Wireless Quickcall - supplied just one correct number out of five despite charging a flat rate of 35p.

The most expensive service, with an average cost of 65p - answered just two numbers fully.

Confusion

In August, BT's 192 directory enquiry service stopped giving out numbers after 46 years of service.

It was replaced by a wide range of competing directory enquiry services - all beginning with the digits 118.

We believe this survey to be unrepresentative of the high quality of service Cable & Wireless spokesman

Helen Parker, editor of Which?, said getting through to some services was as hard as getting the right number.

"Remembering what number to dial for directory enquiries is the least of your problems when it comes to using the new 118 services.

"Only a quarter of the services we contacted were able to answer all five of our queries correctly. Problems ranged from being given a wrong number to no number at all and we were even cut off.

"This often poor service didn't come cheap, with call costs ranging from 20p to £1.10."

Winners and losers

The four better services were One, Orange, the Number and Share, according to Which?.

A spokesman for Cable & Wireless Quickcall, the worst service according to its research, was critical of the survey's sample size.

"Whilst we recognise the Consumer Association's important role as our consumer guardian, we believe this survey to be unrepresentative of the high quality of service and levels of accuracy that we have achieved consistently in our 17 years as a provider of directory enquiries services."

It added that an independent study in the summer, using a sample of 400 calls, showed that it's service was 94% accurate.