Pretty fed up with this

I realized that I am struggling to call any premium numbers (0861***x or 0860***x) I initially thought this was signal related, etc. but after a week of this I called the Cell C support team. It turns out, as per the team, that every single Cell C contract is blocked from calling these numbers, unless you have "airtime"? Now I ask you, I am paying for a contract and now I also need to pay more for airtime to be permitted to call these numbers? When did this happen? A lot of companies have a number that starts with 086***, including roadside assistance, etc. If I needed to call a number like that, I would first need to increase my limit? Does this sound absurd to anybody else, or is this just me? On my previous contract with Cell C, this was never an issue. If they had told me this from the beginning, I would never have renewed my contract with them!