Three’s cheap mobile tariff gives unlimited data for £12 a month: How to save on your phone bill

Retirees and benefits claimants now have greater choice of cheap mobile phone deals with a new ‘social tariff’ from Three. 

Social tariffs are little-known cheap mobile phone deals that exist because, since 2020, industry regulator Ofcom has demanded providers give low-cost options to the most hard-up customers.

However, providers do not have to supply social tariffs, or promote them. Ofcom thinks more than 90 per cent of eligible homes do not have one, despite many standard mobile phone tariffs being set to rise by up to 15 per cent from April.

The new Three deal gives unlimited calls, texts and data for £12 a month, provided customers get benefits such as Pension Credit and Universal Credit. 

Cost of communicating: Many mobile phone deals are going up in price from April as providers pass on inflation-linked increases to consumers’ bills

Cheaper deals are available on Sim-only contracts with other providers, but many of these have less generous call, text and data allowances – with some of the cheapest only offering 1GB of data or not including any text message allowance at all. 

The new social tariff is being launched through a sub-brand of Three called Smarty.

All social tariffs are one-month rolling deals, meaning they can be changed or cancelled more easily than standard mobile phone contracts of which normally last for a year or longer.

To apply for the deal customers will need to be claiming of of the following:

• Income-based Employment Support Allowance
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit

Three chief commercial officer Elaine Carey said: ‘More than ever, people are in need of support and that should include access to affordable connectivity without restrictions.’

Eligible customers can apply here. 

What other mobile social tariffs are there?

There are relatively few mobile social tariffs because lots of providers already offer cheap Sim-only deals that are open to anyone. We round up some of the best below. 

However, there are two other social tariffs to consider.

Voxi For Now tariff 

This gives unlimited minutes and unlimited 5G data for £10 a month. Customers need to be on Jobseeker’s Allowance, Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, Disability Allowance or Personal Independence Payment.

EE Basics

This provides unlimited minutes with 5GB of data for £12 a month. Customers will need to be claiming Universal Credit, the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Income Support to qualify.

What about cheap Sim-only deals?

If you already own a mobile phone handset, a cheap Sim-only deal is the cheapest way of making calls, texts and using the internet. 

However, some of the offers have less generous call, text and data allowances than social tariffs. 

Users will need to make sure they don’t exceed the limits stated when they sign up. If they do, extra charges could apply – and these can be expensive. 

Here are the five cheapest deals on the market right now.

Lycamobile Saver Plan

For £1 a month users get 1,000 minutes and 6GB of data, but no texts.

Lebara 3GB

This SIM-only deal costs £4.50 a month and gives 1,000 minutes, 1,000 texts and 3GB of data. It lasts for 12 months.

Talkmobile 3GB Data

This deal provides 99,999 minutes, unlimited texts and 3GB of data for £4.95 a month.

Asda Mobile 3GB Data

This SIM-only deal gives users 3GB of data, unlimited minutes and unlimited texts for £5 a month.

Talkmobile 1GB Data

This Talkmobile option has 1GB of data and unlimited calls and texts for £5 a month.

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk