i think i was paying around 70p - 80p a crab, but that would have been 2 years ago when i was working away alot and never had time to go down the river.
they can be a good source of live crab up until the back end of the year if they dont get any really cold spells.
cant remember the name of the place i used, but they had no probs sending bait up to the north east, the guy took my order on the phone, sent someone to box them up while taking my details, then said the courier was due to pick them up, i got them the next day in a polystyrene box, fresh as anything ;D
it could have been a number of the net or out the back of sea angler magazine.
it wont be long before the fish will take a frozen crab just as much as a live crab. just gives you a wee edge if you have live.