BT charging me for NOT using my landline??

Flopjack

Hello. Blimey this sites getting huge since I last visited the forum (couldn't remember username, rejoined newbie unfortunately!)

To the point of my dilemma:

Broadband Option 1 Unlimited Weekend Call Plan
£21.50pm Broadband & £13.60pm Phone line.

I'm 12 months in on an 18 month contract with the above package with BT, I joined March 2010.

From Feb 2011 I had to start paying BT £50 per month to cover my account debit. I didn't really understand this, this was a brand new account with no debit, £30 connection fee and I never use the landline/go over the allowance. But they say my debit has been around the £120 mark. They originally suggested I pay £70 per month! I told them where to take that suggestion!! So got it down to £50.

But still .... I'm paying £50 per month?! for what?! I don't understand how I'm paying so much! I've asked a lot of friends and family, and no one is paying near this much for their services. It's unreasonable to expect a single person with a single income to afford this for one persons usage.

I checked my recent bill and see there's been charges because I'm NOT using the landline?! Is this really what I'm paying for? This is quite ludicrous to charge someone for not using the line. Like many people, I have a mobile phone contract with a lot of minutes included in that bill - like many people, I no longer have a real use for my landline.

I've heard I can have my phoneline blocked from using it for phone calls?

I could even cut my contract short and save money that way. I'd pay a fee of £49.75 under the BT Hold to Term Charges and then pay off the remaining £98 'debit' on my account - and then I'd be free to join someone like Plusnet and pay £6.49 for JUST broadband. That's an insane difference in saving money. I'm paying £50 PER MONTH, this is insane.

I'd appreciate a little nudge in the right direction, if any ones made it to the end of this message!! (thank-you for reading!!) xxx

Mark_In_Hampshire

Are you on one of those budget accounts where you give BT sanction to more or less decide how much you'll pay each month?

If so, why not change to quarterly billing and simply pay what you actually owe as it falls due, instead of accrueing a credit to their advantage?

With regard to the charges for not using the landline, this is probably tied in with some package you have which gives some incentive or benefit subject to a certain number of calls being made per month. The solution is to keep the benefit and make the calls, or lose the benefit - which if you don't use it anyway, might not be any benefit at all.

Flopjack

You're absolutely right on the money Mark! After a long wait on the phone (cor BT take forever to call!!) It would appear I have to make these calls as agreement for having a reduced installation cost - just wish they'd told me that's what it was months ago!!

I've got them down to the absolute minimum I can pay towards this debit, so that's something I guess!

Thanks Mark!

OldGreyFox

The penalty for not making the two calls each month is easy to overcome, just make two 10 second calls one weekend each month (so they're 'free') to 020 7043 1320 or 01798 808111 the Speaking Clock.