BT automatic renewal

Mr_Wang

My BT line and broadband ran out yesterday and whilst sat at work I received 3 emails. (I had no idea my contract was up)
Email 1 - stopping your services, thanks for your custom etc.
Email 2 - thanks for your order
Email 3 - welcome to BT and your new 12 month contract.

I called BT and was told that in my original contract I was on a 12 month rolling contract that automatically renewed itself if I didn't cancel.
The problem is that when I first got BT a year back there wasn't cable in my area, and BT is restrictive in is usage policy throttling my services every night which has become a real pain.
I explained this and they tried telling me I had to pay to leave the contract etc.
Then it occurred to me, you get a cooling off period - apparently not, because I already have had the services.
To cut a long story short I eventually managed to get my contract cancelled at no cost but it was hard work.

I have no idea if these terms were in my original contract, but if they were they are very sly and so I hope this serves as a warning to those on BT who don't wish to continue their contract.
Don't be sloppy about it like I was.

macman

Your contract never 'runs out'. An auto-renewing contract will renew for another 12m if you don't tell BT otherwise. A non-renewing contract simply becomes a rolling 30 day contract requiring 30 days notice to be given.
If you are on the former, you will have received either a letter or email advising you that auto-renewal would so take place on x/x and that should have been your trigger to cancel the auto-renewal if required. There is no cooling-off period on a renewal.
New auto-renewing contracts are no longer to be allowed.

Buzby

Auto renewals are of the minimum term (not the contract), neither would your service be terminated or suspended (and you wouldn;t be 'out of contract' either). You would revert to a 30-day notice period and if you did nothing, you could switch suppliers just by giving those 30 days notice. The emails you got were misleading in the extreme, as you did not agree to your service being handled in this way - I suspect some foul play is going on.

OFCOM have outlawed a 'rolling' minimum term and BT claim they have ended the practice.

hareng

Buzby wrote: »

OFCOM have outlawed a 'rolling' minimum term and BT claim they have ended the practice.

I assume this applies to all other providers?
If so my contract ends 27 Feb, if i do nothing an auto 12 month contract implemented. Provider asked me why i was thinking about leaving after 5 years, i said dont like rolling contracts and not being informed prior to it finishing, it went unanswered three weeks ago.
Personally dont like being tied in to contracts, other than that no issues who i am with.

brewerdave

I'm getting a bit confused about this "abolition of auto renewals" from last December.
I assumed that, about 4 weeks before my current "contract" for free evening/weekends calls ends in early July this year, I would receive a letter/email informing me that it was ending and that I would be paying £3.15 pm for the package unless I agreed to a contract extension of 12 months.
Is that interpretation correct? And has anyone first hand experience of this happening since December?

giraffe69

Good question. I would also like to know as my contract is up next month.

jem16

Mr_Wang wrote: »

My BT line and broadband ran out yesterday and whilst sat at work I received 3 emails. (I had no idea my contract was up)
Email 1 - stopping your services, thanks for your custom etc.
Email 2 - thanks for your order
Email 3 - welcome to BT and your new 12 month contract.

I called BT and was told that in my original contract I was on a 12 month rolling contract that automatically renewed itself if I didn't cancel..

This isn't what is meant to be happening according to the BT Rep on here.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=50531655&postcount=11

Perhaps the BT Rep can come back on here and explain why it's happening.

Buzby

For clarification it is ONLY BT that have to disassemble their rolling commitment (which is the only thing that rolls, the contrract itself does not). The concern was that BT linked the discount package of Free WEEKDAY off-peak calls to an agreement of an auto-renewing minimum term without the customer's intervention. It was this (and only this) that OFCOM objected to, and had been abandoned. I do not believe any other supplier offers a similar arrangement, therefore there is no issue for them to remove their minimum terms. Remember, it is not the the minimum term that is the issue, but the implementation of the auto-renewal without the customer's expresss permission.

Brewerdave - basically, you are correct - however although a letter/notice would be expected, it is not a requirement because it isn;t an increase, simply the restoration of the status quo. Those who were previously on the rolling minimum term were bound to it whether or not they recieved the letter notifying them of the impending renewal, and OFCOM upheld this, agreeing that it was up to the customer to signify an opting out, as they had to opt in to get the deal in the first place.

Finally, you are misrepresenting what is happening - there is no 'contract extension' your contract id infinite until you cancel, and has no end date. Once your arrangement ends, you will refert to the standard disconnection notice period, which is 30 days.

brewerdave

Buzby - the "contract" I'm referring to, is the arrangement whereby I agreed to stay with BT for 12 months in return for free weekend/evening weekday calls; BT refer to it as a contract!
I understand that now if I don't do anything I should go back to the standard line rental package.
But with respect you haven't answered my question - do I have to opt in again (for 12 months) to get free weekday evening calls or will they automatically start charging me anyway?
Again,I ask if anyone has finished their 12 month period recently - what actually happened??????

raider

brewerdave wrote: »

Buzby - the "contract" I'm referring to, is the arrangement whereby I agreed to stay with BT for 12 months in return for free weekend/evening weekday calls; BT refer to it as a contract!
I understand that now if I don't do anything I should go back to the standard line rental package.
But with respect you haven't answered my question - do I have to opt in again (for 12 months) to get free weekday evening calls or will they automatically start charging me anyway?
Again,I ask if anyone has finished their 12 month period recently - what actually happened??????

You will need to opt-in again, they won't automatically renew anymore. I called BT the day before mine was due to expire, as I didn't receive a reminder (AGAIN) and was told it would not automatically renew, I would have to call every 12 months to keep it going.

Buzby

Sorry, I thought it was clear, OFCOM have ended this type of promotion, so there is nothing to opt-in to. I have not had a definitive reply from BT other than a rather wooly, your existing arrangement will contrinue without the lock in, so that would mean to renewal is required.

You are not referring to a 'contract' - your acgreement to stay with BT was only a modification to the minimum term commitment, as the service contract stays in place regardless of any varying minimum term, or indeed tariff - none of which has any direct relevance to your agreement to them providing your with telephone service.