Understand your Virgin Mobile bill

If you have more than one mobile on your account, you'll see them all listed in the How you’ve used your mobiles section, along with a summary of the month’s costs for each phone.

If you’d like to see these in more detail, simply select View below the phone’s name or number.

Can I add names or descriptions to my own numbers here?

Yes, you can.

1. Select Add a name to number under the mobile you’d like to rename and you’ll be taken to Your Account

2. Select Edit/remove name

3. Enter in a name and select Save

If you decide to delete a name, the original mobile number will be displayed again.

What are ‘Other costs and credits’?

Some of the charges or credits on your bill might not relate specifically to any your mobile numbers. Instead, they might cover things like a paper bill charge, or an accessory you ordered. These charges are listed below your mobiles on the line headed Other costs and credits. Balances and payments from previous months will be shown here, too.

What is the ‘Family Plan discount’?

You can save £2 on each additional Pay Monthly SIM you add to a Family Plan account – just one of many Family Plan benefits. You’ll find any Family Plan credits you’ve received next to Family Plan discount at the bottom of the bill.

• To see more details about your Family Plan, select View under Other Costs & Credits and select the Family Plan tab.

• Want to learn more about the Virgin Media Family Plan? Check out our Family Plan FAQs.

In the Total amount tab, you’ll see the total amount owed for this month's bill. The total is itemised, so you’ll be able to see what your bill covers, and whether you need to pay any additional charges outside of your bundle. You’ll also find other useful information, like your usage this month.

Can I add names to the called numbers that appear on my bill?

Yes, just click the number you want to re-name and type a name into the box. The number will now show as the new name or description on your bills going forward.

If you’d like to change or remove a name you’ve already added, simply click it, and make your changes. If you decide to remove the name, it’ll revert to the original number on your bills going forward.

How can I see particular types of charge?

If you’re looking for a certain charge on your bill, using the filter can help.

To filter your bill:

1. Select the Filter List dropdown button

2. Check the box next to each charge type you’d like to see – you can choose more than one if you like.

3. Select View

Now only the charge types you selected will be displayed in your bill, while any others will be hidden. You’ll also be able to see the total amount for your selected charges – any charges you’ve decided to hide won’t be included.

If you’d like to remove your filters, simply select Remove filters – or deselect all charge types in the dropdown box.

How do I sort the charges?

By default, your charges will be sorted by date, running from earliest to latest. If you’d like to see your latest charges first, simply select the arrow next to the date column so it’s pointing downwards.

If you’d like to sort your bill another way, such as by Type or Number, simply select the arrow in the relevant column.

Why do only 20 items show?

You’ll see 20 charges listed on each page of your bill. To see the next 20, simply select next page at the bottom of the list. Alternatively, you can jump straight to a specific page by clicking one of the numbers.

Can I download my itemisation?

Yes, simply select download your data as a CSV file and open the file with a spreadsheet app, such as Microsoft Excel.

On your Tariff tab, you can see everything relating to your plan. This includes:

• Your plan's name

• Your allowances

• Any special extras

If you've recently changed your plan, then the plan shown here will be the one you’re billed for going forwards.

What is an allowance?

Your allowance is all the of inclusive minutes, texts and mobile data included in your plan. As long as you stay within your allowance each month you won’t be charged any extra for using these services. Some calls and texts are not included in your allowances though – for example calls or texts to premium or international numbers. For full details of what calls and texts are included in your allowances, download our tariff guide here. You can see your inclusive allowances on Your Tariff tab of your bill.

If you’re running low, you can buy Add-on allowances. These will show on your bill in the Add-ons tab.

Want to check how much of your allowances you have left? Log in to Your Account or use our My Virgin Media account app (available from Google Play or the Apple App Store).

What is my allowance period?

Each allowance period lasts a month and aligns with your monthly billing cycle. The billing period is the month leading up to the bill date and the allowance period is the month running from your bill date. That means your new allowance period will start the day after your bill date. On the first day of each allowance period, we'll give you a fresh set of inclusive allowances to use for the month – and we’ll send you a text to remind you when it’s been refreshed. So long as you stay within your allowances during each period, you shouldn’t be charged any extra for usage in the UK or EU.

What is the difference between my allowance period and my bill period?

The bill period is the month leading up to your bill date, and your allowance period begins the following day. Your bill only covers the allowances used in the previous month.

We’ll also roll any unused data over so you have an extra month to use it! This only applies to allowances that are included with your plan - promotional allowances such as goodwill, data boost or double data won't roll over. Any Add-on allowances bought during the month will expire at the end of your allowance period.

What is my data rollover?

Rollover data is the amount of data you have remaining at the end of your previous allowance period, rounded up to the next rollover level. So instead of losing that allowance, we roll it over so you can use it the next month – and the good news is you will usually get a bit more rollover data than the amount you had remaining!

Say you have more than 5GB of data allowance remaining at the end of the allowance period, but less than or equal to 10GB, you’ll have an extra 10GB in your next allowance period.

Find out more about data rollover. here.

If you bought any Add-ons in the previous billing period, we'll show the charges and corresponding allowances here. You can find details of any usage covered by your Add-on allowances by selecting the Your Tariff tab.

The Extra use tab shows charges for any usage that falls outside of your allowances, or any services not covered by your plan (like roaming outside of the EU). You’ll only see this tab if you’ve incurred any additional charges.

Why do some charges appear in the “Exceeded allowance” section?

Charges shown in the Exceeded allowance section are extra charges for use normally covered by your allowance, but your allowance was used up before this call, text or mobile data session. So, if you use more than your plan allows for each month, you’ll be charged at our standard rates.

If the allowance was used up during a call or a mobile data session, we'll show it here as "Partial"

Charges shown as Partial are for anything that’s usually covered by your plan, but your allowance was used up before you ended the call or web session. These will be shown as Exceeded in the In tariff column.

What does “Filter list” do?

See How can I see particular types of charge? section above.

Can I sort the charges by cost/date/type/amount used/called number?

See How do I sort the charges? section above.

How do I see all my Extra use items?

Each page of your Extra use shows 20 items. Simply select next page at the bottom of the list to see more. Or, you can jump straight to a specific page by selecting one of the numbers.

Alternatively, you can see your entire Extra use on one page by selecting download your data as a CSV file and opening the file with a spreadsheet app, such as Microsoft Excel.

Why do some of my calls and texts not show a called number?

Sometimes the calling or texting information on your bill might be incomplete – this is often the case for text messages you send, and occasionally for calls you receive, while roaming. We get our information about your roaming charges from our roaming partner networks around the world, so we might not always receive the information to add the usage to your bill.

What are Service numbers?

Service numbers are special numbers for things like directory enquiries, chat lines or information services, usually beginning in 084, 087, 118 or 09. They can cost more to call. That’s because the cost of calling these numbers have a 'service' element, which is set by the service provider, as well as an 'access' element, which we set.

When service numbers appear on your bill, you'll see them as one combined charge. Some of these numbers might be included in your plan – if that's the case, both access and service element will be covered.

If you call one of these numbers while roaming outside of the EU, you'll be charged a different access charge, depending on where you're calling from.

You’ll need to check with the individual service provider for details about their service charge.

Find out about our access charges.

What are Premium texts?

Premium rate texts usually use a special 5-digit short code instead of a full mobile number. You might send a premium text to vote in a TV show like The X Factor, or to enter a competition to win a prize. The service provider might also send you a premium text message reply, which could have a charge too. While this might be a great way to get involved in your favourite shows, it can cost. Premium rate texts are not covered by your text allowance.

It’s worth remembering that some service providers can lock you in to a subscription service. If you opt-in to these, you might receive regular premium rate texts, or get notifications for things like football scores or breaking news and each text will be charged to your bill. If you'd like them to stop, text STOP or STOP ALL to the number you’ve been getting the texts from.

What are Personal numbers?

Personal numbers are used by virtual number services, which can direct an inbound call anywhere in the world at the request of the owner of the number. They usually begin with 070, 0700, 0701, 0702, 0703, 0704, 0705, 0706, 0707, 0708, 0709, 0760, 0762, 0764, 0766, 0767, 0768, 0779 or 0791.

Because personal numbers begin with 07, they're sometimes mistaken for mobile numbers. Unfortunately, this can be a costly mistake, as they aren't covered by your allowances and will have their own rates.

Find out more about the cost of calling personal numbers.

Why can I not see any 0800 or 0808 calls?

0800 and 0808 numbers are free to call from your mobile, so we won't charge you or take any minutes from your allowance. Because they are free, they won’t be displayed on your bill (it’s an Ofcom rule).

What are International calls and texts?

These are any calls and texts you’ve made or sent to an overseas number from your mobile while you were in the UK. Calling a UK mobile while it's roaming overseas is classed as a UK call, rather than an international call.

How is mobile internet use charged?

If your plan includes a mobile data allowance, you’ll get a certain amount of data to use each month. If you use up your data allowance during the month, you'll be charged for any extra data you use. Check the rate for your plan.

On your bill, you’ll be able to see how much mobile data you've used. Each amount will be labelled using the internet. Don’t worry, your bill won’t show any details like exactly when your mobile connected, or which websites or apps were used.

Mobile internet use on your phone is measured in kilobytes (KB), megabytes (MB) or gigabytes (GB) of data. A MB is 1024KBs and a GB is roughly 1024 MB.

You'll use mobile data when your device connects to the mobile network (but not when it's connected to Wi-Fi). Your mobile may be using mobile data in the background without you doing anything – this can be when your mobile checks for new emails or gets an updated weather forecast. If you are worried about using up your data allowance too quickly, you can switch this off in your device settings.

There are other occasions when it's more obvious that you're using mobile data, such as when you send emails, use instant messaging, stream video or audio, or just browse the internet on your mobile.

You can save your data allowance by using WiFi whenever you can. The Virgin Media Connect app can help you find and connect to free WiFi, wherever you are.

Why does my bill show charges for more than one text at the same time?

A text message (or SMS) has a maximum length of 160 characters (including spaces). If you write a text that’s longer, your mobile will send the text as multiple messages. The receiving device will then join these back into one long message. If you have an unlimited text allowance, this is all covered, and you won't pay any extra – but you'll still see these as individual texts on your bill.

If you send a message to multiple people at the same time, you’ll be charged separately for each text. In this case they'll appear on your bill with different recipient numbers.

Some mobile devices use MMS to send long text messages. If your mobile is set to do this, it'll send one MMS (or ‘picture message’) instead of lots of SMSs to get around the 160-character limit. Because MMS is usually used for sending picture messages, this is how they appear on your bill – and this is what you’ll be charged for. If you have a text message allowance, this can actually cost you more, so it's usually best to switch MMS off in your mobile device settings.

Why does my bill show charges for 'picture messages'?

If your mobile device has a mobile internet connection, you'll be able to send photos or short videos to other mobile devices using a technology called MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). Your bill will show these as a 'picture message' with a charge for each message you send. If you have a data allowance, it might be cheaper to send the message as an email or using an instant messaging app.

If you haven’t sent any pictures by text, it might be that you’ve simply written a text that’s too long to send as a single message. Texts have a 160-character limit, and some mobile devices use MMS to send any messages that exceed this. If your mobile is set to do this, it'll send one MMS instead of lots of SMSs to get around the 160-character limit. If it does, you’ll be charged for a 'picture message', even though you didn't actually send a picture.

Check how much a picture message costs on your plan.

To stop your mobile device sending picture messages when you don't want it to, switch MMS off in your mobile device settings.

Find out more about text and picture messaging.

Why do some call durations show as whole minutes without any seconds?

All in-allowance calls are rounded up to the next full minute when we deduct them from your allowance. Calls that fall outside your allowance are also billed per minute and rounded up to the next full minute except for calls to landlines and the access charge for service numbers which are billed per second after the first minute.

On the Your credits tab, you’ll find your bill balance for the previous month, and any payments or adjustments (such as discounts or refunds) used to clear it.

Why have I been charged the cost of my Freestyle handset?

If you have a Freestyle contract, we'll charge the full cost of your phone to your first bill. Don’t worry, you won't need to pay anything yet, as it's been covered by your credit agreement with Virgin Media Finance Ltd. Instead, you'll pay for it in monthly instalments over the life of your contract. These instalments will be collected by a separate Direct Debit.

If you’ve set up a Family Plan on your account, you’ll find the Family Plan tab on the My bill page.

There are so many Family Plan benefits to enjoy – you can manage your family’s mobile contracts under one account and keep an eye on spending over all devices. You can also save - all calls between mobiles on the same Family Plan are free, and you’ll receive a £2 discount for every phone you add to the plan.

How do I get a Family Plan

To be eligible for a Family Plan, you’ll also need to have signed up for a Virgin Media TV or broadband package. To find out more and to set up your plan, speak to a member of our team via our contact us page.

How many Family Plan numbers can I take and how much can I save?

You can have up to five numbers on your Family Plan – and you’ll save £2 on your monthly bill for each number you add, up to £8. Your numbers can be any combination of Sim Only, Freestyle, Classic, Oomph bundles or mobile broadband.

How can I manage numbers on my Family Plan?

The best way to manage your Family Plan is using the Virgin Media App or in Your Account. Whichever you use, you’ll be able to see usage, manage spending caps and purchase Add-ons for all your Family Plan numbers.

Are there any exclusions?

If you don’t have broadband or TV services with us your mobile number won’t be eligible for Family Plans. Pay As You Go, 30-day SIM Only, and contracts purchased via Carphone Warehouse are also excluded, as are some of our entry level tariffs.

What if I want to cancel one of my Family Plan numbers?

We’re sorry that someone on your Family Plan is thinking of leaving Virgin Mobile. You’ll be able to cancel the Virgin Mobile contract as normal. Your other lines on the Family Plan will not be impacted, but your overall discount will be reduced.

Want to know more about Family Plans?

If you’d like to find out more about Virgin Media’s Family Plans, check out our Family Plan FAQs.

In the Spending cap section of the Total amount tab, you’ll see any spending caps that have been set up on your account. You can change your spending caps at any time using the Virgin Media app or from Your Account.

Any spending cap you set won’t apply to your monthly plan cost, your paper bill charge or to any items that you opt-in to during the month such as data add-ons, copy bills or buy out charges.

Find out more about spending caps.