Orange charge to move from Talk Talk, not BT

SoFedUpOfBeingRippedOff

Hi, I've been with Talk Talk for phone and broadband services for almost 2 years and am out of the minimum contract period. I wanted to change to Orange but Orange said it would cost £60 to transfer the line away from Talk Talk and the only way around it was to transfer back to BT and then to Orange. Talk Talk say it's not their charge so must be Orange. This is a new one on me. Does that mean I can't transfer my line to another provider that isn't BT without paying a fee? Thanks in advance of any info.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

Corporate device aimed at preventing you moving and staying with your oh so wonderful Talk Talk instead of going over to competitor BT.*yes it sticks* A direct Corporate attack on Service switches and bargain hunters-and this Forum.

hippey

Sounds about right.

If you pay line rental to Talk Talk you are likely to be on their LLU equipment therefore to move to anyone else there will be a charge.

Some operators may absorb the charge where others pass it on, this is the biggest issue when moving to a non-BT operator who puts you line on their equipment.....moving back is a problem!

Mark_In_Hampshire

The charge is imposed neither by Orange nor Talk Talk, but Openreach. It's the charge for moving the other end of your phone line from one piece of exchange kit to another. That said, I've seen this quoted at £45 in the past, not £60. Transferring to BT might cost £129 or £0 seemingly depending on who you get in the sales department.

macman

Very difficult to be able to move from LLU direct to another LLU.
However you can go back to BT on a return to donor, this is free but requires a 12m lne rental contract with BT.
Once back on BT, you can place your broadband where you wish. Although the real question is-why Horange?

Stuart_W

If you want to go from TalkTalk to Orange, go via quidco to get £70 cashback which will cover most of the £60 charge imposed.

http://www.quidco.com/orange-home-broadband/

spike7451

Mark_In_Hampshire wrote: »

The charge is imposed neither by Orange nor Talk Talk, but Openreach. It's the charge for moving the other end of your phone line from one piece of exchange kit to another. That said, I've seen this quoted at £45 in the past, not £60. Transferring to BT might cost £129 or £0 seemingly depending on who you get in the sales department.

Especially now that Orange use WBC (Wholesale Broadband Connect) or BT IP Stream for BBand now..

SoFedUpOfBeingRippedOff

I just wanted to say thanks for all the responses. I don't really know about LLU equipment. I don't mind paying charges if they are made clear up front, but I didn't know if I moved away from BT it would be so difficult or expensive to move somewhere else. "A direct Corporate attack on Service switches and bargain hunters-and this Forum." seems the most appropriate comment.

I phoned TalkTalk and asked about this charge and they said it was nothing to do with them. When I told them I was going to move, they offered me a better deal, which was comparable to the one I would have got with Orange so I have decided to stay. It doesn't seem like I'm free to move without paying anyway. It almost seems like we have to pay to take our custom anywhere these days.

Mark_In_Hampshire

SoFedUpOfBeingRippedOff wrote: »

I just wanted to say thanks for all the responses. I don't really know about LLU equipment. I don't mind paying charges if they are made clear up front, but I didn't know if I moved away from BT it would be so difficult or expensive to move somewhere else. "A direct Corporate attack on Service switches and bargain hunters-and this Forum." seems the most appropriate comment.

I phoned TalkTalk and asked about this charge and they said it was nothing to do with them. When I told them I was going to move, they offered me a better deal, which was comparable to the one I would have got with Orange so I have decided to stay. It doesn't seem like I'm free to move without paying anyway. It almost seems like we have to pay to take our custom anywhere these days.

The regulator is partly to blame for benevolently waiving this charge through. But the problem exists in part because, with the exception of cable, all providers use phone lines to deliver their services, provided by private company called Openreach which is part of BT.

That private company should expect to be able to make a charge for delivering the service - to the ISP/provider - of carrying out the work. However given it's only a few minutes work, the charges are ridiculous.

It doesn't apply when you change, say, your gas supplier, because nothing actually changes except who sends you the bill. There is no work involved.

Were there any competition at the infrastructure level then the charges might well fall via that mechanism. But, there is not.

You could then argue that the infrastructure should have remained in public hands and under public control and only the provision should have been privatised. But we are where we are.

TalkTalk

hi SoFedUpOfBeingRippedOff,


I can confirm that the only charges relevant with TalkTalk would be if you are still in contract at the time you choose to move. Any activation fees with the new ISP would need to be queried with them directly.

Regards

Mark
TalkTalk Online Community Department