12 Months Free Line Rental: Are They for Real?

Have any of your friends ever gotten a mobile phone completely free of charge, not just the handset itself, but the line rental too? Well, some of mine have, and here is how they do it!

Well, if you haven't, you are about to find out how you can get a completely free mobile phone for 12 months. That means a free handset, with free calls and free text messaging!

By now you will have smelled a rat, it is not possible for retailers to give away free phones on free 12 month contracts and still make a profit, is it?

The way it works is this, when taking out your new mobile contract the retailer offers to give you cash back, to cover the cost of your bills. So, initially you have to pay the bill as normal. At this point, you are out of pocket, not what you would expect from a 12 months free line rental deal!

At a later date, often 9, 10 or 11 months into the contract, you have to submit a claim for cashback. Assuming you have done everything the retailer asked you to when you took out the mobile contract, the retailer will refund your money, via instant cash back which will cover the entire cost of your phone contract. Thus, the retailers are able to advertise these as free line rental deals.

So how do the retailers make money? Surely retailers lose money on free line rental deals? Absolutely, but, only if the customer successfully makes their claim for cashback! If the customer forgets to make that claim, then they end up paying their line rental as normal, and the retailer makes their money. You see, it is a battle of wits!

They insist that you make your claim on a specified date (which you may forget) and insist that you produce documentation and phone bills (which you may lose). The retailers ensure that only a minority of people who take out a free line rental deal actually get the cash back.

So, in many respects a free line rental deal is too good to be true. But, they are genuine. 12 month free line deals are legitimate and legal. It is possible to get a free mobile phone for 12 months if you are smart, and prepared to play the retailers at their own game!

If you take out a free line rental deal, just make sure that you organise yourself. That you know when you have to make your claim, and that you also know where all the necessary paperwork is!