Parents paying £18.73 a month for each child’s phone

More than a quarter (27%) of parents have bought their children a mobile phone by the time they turn nine years old (before they enter Year 5 at school) according to Compare the Market.

A fifth (21%) of parents said their child was between nine and ten years old when they gave them their first mobile. While the average age for getting a phone is 10 and a half, when kids are in their final year of primary school and about to transition to secondary school.

With the new school year upon us, many parents are likely thinking about whether it’s time to shop around for their child’s first mobile phone. There are considerations to keep in mind – SIM-only versus phone deals, the potential for additional charges from data roaming or in-app mobile games, and safety features to name a few.

While more than half (53%) of parents have opted into a mobile deal for their child which includes the value of the phone, 44% said they took out a SIM-only deal on their children’s behalf and bought them the phone separately. Taking out a SIM-only deal and buying the phone separately can work out as the cheaper option, but it’s worth shopping around to compare prices – as this isn’t always the case.

On average, parents are currently paying £18.73 a month for each child’s phone. This equates to £224 per year for each child whose phone bill they cover. Of those parents who no longer pay their children’s mobile bill, half (50%) said they paid until after they had turned 18, including one in ten (10%) paying when their child was over the age of 22. That’s a long time, so parents will want to make sure they are getting a good deal.

It’s not just the monthly bill that parents are footing. More than half (58%) of parents said they have been stung by children racking up extra charges for data roaming and in-app mobile games – with a fifth (20%) saying they get hit with an additional charge at least once a month. On average, parents have had to pay £32.38 in additional charges in total. One unlucky parent said they were confronted with a £200 bill for additional charges on one occasion alone. It’s worth checking what add-ons are included in the deal you choose, and whether you can place limits on them to avoid a hefty bill.

When it comes to safety, a fifth (21%) of parents said they are unaware of control-friendly mobile plans – where adults can set limits for what their children can and can’t access to give them greater peace of mind. Shopping around will help parents discover these options and empower them to find a deal best suited to their child’s needs – as well as their own.

The majority (83%) of parents said they were happy to pay their children’s mobile phone bill while they studied. And three quarters (76%) said they were happy to pay it while their children weren’t in full-time employment, to help ease the financial burden on young people.

That said, nearly half (48%) of parents said their children wanted the latest model or upgrade after their contract ran out – regardless of price. But most parents refused to give in to this, with the majority (83%) saying regardless of what their child wanted, they picked the phone contract for them. Just over one in ten (13%) said they were guided entirely by what their kids wanted.

Concerningly, more than half of parents (53%) said they “often” let a mobile payment plan keep rolling for their child rather than shop around for a deal – highlighting the need for more parents to shop around and save before agreeing to a new contract which can lock you in for anything from 12 to 36 months.

Tom Lyon, Household Bills Expert at Compare the Market, said “With more than a quarter (27%) of parents buying their children a phone on or before their ninth birthday, many kids are now receiving a mobile well before they reach secondary school. As this trend continues, parents will likely want to be informed and intentional about how they introduce mobile phones to their children – not just in terms of screen time and safety, but also in terms of cost and the type of mobile plan they choose.”