Big change to call charges for police hotline 101 - but there's a huge catch

It is set to become cheaper to call the police non-emergency number 101 - but - perhaps as you'd expect for a non urgent enquiries number - not yet.

The Home Secretary Sajid Javid has declared that the 15p charge will end.

But not until April 2020.

The Home Office  has said it will cost £5 million a year to fund the service, which receives around 30 million calls annually.

Callers to the 101 number are connected to their local police force, or a force of their choice, and charged 15p a time.

Sajid Javid announced the change but it won't take effect until 2020 (AFP/Getty Images)

At the same time a website will launch that will let the public contact the police and report crimes online.

The Home Secretary Sajid Javid said: “It’s vital members of the public have confidence in the police and are able to report any non-emergency incidents in a convenient and accessible way.

“Scrapping the charge for making a 101 call will benefit millions of people every year - especially the vulnerable.

“We are also continuing to work with the police to develop a new website, the Single Online Home, to provide the public with the option of reporting crime online.”