Check your contract before you travel as roaming charges while abroad can rack up horrifying bills for the unwary

A woman who used her phone for less than an hour in New York, while trying to contact her mobile company, has been hit with a bill for almost £6,700.

Hilary O’Donnell, from Nottingham, was settling into her hotel when she found that her phone would not make outgoing calls, so she tried to contact Plan.com to fix the problem. But when she returned home, she was given a bill of £6,648 for her attempts – which, she believes, was grossly excessive and unfair.