Roaming charges to end across the European Union, but callers are warned about a huge catch

People have been warned to check for unexpected costs

(LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)

Roaming charges are finally being killed off, after the EU forced phone companies to stop hitting people with massive, shock bills.

But customers have been warned that they might still have to pay more than they expect and should continue to be vigilant.

The roaming charges will come to an end after 15 June. That will mean that people in the UK can take their normal contract – with all its free calls, texts and data – anywhere in the EU, for no extra cost.

Except there are still extra charges for some calls into Europe. And those charges might not immediately be clear.

The legislation only bans roaming charges specifically. That means that users will still have to pay the normal cost if they phone the country they're in – calling an Italian number on a UK phone is charged the same as doing so from within Britain, for instance.

That might mean that people could think they're not having to pay extra for ringing their hotel, for instance. But in fact they'll be racking up international charges that could end up cost more than £1 per minute.

The decision is the result of the EU's "Roam At Home" legislation which aims to make coverage broadly the same across Europe. As such, it's not clear whether people in the UK will continue to benefit from it after Brexit.