Quip

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So where does Quip stand amidst all these Telecom companies? I hope to explain my analysis of Quip by my customer experiences with this company over the last two years and with some comparison of using other cheap telecoms together with some background information on the company.

It may surprise you to know that Quip is actually owned by BT! Quip is the marketing name and the company is actually called EEscape Ltd based in ...
...name as BT, this allows Quip to offer a neat and flexible telecoms package easily accessed via the internet.


Joining Quip
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Like many people I first came across Quip through my ISP provider; Lineone (now Tiscali) about 2 years ago thereby allowing me to make £5 worth of free phone calls and offering discounted rates thereafter. The application procedure was straightforward; you keep your ... more

Many of us have friends and family abroad and the need to keep in touch and make savings on telephone call charges is more of a necessity than simply going with what’s available as standard on your landline. The savings to be made are not only on International calls but with the advent of increased mobile phone usage; savings can be made on call charges to various networks too; as well as competitive rates on UK national calls.

In the last five years the UK has seen a surge in the number of Telecom companies promising massive discounts with call savings of up to 60% against BT; but whom do you go with? The choice available to the consumer is endless… Planet Talk, Axa, First Telecom (see separate opinion for details) SwiftCall, One-Tel, Communication 2000, etc, etc to name but a few. All the Telecom companies seem to offer massive savings on International calls but just how reliable is the service and what’s more important how often can you get your call routed?

So where does Quip stand amidst all these Telecom companies? I hope to explain my analysis of Quip by my customer experiences with this company over the last two years and with some comparison of using other cheap telecoms together with some background information on the company.

It may surprise you to know that Quip is actually owned by BT! Quip is the marketing name and the company is actually called EEscape Ltd based in Milton Keynes in UK. In addition to BT, Quip is also owned by the company Unisys; a market leader in the field of telecommunications and IT! So, together with the expertise in cost-cutting telecommunication and software measures from Unisys and a trustable brand name as BT, this allows Quip to offer a neat and flexible telecoms package easily accessed via the internet.

Joining Quip
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Like many people I first came across Quip through my ISP provider; Lineone (now Tiscali) about 2 years ago thereby allowing me to make £5 worth of free phone calls and offering discounted rates thereafter. The application procedure was straightforward; you keep your existing landline and route your calls through Quip by pre-dialling a 4-digit number or using a dialler socket. All that was asked of you is that you purchase a Quip dialler socket for £20 so all your calls would automatically be routed through Quip automatically rather than your existing landline. When Lineone’s free Internet deal came to an end Quip the telecom company offered all it’s subscribers a £20 credit to compensate against the customers purchasing a Quip dialler for £20. Initially I decided that after my £20 call credit was over I’d quit Quip, but later decided to stay as after some initial teething problems with customer service the call quality had been fine and I had always connected first time to my International destinations; something that is not always the case as found with some Telecom companies such as Communication 2000 where call connection can be appalling!

To join Quip today ~ You can still join Quip today via their website or by calling the free phone number which I’ll list at the end of this opinion. Application via the net is straightforward; all that is required is your full UK address and a list of 3 telephone numbers you are most likely to use the service from e.g. home, work, mobile. You must also give details of your credit/debit card or arrange to pay your Quip bill monthly. When setting up the account you choose a credit limit, such as £25 a month up to a maximum of £35 a month. For example, if you choose £25 credit limit you cannot make more than £25 worth of calls a month. You only get charged for what calls you make in a month. I pay monthly via credit card. You have 24 hour access to your account via the website and at all times can see how many calls you’ve made in a month and the call charges via the ‘call reporter’. If you feel you are reaching your credit limit for that month, you can opt to pay the bill sooner rather than wait for the monthly billing date from Quip. You usually receive an e-mail each month from Quip letting you know your bill is ready, you can pay online or by telephone. One of the disadvantages I have found with Quip occasionally when say you reach your credit limit max, e.g. £35 in a month and wish to make further calls, you find your account is blocked until you pay the £35, so you must stay abreast of your account especially if you’ve been away for a while. I had to contact customer services and unblock my account, by paying the bill so my £35 credit was renewed. It’s a shame Quip don’t allow a higher monthly credit limit like some companies do. On the other hand; unlike some companies you are not required to pay up front (in advance) before you’ve made any calls. So, that’s my experience of using Quip as a telecommunications portal.

CALLS CHARGES
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To give you some idea of call savings I will briefly mention some current call prices as charged by Quip compared to other Telecoms e.g. First Telecom and parent company BT.

International Calls: QUIP V’s BT v’s First Telecom:

USA 3.5p/min vs. 24p/min vs. 8p/min
FRANCE 7p/min vs. 28p/min vs. 13p/min
GERMANY 7p/min vs. 28p/min vs. 7p/min
AUSTRIA 8p/min vs. 39p/min vs. 24p/min
INDIA 39p/min vs. 120p/min** vs. 48.4p/min

** BT ‘s standard rate (98.4p/min wkd)

Quip’s call charges are listed first as you can see in each case Quip are cheaper.

By no means are Quip the cheapest Telecom in the market; really cheap ones are companies such as Superline, C2000 etc BUT call quality and connection is not so reliable.

Calls to Mobiles and UK National Calls to Landlines:

Quip’s charges to mobile network’s are reasonable and on a par with other Telecommunication companies. For example, a call to Vodaphone anytime of the day costs 19p/min. UK National calls cost only 3.5p/min during weekday daytime or evenings (compare that to BT’s which is just under 8p/min daytime!!) Please remember Quip also charge a 5p connection charge on each answered call. At weekend’s national calls come down in price further to just 2p/min. All prices include vat and are rounded up to the nearest second not nearest minute.

It’s evident the bulk of the savings are to be made exclusively on International calls here.

Suggestions for Improvement
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1. I feel the customer services could be improved and extended to 24 hours like the other Telecom companies. At present Quip customer services is available till about 8pm weekdays and a limited period on Saturdays with no customer service on Sundays!

2. Allow the option of an increased credit limit (>£35) for customers after two months.

In summary, I can say that Quip offer a reliable telecommunication service offering substantial discounts on International calls, with good connection and call quality (yes, even on calls to India!). At present, I award this company a 3 star rating based primarily on reliability.

For further details:
http://www.quip.co.uk/
or call 0808 100 9001

an ‘opinion of connoisseur_haggler© for ciao 2002’ 

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