UK bosses will be hoping that their employees leave their corporate devices at home this summer, as new research shows many businesses will be forced to pick up large roaming bills.
Despite new EU regulations concerning data roaming charges, British businesses could still be hit by up to £170m in bills this summer thanks to employees using data roaming on their company devices.
Overall, Brits will incur roaming costs of £500 million this summer, with data now accounting for 50% of total overseas phone costs. And with employees using up to twice as much roaming data in the summer months (June, July and August) than any other three month period during the year, it will be businesses left with picking up the bill.
Findings from mobile data specialists Wandera showing that company bills now account for 30% of carrier revenue thanks to the increased use of smartphones amongst businesses. Many workers take their devices on holiday to stay in touch with their work, but could be set for ‘bill shock’, with the average such event costing £650.
Eldar Tuvey, CEO of Wandera, said that businesses need to educate their employees and ensure they have a clear policy for data roaming and acceptable use when travelling abroad.
"It’s not realistic to stop people using their work devices overseas but it doesn’t have to be an unknown quantity for businesses – they can control it," Tuvey added.
"Data now accounts for 50% of overseas spending and is set to continue to rise, overtaking call and text charges. Many people make plans to minimise their calls while away, however data costs can escalate quicker and is much more difficult to keep track of."
Last month, the EU announced that the price caps for data downloads would be cut by more than half from 1 July, meaning it will be cheaper than ever for people to check emails and post to social media, before roaming charges across Europe are abolished by December 2015.
