Calling 1850, 1890, & 076 Irish Phone Numbers No Longer Works

1850-1890-076-comreg-ngn-decision

On 1 Jan 2022, Phone Numbers with the prefixes 1850, 1890, and 076 stopped working. This was an indented move by ComReg, the Irish communications regulator, to simplify Irish phone number ranges for customers.

I am Trying to Call a 1850, 1890, or 076 phone number

Replacing these numbers is down to the business that owns them.

If you know the business’s name, the only thing we can recommend is going to their website and trying to find an alternative form of contact. This could be live chat, email, contact form, or an alternative phone number.

My Business Owns 1850, 1890, or 076 Phone Numbers

Excluding premium rate numbers, there are now three choices available a Geographic Number that begins with 01, 02, 03…, based on its geographic location, an 1800 Freephone number, or an 0818 National number.

Buy a Freephone number (1800)

  • Provide free calls to your customers and prospects
  • Gain a nationwide presence
  • ComReg reduced its pricing in May 2020

Buy a National Number (0818)

  • Gain a nationwide presence
  • Remove the need for local codes such as 01 for Dublin
  • Since Dec 2019, these are included in free call bundles

Can in2tel Help?

in2tel supplies both 1800 and 0818 number ranges. We have a team of experts who will be more than happy to answer any questions about either solution and which is more suitable for your business.

If you would like to ask questions, please speak to our Sales Director over the live chat. Alternatively, you can use the form below, email sales@in2tel.ie, or phone 1800 91 1800.

Why did ComReg Change NGN Prefixes?

ComReg conducted an extensive review of NGNs, including two public consultations, and found that the majority of consumers cannot tell the different NGNs apart and do not know, or cannot estimate, the retail charges for calling different NGNs.

For more information, you can read ComReg’s NGN Consolidation overview.

Many consumers thought calling NGNs was expensive. Others believed that service providers (i.e., organisations using NGNs as contact numbers) make money from customers dialling these NGNs.

On 1 January 2022, the five NGN ranges were reduced to two. 1850, 1890, and 076 ranges will be withdrawn and the 1800 (Freephone) and 0818 (National) ranges will remain. A 3 year period was given, to allow organisations that use NGNs time to prepare.

For more information on Irish phone number ranges, please find the following articles: