Only in Italy do you still pay for the telephone directory?

We suggest you go get your January phone bill and check it: there's a very high risk that you've been charged for the production and shipping costs of a fictitious paper telephone directory. You may never have received one, especially since no one uses such a tool to obtain a landline number anymore (which is also increasingly rare).

But telephone companies are playing with large numbers, starting with a small waste. The phantom phone book costs between 5 and 6 euros and covers approximately 20 million citizens who still pay for landlines. Simply multiply the numbers and you have the total of the mini-scam: 10-12 million euros literally given away and found on the ground.

As usual, the burden of backtracking, even in the face of current circumstances, never falls to the company, but always to the consumer. They must arm themselves with saintly patience, visit the company's website, and, assuming they can, submit a formal request to cancel this phantom subscription, like the product below. Alternatively, they can call 187 with best wishes while awaiting a valid response. To avoid the ordeal, simply do the opposite: only those who want the paper phone book can request it and pay to have it delivered to their home.

The only sign of a countertrend came in early 2026 from Agcom, which fined TIM €20.658 precisely because of its phantom telephone directories. According to AGCOM, TIM violated the rules because it provided customers with incomplete or unclear information on various aspects of the telephone directory service:

• when they were delivered
• how the delivery took place
• How did the bill charges work?
• How to deactivate the service or stop the costs

Practically:  you pay but without really understanding what and when you receive.

Furthermore, insult is added to the consumer's injury. The White Pages (residential phone numbers) and Yellow Pages (business phone numbers) directories have been online for years, available to anyone who wants to consult them. Free of charge.

Meanwhile, Codacons and other consumer associations are offering assistance in requesting reimbursement of amounts unduly paid over the years for a service never received.