msnapz

Hey guys. In the process of trying to get a job in the UK and bought a skype number that's appears to be a local Leicester number. What I didn't realize is an employer would have to dial +44116.... Instead of just 0116... Was wondering why I hadn't got any calls! Anyone have any other companies they recommend for a "local" number?

Thanks in advance and I am using Skype for that number right now!

Vadio

Vonage - not sure what the cost is right now. When we initially came back to the UK, we had a US number that was 'local' for folks most likely to call. No one knew that it was not in the US.

teejaydee

I don't know about the technical reason why someone dialling a local UK number would need to also dial the country code, but I think this is a problem common to all VoIP services. When a phone call is made using a traditional phone line, it travels up the wire to the local switching office where it is routed onto the public switched telephone network (PSTN). When a Voice Over IP (VoIP) call is made, it does not travel to a local switching office, but rather, across the internet to your phone provider, where it passes through a gateway onto the PSTN. Because the internet is used, the full number (including the country code) is required.

I have used https://www.flextel.com/ in the past. This is a UK company, and therefore likely to be more oriented towards UK use. They offer a local number for Leicester. You may wish to take a look at their website, and if interested, check with them about the need to dial the country code.

Shirtback

Perhaps I'm misunderstanding the question, but that sounds normal for Skype to me?

The advantage of a "local" number on Skype is that the caller only pays "local" charges; or have I got this all wrong?

msnapz

Thanks for the feedback! Yea it is great having a local number but with skype at least they literally have to dial +44116.... So if you're trying to use it for business purposes you might end up not receiving any calls as no one dials the country code to call someone in the same country. Gonna check out this other company! Thanks so much!

durham_lad

I have a local UK Skype number and folks don't need to use +44, just the usual 0191... That they would use with any other local UK number.

It did stop working recently after many months of successful operation and I think it was a Skype upgrade because when I contacted them they directed me to change the security settings on my Skype account to allow incoming calls from "anyone". After I changed the setting I had a friend call me from the UK and it was back to working as normal.

msnapz

Durham lad thanks for the reply. Yes that's exactly what they told me but I couldn't find where to change that on the website under my account. I did download skype on my Mac and looked at the settings there but it was already set to anyone. Am I looking in the right place? Thanks again!

durham_lad

I have Skype downloaded on my Mac and the screen is under Preferences, Privacy.

See the attached screen shot with my new settings that seems to work just fine for me.

msnapz

Thanks appreciate it! How long you been in America for yourself?

durham_lad

We moved to the US in 1987 to the Houston area on a 2 year assignment with my UK company, then another 2 year assignment to Louisiana in 1989 and ending up staying for good (Green card in '93, citizenship in '98).

We moved back to the Houston area again in 2004 with another company move and then retired here in January 2010. This last 6 years we have spent about 6 months each year traveling (escape the heat and humidity) and are now in the process of moving back to UK, planning on spending winters back here.

holly_1948

Obihai hardware, the Obi202 is the best model, at around $70. Plus Callcentric service, around $6/month for a UK number plus 1cent/minute for outgoing UK calls. Works great, callers don't know where in the world you are, can be a local call for them if your chosen UK number is for their locality.
Vonage works well too, but costs more.

DebzinUS

I use Ring Britain. A local number with unlimited calls from the UK for $9.99 per month. You can have your calls directed to a cell phone or a land line.

HLJ

I also have a UK Skype number and people just dial 0151 without +44.

Rover Allover

I pay 99c a month per number with Didlogic and then up to 2c per minute for calling mobiles.

You can divert the numbers to mobiles/landlines/voip phones or skype and the caller has no idea they are connecting with you half way around the world. I have Australian mobiles diverting to my Australian Voip number that then rings wherever I am in the world and the same setup for the Uk.

Local callers only need dial the local code, no +44 or +61 etc and the quality is excellent

The downside is that they offer no technical support, so it's a bit of a challenge to set it up but there are help files on the website