Millions of holidaymakers travelling through Jet2, Ryanair, Easyjet, and TUI have been urged to avoid being slapped with a shocking bill over a £6 rule. An expert has urged the passengers to check their mobile phone contracts before heading off to any destination.

According to a price comparison website, Uswitch, if your mobile phone contract does not include data roaming, you could be charged up to £6 per GB of data you use, which can result in a huge bill. Simrat Sharma, a mobile expert at Uswitch, said switching to an eSIM – short for embedded SIM – can be cheaper than using international roaming. “eSIMs make it easier to change networks,” she said.

“So for example, if you’re abroad you can quickly connect to the local network to pay local rates – without having to add or swap a physical local SIM card for your device.

“This means travel eSIMs are almost always cheaper than using international roaming, as users are effectively tapping into the same network plans as locals.

“The software can easily be accessed via your device’s app store and uploaded to your phone in a few quick steps.”

However, Birmingham Live reports that setting a roaming spending cap before using your data while abroad can help you avoid unexpected bills. 

Expert Ernest Doku explains: “Many networks will apply additional charges if you go over your allowance or if you don’t have roaming included, so setting up a spending cap ahead of your trip is a great way to avoid these.”

“If in doubt, contact your provider to talk about roaming caps and what your current deal will allow you to use, as well as how much this will cost.”

Some of the UK’s largest mobile phone providers will allow customers to tweak plans and contracts before heading abroad.