VA4U Fair Use Policy fix - call plan review, September 2026

The last three months, cold callers only

One table per month. Each row is one VA on one number: what their client pays today on the unlimited plan, and what the same month would have cost on Timed X and on Timed MAX. Calls and SMS are shown separately in every case, because SMS is the part that changes shape when we move.

Roster as at 2 September 2026: 23 active lines, 10 of them cold callers. Every figure below is rebuilt from the VoIPline call and SMS records for those 23 lines only. Lines that have left the company are excluded from this page and from the rest of the pack.

How to read the money

What to put each cold caller on for September

September is not billed yet: the VoIPline export we have runs to midday on 1 September, so there is no September usage to price. This table is the recommendation to act on, built from August 2026, the last complete month. August is the fairest basis because four of these ten only started dialling part way through the window, so their earlier months understate them.

7
go on Timed MAX. Heavy callers: the $20 of included calls per seat pays for itself.
3
go on Timed X. Lighter callers: the $10.90 seat beats paying $30.90 for calls they do not make.
$21.12
more across all ten, spread over ten separate client invoices. Not one bill.
VAPut them on
in September
Expected
September bill
What they pay
on unlimited
Change Plan + numberCallsSMS On Timed XOn Timed MAX Aug calls
out
Months of
real calling
Dianne
61485901400
Timed MAX$88.31$67.05+$21.26$40.85$16.26$31.20$143.63$88.311,7762 of 3
Nekie
61468231519
Timed MAX$71.40$66.40+$5.00$40.85$0.00$30.55$82.18$71.407833 of 3
Richie
61480045681
Timed MAX$54.59$40.85+$13.74$40.85$13.74$0.00$108.41$54.593,0883 of 3
Jiselle
61468189917
Timed MAX$46.59$40.85+$5.74$40.85$5.59$0.15$86.15$46.591,9462 of 3
Michelle Bermejo
61480809114
Timed MAX$42.25$40.85+$1.40$40.85$0.00$1.40$60.73$42.251,5993 of 3
Saied
61489948996
Timed MAX$40.90$40.85+$0.05$40.85$0.00$0.05$47.95$40.906243 of 3
Racquel
61480830087
Timed X$35.59$40.85-$5.26$20.85$14.59$0.15$35.59$41.001,0541 of 3
Ham
61721425739
Timed MAX$32.90$22.90+$10.00$32.90$0.00$0.00$38.96$32.904503 of 3
Bevan
61480813372
Timed X$25.53$40.85-$15.32$20.85$4.68$0.00$25.53$40.853113 of 3
Kervin
61420138598
Timed X$25.36$40.85-$15.49$20.85$4.46$0.05$25.36$40.981991 of 3

Why each plan wins where it does

What actually happens in September. Each of these is a plan change on that user in the VoIPline portal, done once. No new numbers, no porting, no downtime. If a change lands mid-month VoIPline pro-rates the seat fee, so the first invoice will sit between the two figures above rather than matching either exactly. Everyone not on this list stays exactly as they are.
Saied sits on the line between the two plans. On the three-month average that lands on Timed X; on August alone it lands on Timed MAX. The volume is still climbing, so take the August answer and check it against the first real invoice. Moving between Timed X and Timed MAX later is another portal change, not a migration.

The three month tables below are the workings behind this: they show how each person's cost moved across June, July and August on all three plans.

Can we just average the past and predict September?

Short answer: no. We tested it rather than argued about it, and averaging every past month is the worst of the four methods at the only thing that matters here, which is picking the right plan: it gets that right just 3 times out of 8. The good news is that it does not change anything, because the plan each person should be on comes out the same either way.

The test

We pretended it was 1 August and we did not know what August held. We predicted August four different ways using only March to July, then compared each prediction to what August actually cost. That is the only honest way to judge a forecasting method: make it forecast something we already know the answer to.

Method Average error
per VA per month
Typical error
(median)
Worst missPicked the right
plan
Verdict
Months they were actually calling$5.09$4.66$13.456 of 8Best overall
The most recent month$5.40$3.44$18.006 of 8Best typical error
Every month averaged$15.22$13.02$44.073 of 8Worst for the decision
Carry the trend forward$16.78$12.90$58.136 of 8Worst on cost
Averaging every month picks the right plan only 3 times out of 8, and is off by $15.22 a VA a month. Carrying the trend forward misses by more in dollars, but it at least gets the plan right; the flat average is the one that fails the decision. Dropping the months before each person started, or simply using their most recent month, cuts the typical error from $13.02 to under $5 and gets the plan right 6 times out of 8. The instinct to doubt the average was right.

Why the average fails here

An average assumes the past looks like the future. Ours does not: this operation has been scaling hard all year, and half these people had not started yet.

MonthOutbound calls, ten cold callersChange on the month
March 2026150
April 2026151+1%
May 20262,744+1,717%
June 20263,339+22%
July 202610,270+208%
August 202611,830+15%

March and April together were fewer calls than a single day in August. Any average that includes them drags the forecast down to a number the business left behind months ago.

VAMarchAprilMayJuneJulyAugustMonths actually
calling
Richie11,8971,8603,1803,0885 of 6
Dianne1,9431,7762 of 6
Michelle581,4541,5993 of 6
Jiselle1,1031,9462 of 6
Nekie994864601,0647835 of 6
Ham18352895773474506 of 6
Bevan13216721268813116 of 6
Saied2582986243 of 6
Racquel1,0541 of 6
Kervin1991 of 6

Four of the ten had not made a single call before July. Averaging their empty months in halves their forecast for no reason other than that they were hired later.

So what would September plausibly cost?

Rather than one number pretending to be certain, here is a range for each person: a quiet month, a month like August, and a busy month that carries their recent growth forward. Then the honest question: does the plan we pick change anywhere inside that range?

VA Put them on Plausible September bill Worst it can cost to guess wrong Does the plan
change in the range?
Quiet monthLike AugustBusy month If we pick Timed MAXIf we pick Timed X
DianneTimed MAX$68.80$88.31$98.43$0.00$63.62No, same plan throughout
NekieTimed MAX$48.78$71.40$75.98$1.92$15.40Only if the month is quiet
RichieTimed MAX$40.85$54.59$59.65$0.00$61.89No, same plan throughout
JiselleTimed MAX$40.93$46.59$66.26$0.00$69.80No, same plan throughout
MichelleTimed MAX$22.18$42.25$42.46$18.67$24.25Only if the month is quiet
SaiedTimed MAX$33.22$40.90$41.74$7.63$33.32Only if the month is quiet
RacquelTimed X$35.59$35.59$39.28$5.41$0.00No, same plan throughout
HamTimed MAX$29.14$32.90$32.90$3.76$13.80Only if the month is quiet
BevanTimed X$22.77$25.53$26.23$18.08$0.00No, same plan throughout
KervinTimed X$25.36$25.36$26.49$15.63$0.00No, same plan throughout
This is the part that settles it. The two "guess wrong" columns are not symmetrical. Putting everyone on Timed MAX and being wrong costs at most $71.10 a month across all ten. Putting everyone on Timed X and being wrong costs up to $282.07, four times as much, because a heavy caller on Timed X has no included calls to absorb a busy month. Choosing per person on the August figures caps the damage at $31.98. And when we work out the safest pick for each person across every scenario in the range, it comes out identical to the August recommendation for all ten. So the forecasting question is interesting, but it does not change what we should do.

The one piece of September we do have

The export ends at 12:16 on Tuesday 1 September, which gives us a single morning: 198 outbound calls between 8am and 12:17. Across the 21 August weekdays the same window ran 82 to 225 calls, median 150. So September opened around the 81st percentile of a normal August day: busy, but comfortably inside the usual spread.

One morning is not a forecast. It is worth exactly one thing: it tells us September did not open at half pace, so building the recommendation on August is not obviously wrong. Nothing more should be read into it. The real check is the first VoIPline invoice after the change.

What to do instead of forecasting

June 2026

Dianne, Jiselle, Racquel, Kervin made no outbound calls in this month, so their row is just the line rental. Do not read it as a cheap month.

VACheaper
this month
What the client pays that month Where the money goes Usage that month
On unlimited now On Timed Xvs now On Timed MAXvs now Now: plan + numberNow: SMS X: plan + numberX: callsX: SMS MAX: plan + numberMAX: callsMAX: SMS Calls outMobile minLandline minSMS parts
Richie
61480045681
Timed MAX $40.85 $57.05 +$16.20 $41.35 +$0.50 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$35.70$0.50 $40.85$0.00$0.50 1,860 5103310
Dianne
61485901400
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000
Michelle Bermejo
61480809114
Timed X $40.85 $22.18 -$18.67 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$1.33$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 58 1840
Jiselle
61468189917
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000
Nekie
61468231519
Timed X $45.70 $48.94 +$3.24 $50.70 +$5.00 $40.85$4.85 $20.85$18.24$9.85 $40.85$0.00$9.85 460 26212197
Ham
61721425739
Timed MAX $22.90 $36.02 +$13.12 $33.24 +$10.34 $22.90$0.00 $12.90$23.12$0.00 $32.90$0.34$0.00 577 32610
Bevan
61480813372
Timed X $40.85 $22.77 -$18.08 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$1.92$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 126 2800
Saied
61489948996
Timed X $40.85 $33.24 -$7.61 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$12.39$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 258 17920
Racquel
61480830087
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000
Kervin
61420138598
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000

July 2026

Racquel, Kervin made no outbound calls in this month, so their row is just the line rental. Do not read it as a cheap month.

VACheaper
this month
What the client pays that month Where the money goes Usage that month
On unlimited now On Timed Xvs now On Timed MAXvs now Now: plan + numberNow: SMS X: plan + numberX: callsX: SMS MAX: plan + numberMAX: callsMAX: SMS Calls outMobile minLandline minSMS parts
Richie
61480045681
Timed MAX $40.85 $114.68 +$73.83 $57.50 +$16.65 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$93.23$0.60 $40.85$16.05$0.60 3,180 1,3452812
Dianne
61485901400
Timed MAX $52.35 $142.78 +$90.43 $90.39 +$38.04 $40.85$11.50 $20.85$105.43$16.50 $40.85$33.04$16.50 1,943 1,113257330
Michelle Bermejo
61480809114
Timed MAX $40.85 $67.49 +$26.64 $43.03 +$2.18 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$44.54$2.10 $40.85$0.08$2.10 1,454 6392242
Jiselle
61468189917
Timed MAX $40.85 $71.09 +$30.24 $40.93 +$0.08 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$50.24$0.00 $40.85$0.08$0.00 1,103 716500
Nekie
61468231519
Timed MAX $84.40 $106.13 +$21.73 $89.40 +$5.00 $40.85$43.55 $20.85$36.73$48.55 $40.85$0.00$48.55 1,064 52819971
Ham
61721425739
Timed X $22.90 $29.27 +$6.37 $32.98 +$10.08 $22.90$0.00 $12.90$16.37$0.00 $32.90$0.08$0.00 347 23540
Bevan
61480813372
Timed X $40.85 $32.41 -$8.44 $41.10 +$0.25 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$11.56$0.00 $40.85$0.25$0.00 881 157310
Saied
61489948996
Timed X $40.85 $37.65 -$3.20 $41.15 +$0.30 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$16.50$0.30 $40.85$0.00$0.30 298 23906
Racquel
61480830087
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000
Kervin
61420138598
not calling yet $40.85 $20.85 -$20.00 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$0.00$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 0 000

August 2026

VACheaper
this month
What the client pays that month Where the money goes Usage that month
On unlimited now On Timed Xvs now On Timed MAXvs now Now: plan + numberNow: SMS X: plan + numberX: callsX: SMS MAX: plan + numberMAX: callsMAX: SMS Calls outMobile minLandline minSMS parts
Richie
61480045681
Timed MAX $40.85 $108.41 +$67.56 $54.59 +$13.74 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$87.56$0.00 $40.85$13.74$0.00 3,088 1,266130
Dianne
61485901400
Timed MAX $67.05 $143.63 +$76.58 $88.31 +$21.26 $40.85$26.20 $20.85$91.58$31.20 $40.85$16.26$31.20 1,776 1,29424624
Michelle Bermejo
61480809114
Timed MAX $40.85 $60.73 +$19.88 $42.25 +$1.40 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$38.48$1.40 $40.85$0.00$1.40 1,599 5541628
Jiselle
61468189917
Timed MAX $40.85 $86.15 +$45.30 $46.59 +$5.74 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$65.15$0.15 $40.85$5.59$0.15 1,946 929603
Nekie
61468231519
Timed MAX $66.40 $82.18 +$15.78 $71.40 +$5.00 $40.85$25.55 $20.85$30.78$30.55 $40.85$0.00$30.55 783 4422611
Ham
61721425739
Timed MAX $22.90 $38.96 +$16.06 $32.90 +$10.00 $22.90$0.00 $12.90$26.06$0.00 $32.90$0.00$0.00 450 365220
Bevan
61480813372
Timed X $40.85 $25.53 -$15.32 $40.85 same $40.85$0.00 $20.85$4.68$0.00 $40.85$0.00$0.00 311 6760
Saied
61489948996
Timed MAX $40.85 $47.95 +$7.10 $40.90 +$0.05 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$27.05$0.05 $40.85$0.00$0.05 624 39211
Racquel
61480830087
Timed X $40.85 $35.59 -$5.26 $41.00 +$0.15 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$14.59$0.15 $40.85$0.00$0.15 1,054 21113
Kervin
61420138598
Timed X $40.85 $25.36 -$15.49 $40.98 +$0.13 $40.85$0.00 $20.85$4.46$0.05 $40.85$0.08$0.05 199 6301

Putting the three months together

The plain June to August average, which is what the rest of this pack uses, and then August on its own because it is the most recent full month and the truest read for anyone who started part way through.

VANow, 3-month avgTimed XTimed MAXPut them onNew billChangeAugust alone,
now
August alone,
new plan
August
change
Months of
real calling
Kervin
61420138598
$40.85$22.35$40.89Timed X$22.35-$18.50$40.85$25.36-$15.491 of 3
Racquel
61480830087
$40.85$25.76$40.90Timed X$25.76-$15.09$40.85$35.59-$5.261 of 3
Bevan
61480813372
$40.85$26.90$40.93Timed X$26.90-$13.95$40.85$25.53-$15.323 of 3
Saied
61489948996
$40.85$39.62$40.97Timed X$39.62-$1.23$40.85$47.95+$7.103 of 3
Michelle Bermejo
61480809114
$40.85$50.13$42.04Timed MAX$42.04+$1.19$40.85$42.25+$1.403 of 3
Jiselle
61468189917
$40.85$59.36$42.79Timed MAX$42.79+$1.94$40.85$46.59+$5.742 of 3
Nekie
61468231519
$65.50$79.08$70.50Timed MAX$70.50+$5.00$66.40$71.40+$5.003 of 3
Ham
61721425739
$22.90$34.75$33.04Timed MAX$33.04+$10.14$22.90$32.90+$10.003 of 3
Richie
61480045681
$40.85$93.38$51.15Timed MAX$51.15+$10.30$40.85$54.59+$13.743 of 3
Dianne
61485901400
$53.42$102.42$73.18Timed MAX$73.18+$19.76$67.05$88.31+$21.262 of 3
Read the August column for anyone who started late. Several of these VAs only began dialling part way through the window. Dianne and Jiselle started in July, Racquel and Kervin in August. For them the three-month average includes months with no calls at all, which flatters the move. The Months of real calling column says how many months each person was actually on the phones; where it reads 1 of 3, use the August figures.
10
cold callers on unlimited plans. These are the lines the Fair Use Policy warning is about.
4
clients pay less after the move.
6
clients pay more. Worth telling them before the invoice arrives.

The SMS part on its own

Texting is the one place the move clearly costs money rather than saving it. On the unlimited plan each VA gets 100 free outbound parts a month. On Timed X and Timed MAX there is no allowance, so every part is 5c from the first.

VA Jun partsJul partsAug parts SMS now, avgSMS on timed, avgExtra
Nekie197971611$24.65$29.65+$5.00
Dianne0330624$12.57$15.90+$3.33
Michelle Bermejo04228$0.00$1.17+$1.17
Richie10120$0.00$0.37+$0.37
Saied061$0.00$0.12+$0.12
Racquel003$0.00$0.05+$0.05
Jiselle003$0.00$0.05+$0.05
Kervin001$0.00$0.02+$0.02
Ham000$0.00$0.00same
Bevan000$0.00$0.00same

Only two lines carry real SMS volume. For everyone else the extra is cents a month.

VA4U internal. Built from the VoIPline call and SMS export covering 2 March to 1 September 2026, filtered to the 23 active lines. Prices are the VoIPline Call centre rate card, GST included. June, July and August 2026 are complete months; the export ends 1 September.