Virgin Media Retention thread

colinw

ultracheapskate wrote: »

Hey thanks for the reply. I have called them a few times since and each agent offered the same deal: £14/month for 2MB and £17/month for 10MB, both 12 month contracts. It seems like it is a standard offer and they couldn't do any better.

Apparently since 01/02/09 they no longer offer the 6 month deals that you received. So if i called a few weeks ago I could have got your same offer....but I was too late. However when you come to upgrade they will apparently only offer you the 12 month deals that I was given. Oh well. at least you make a saving for the next 6 months!

Cheers

Actually the £14 deal is not to bad for 12 months. I suppose £17 for 10mb is not to bad but I don't think I need that speed. I will be quite happy with the £14 after my current deal runs out in 6 months. Is that £14 with the £1 reductuon for e-billing? I have never got that e-bill discount despite being signed up to it for quite a few months.

greyster

MORPH3US wrote: »

If they try tying me into any of that rubbish then they'll lose me as a customer....

2meg for £10 a month is as much as i'd be willing to pay.

I agree but the problem is, if you go ADSL you have to pay line rental which takes the cost up. I don't need a phone line so I am kind of locked into VM when it comes to overall cost.

tedstriker

greyster wrote: »

I agree but the problem is, if you go ADSL you have to pay line rental which takes the cost up. I don't need a phone line so I am kind of locked into VM when it comes to overall cost.

I am in the same situation, don't really want the hassle and expense of a phone line.

They were offering an upgrade to 10 Meg broadband for £14 per month. I asked if it was ongoing and they said yeah. But beware it is for one month only before it increases to £21.

MORPH3US

Ditto what you said greyster and tedstriker....

I have no use for a landline whatsoever, we both have mobiles with plenty of minutes for what we need....

I have been threatening Virgin that i'll leave them for Sky for ages... I currently pay £21 a month for M-BB and L-TV....

Sky do 3 for £16.50 but then add in BT line rental @ £11 a month = £27.50

If Virgin bump my 2meg BB up to £14 would make my Virgin bill £25.

However I would get landline phone (for what its worth) and Sky+ for that extra £1.50 a month with Sky.... (plus Quidco?) as long as I can get Sky to pay for the phone line installation....

However I then have the problem that Sky only do 2meg with a 2Gb allowance... so then I have to pay £5 extra for 40Gb allowance or £10 for unlimited.....

Its a bloody minefield and thats why Virgin think they can get away with putting up the prices because they know its not easy to switch....

Only other option I suppose is mobile BB @ aprox £7.50 and then either keep Virgin TV, get Sky TV or get Freesat / Freeview.

M

Sponge

You also need to bear in mind that a landline is useful for other people that want to call you.

You're covered for outgoing calls with your mobiles, but people calling you have to spend a fortune on calling a mobile. We have friends and family that only have mobiles and we've actually stopped calling them as it's too expensive for us.

You might not be bothered, but I'd say a landline is always useful if you can get it. :beer:

One more thing. A landline is good for use in an emergency. Your mobilr might not have a signal, or the battery could be flat. Plus when you call the emergency services on a landline the number and address are shown, so even if you don't finish the call, they know where you are. Getting a position from a mobile is a lot more complicated and slower.

acc

colinw wrote: »

Actually the £14 deal is not to bad for 12 months. I suppose £17 for 10mb is not to bad but I don't think I need that speed. I will be quite happy with the £14 after my current deal runs out in 6 months. Is that £14 with the £1 reductuon for e-billing? I have never got that e-bill discount despite being signed up to it for quite a few months.

Colin,

Are these deals, such as £17 for 10mb, just for the broadband, or do they include the landline and are these charges fixed for a reasonable period like 12 months, in which case it would seem a good deal compared with the regular prices?

On the VM website, the 10mb broadband alone is £15 for 6 months, then £20, but the landline + 10 mb broadband package is £11 + £5 = £16 for 3 months, then £11 + £14 = £25. (Presumably there is a £1 e-billing discount on these charges.)

greyster

MORPH3US wrote: »

Ditto what you said greyster and tedstriker....

I have no use for a landline whatsoever, we both have mobiles with plenty of minutes for what we need....

I have been threatening Virgin that i'll leave them for Sky for ages... I currently pay £21 a month for M-BB and L-TV....

Sky do 3 for £16.50 but then add in BT line rental @ £11 a month = £27.50

If Virgin bump my 2meg BB up to £14 would make my Virgin bill £25.

However I would get landline phone (for what its worth) and Sky+ for that extra £1.50 a month with Sky.... (plus Quidco?) as long as I can get Sky to pay for the phone line installation....

However I then have the problem that Sky only do 2meg with a 2Gb allowance... so then I have to pay £5 extra for 40Gb allowance or £10 for unlimited.....

Its a bloody minefield and thats why Virgin think they can get away with putting up the prices because they know its not easy to switch....

Only other option I suppose is mobile BB @ aprox £7.50 and then either keep Virgin TV, get Sky TV or get Freesat / Freeview.

M

If you get mobile BB (a valid option), only do so if you live in a built up area with nearly max strength 3G reception otherwise you may not like the disrupted service on occassion.

Also its not good for heavy downloading or gaming, if that is what you are interested in.

Otherwise its a good option I got family on it but I personally download and play games online.

RHYSDAD

RHYSDAD wrote: »

I'm currently on M broadband at £10 a month, rising to £17 in three months time. I rang today and explained that i wanted a land line and possible tv package. I am currently with sky and so in three months time i would be paying £33.50 for 'M' broadband and sky entertainment (1) mix. I was offered existing broadband deal, 'M' phone line and an XL tv package with no installation costs for £31.50 a month. Sounds okay to me but i guess there will be someone who thinks i could do better? I thought that was allright myself...

Well, quelle surprise!

The confirmation letter for this 'deal' turned up yesterday and it is not in fact the £31.50 i was offered but nearer £43 with the added £30 installation.
Rang up customer services to be greeted by the most disinterested operator i've had for a while. Easily a medal contender on my 'crap, unhelpful,' call centre staff league table......
Told them to poke it. I can live without their tv phone etc...

Wig

RHYSDAD wrote: »

Well, quelle surprise!

The confirmation letter for this 'deal' turned up yesterday and it is not in fact the £31.50 i was offered but nearer £43 with the added £30 installation.
Rang up customer services to be greeted by the most disinterested operator i've had for a while. Easily a medal contender on my 'crap, unhelpful,' call centre staff league table......
Told them to poke it. I can live without their tv phone etc...

You did still go through the "I'm thinking of leaving" route? The general CS dept are useless.

But I think more people should just say goodbye to virgin, they are useless, they are dishonest with their pricing/discounts. And customer loyalty means nothing to them. It just might make them wake up to themselves.

sprogs

I forgot to call when my BB went up from £10 to £18 last month. Called this morning and the best they could offer me is £14 for my 2mb broadband.

I have virgin mobile contract (counts for nothing when negotiating apparently) and cannot switch my landline from BT due to work.