New BT Customer very unhappy

terry306uk

I'm just 3 weeks into an 18 month contract with BT Broadband, and I'm already regretting it. I've taken the option 1 package which allows 10gb of usage per month.

I've got the first 12 months free, then £13 per month for the last 6 months of the contract.

One of the reasons I chose BT was for the YouView Box, but was told after my "go live" date that my broadband speed wasn't fast enough to get the YouView Box. And I now realise 10gb is nowhere near enough for my needs, as I watch a lot of streaming content such as BBCiplayer and ITV player, which would have not counted towards my usage allowance had I got the
YouView box.

BT option 1 is usually £13 per month, while the unlimited broadband is just £5 extra at £18 per month. I thought I could now upgrade to unlimited broadband and just pay an extra £5 per month. Or even get it half price for 6 months as advertised on their website. But oh no, if I want to upgrade to the unlimited broadband, I'd have to pay the full £18 per month for 18 months.

And if I wanted to terminate the contract, I was told it would cost me around £200, which seems extortionate, not sure if this figure is correct. It seems I am stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea. I wish I'd never signed up with BT, and would certainly not recommend them!

penrhyn

What is your broadband speed, is it inline with the estimate you got from BT.

terry306uk

Yeh, I think it's in line with what they told me, approx. 1-3mb

macman

So you have no grounds to terminate without paying the ETC. The rate payable as an ETC will be stated in your T&C's, but will of course be very high as it will be a proportion of the monthly fee x 18 (the months left on your contract). Streaming TV eats data, 10GB was never going to be adequate-that is the data allowance that is normally provided on 'light' or 'value' broadband tariffs for very limited usage-emailing and surfing.
How would having the YouView box remove the need for more data-does that tariff come with unlimited data usage?
I don't quite understand how you can not have enough speed for the YouView box but are able to use iPlayer? There's no difference.

DantheMan

Youview is only usable with a connection over 3mb (says it in small print at the bottom of the adverts too), and as far as i'm aware, it would have used your download limit.

Have to say it might be a case of just biting the bullet and either upgrading to unlimited or not watching as much on iPlayer etc.

Another stance may be that BT aren't fulfilling part of their contract to you? (might want to clarify with more knowledgeable members) As Youview was part of your deal and now suddenly you can't have it?

Enterprise_1701C

You say you chose BT for the You View, did you actually mention that when taking out the contract, was it part of the contract conditions? If so, then they have probably broken their side of the contract, especially as they did not mention it until after the live date. Good luck though, BT are awful to deal with.

terry306uk

Yes the YouView box allows unlimited data usage with BT, they told me it wouldn't count towards the 10gb per month.

BT said they wouldn't supply me with a YouView box unless my speed was nearer the 5mb as they said I wouldn't be able to stream smoothly without constant buffering. Yet I watch BBC iplayer on my PC with rarely any problems.

terry306uk

Enterprise_1701C wrote: »

You say you chose BT for the You View, did you actually mention that when taking out the contract, was it part of the contract conditions? If so, then they have probably broken their side of the contract, especially as they did not mention it until after the live date. Good luck though, BT are awful to deal with.

I did ask for the YouView box when I signed up to broadband, but they said I'd have to wait until after my "go live" date. Then after this, they told me my speed wasn't fast enough.

POPPYOSCAR

When I requested this Bt told me straightaway I could not have it as my speed was not sufficient, the first thing they did was test the line.

DantheMan

So basically they said 'maybe' and you heard that as 'yes'?

What is your actual speed?

As stated it requires at least 3MB.

So that may be their sticking point, you could fight for the box though, or buy it seperately?

penrhyn

YouView boxes are coming down in price around £230 for the 500Gb one.
You really need an unlimited contract though.
Check your actual connection speed by logging on to the router and obtaining its line statistics.