Plusnet broadband top pick, we want your feedback

fifthofwhisky

fifthofwhisky wrote: »

I signed up for the deal on MSE, paid line rental up front. Expecting unlimited broadband free for 12 months. I received an e-mail from PlusNet advising they will be charging £9.99 to my account. Would there be an adjustment in the online bill to reflect the deal or is there a problem with billing?


The deal was on this page

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/tips/16-02-2016/#bband

I have just been on the phone to PlusNet and they were very helpful and said they will refund the £9.99 after the payment goes through and amend billing in future.

Missy79

fifthofwhisky wrote: »

I have just been on the phone to PlusNet and they were very helpful and said they will refund the £9.99 after the payment goes through and amend billing in future.

I've just had this exact same thing. £9.99 monthly charge showing when it should be free. Can anyone else comment on whether this will resolve itself or require a call to Plusnet?

glider3560

Missy79 wrote: »

I've just had this exact same thing. £9.99 monthly charge showing when it should be free. Can anyone else comment on whether this will resolve itself or require a call to Plusnet?

My bill shows as:

1 Unlimited (Contracted) - Market 2/3 charge 23/03/2016 22/04/2016 £9.99
1 Call Plan charge 23/03/2016 22/04/2016 £0.00
1 Line Only charge 23/03/2016 22/04/2016 £0.00
1 Offer Code Discount - 1516affoffer7 - - -£9.99

1516affoffer7 was part of the web address on the landing page when I signed up. Also, there is a ticket on my account containing this same code - your tickets can be viewed at https://www.plus.net/wizard/?p=search

inglorius

Plusnet have told me this evening that they will charge me £30 if I transfer my broadband service to a non BT phone line provider such as Virgin or Sky how can that be seems a total rip off

buglawton

glennstar wrote: »

Has anyone made the connection between low cost, cash back, M&S vouchers, etc, etc and crappy service?

To run a business with reliable products and good service costs a lot of money... which is ultimately passed on to customers. If you are benefitting from deals being offered by companies making a land grab then you should understand there are going to be associated costs.

I have been with PlusNet (previously force9) as a dial up provider, ISDN provider and an ADSL provider spanning multiple property moves for almost 20 years without particular issue. That said, I'm technically competent, provide my own router (A Draytek - not the rubbish they provide) and know how to read the data produced by http://speedtest.btwholesale.com/.

I'm not trying to sound like a smart alec but it really does do to try and help yourself where possible;

1. Choose a provider and pay a fair price for the service,
2. Understand what issues are within the power of your provider and which ones are beyond their control (is it BT, OpenReach or your provider that is at fault) and then try and guide your support person accordingly (after all they are humans too),
3. Don't use the bundled services such as email, voip, etc. Why do you think a consumer broadband provider is capable of providing complex products such as these on top of the business of providing your broadband connection? You wouldn't ask the company that manufactures ambulances to perform a bit of brain surgery, would you?
4. Stop constantly switching providers. The very act of changing from one provider to another muddies the waters and causes issues.

Sorry for what is now sounding like a rant.
I have no affiliation with PlusNet, ambulance manufacturers or the broadband industry.

That's a counsel of perfection!

- Using VIOP/bypass providers: All combined phone/broadband providers absolutely gouge you on per minute landline rates, presumably to push you to buy an inclusive calls package. Doesn't work for me (only a moderate user of phone), it's massively cheaper per minute to use my Three pay as you go phone than Virgin. So no wonder my broadband supplier never sells me any phone usage.

- Not switching too often: If you sit with one provider then without exception, like the insurance companies they ramp up the price annually well beyond inflation. Where's the honest company that keeps within the bounds of inflation or even gives you a loyalty reduction?

cairndog

buglawton wrote: »

Plusnets sales and retention lines are indeed easy to reach. Should you have any kind of tech issue however, expect to be on the line for 30 mins before even speaking to a human. Since your issue will likely involve the local loop, Plusnet themselves will then be at the mercy of BT owned Openreach. As they say, "good luck with that".

Hi have you any views on my situation please.

I am currently with John Lewis (via Plusnet) for broadband, and anytime phones which I must have.
We are in a rural area of Kent approx 7miles from exchange and have been getting "up to 3.5mb" download speeds!!
Openreach have now given us a green box etc which went live 2 weeks ago and can apparently give us "fibre up to 76mb " or something inbetween depending on supplier.
I first took broadband with BT but spent hours trying to get any problems sorted out via their asian call centres and eventually cancelled.
Before going to JL I tried Plusnet and had endless trouble with them trying to set us up over several weeks, which makes me wary seeing all the negative stuff on here.
I have to get a new contract for fibre/phone now and Plusnet is a good deal. Better than JL.
However if there is a problem with Plusnet JL have no control and have to wait for plusnet/openreach to sort it out. Although for small problems JL are very accessable.

Now I can't decide which way to go ?

JJ_Egan

Problems are the line and that's all BT Open Reach .
Going through a reseller like JL adds an extra layer .

limayankee

Plusnet have advised me that the normal early termination charges apply to this deal, even though under the deal the broadband is £0/m for 12m.

The early termination charges are:
£10.75/m without line rental saver
£4.00/m with line rental saver

That means if you take this deal with the line rental saver option, cancelling before the 12m contract has ended actually costs more than completing the 12m contract!

i.e.

If you take this deal with the line rental saver option, and complete the 12m contract, total cost is £185.88

If you take this deal with the line rental saver option, and but cancel after the first month, total cost is £185.88 (not refunded) + £4 * 11 = £229.88

Is this legal??

Live chat transcript below:

Plusnet Advisor: at 16:35:20
Hi there, how may I assist you with your Plusnet order today?

Lima Yankee: at 16:44:29
I'm thinking of signing up for this deal: [link to the deal]
Can you please confirm the early termination charges:
(a) if I take the line rental saver option (i.e. pay for £185.88 for 12m line rental upfront)
(b) if I choose to pay line rental monthly (£16.99/m / £17.99 from 1st September 2016)

Lima Yankee: at 16:46:19
I understand how early termination charges work normally, but I'm not sure what happens when I'm signed on to a deal where the broadband is supposed to be £0 for the first 12 months.

Plusnet Advisor: at 16:46:35
Not a problem.

Plusnet Advisor: at 16:46:59
A) The cancellation charge for Unlimited broadband and Phone with Line Rental Saver is £4 per month. Plusnet Advisor: at 16:47:11
The cancellation charge for Unlimited broadband and Phone is £10.75 per month.

Plusnet Advisor: at 16:49:23
The great thing about the line rental saver is after the prices changes it will add more value to your package.

Lima Yankee: at 16:49:47
Can you please double check for option A - there should be no early termination charge because otherwise that would result in me paying more than I would have if I'd completed the full 12 month contract.

Lima Yankee: at 16:50:28
Unless the £4 early termination charge is applied after pro-rata refunding me the unused line rental Plusnet Advisor: at 16:52:11
I have double checked, if you cancel early with the line rental saver option it is £4 a month remaining on the contract. The line rental saver in non-refundable.

Plusnet Advisor: at 16:57:39
Is there anything else I can help you with?

Lima Yankee: at 17:00:12
Ok, to make sure I understand: If I take this deal with the line rental saver option, and see the contract through the whole 12m, I will pay £185.88 over 12m (because the broadband is £0/m for the first 12m). But if I take the same deal then cancel after the first month, I will pay £229.88 over 12m (the £185.88 is not refunded and on top of that I have to pay £4/m for 11 months).

Lima Yankee: at 17:00:52
That can't be right, the early termination charges should never be more than what it would have cost to serve the remainder of the contract.

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:02:43
Yes but the broadband you are receiving for free, actually cost £9.99 a month. So if you consider the price in full, I am sure canceling works out cheaper.

Lima Yankee: at 17:04:09
Nope, under this deal [link to the deal] the broadband really is £0/m for the first 12m

Lima Yankee: at 17:04:26
That's why I'm asking specifically what early termination charges apply under this deal

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:05:48
Yes broadband is £0 a month because of the special offer that is available to you. But the broadband outside the special offer costs £9.99 a month.

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:07:12
And it is these terms and conditions that apply.

Lima Yankee: at 17:09:31
Yes, so if I take this special offer with the line rental saver option, cancelling the contract is more expensive than completing the minimum term?

Lima Yankee: at 17:10:10
^cancelling the contract before 12m is more expensive than completing the 12m minimum term

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:10:44
Yes, but that is simply a sign of how good the deal actually is.

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:11:53
Is there anything else I can help you with?

Lima Yankee: at 17:13:01
I thought early termination charges LEGALLY must be less than what it would cost to complete the contract. i.e. if you've made a non-refundable payment for the whole contract term upfront, then there should be no early termination charges?

Plusnet Advisor: at 17:15:00
Well I am not an expert of the law, but as I said before the terms and conditions will be associated with the broadband the costs £9.99 a month. So the cancellation charges are less.

[Deleted User]

Limayankee,

I don't know about legal, but it's certainly stupid.

I would try asking on the Plusnet forum - there are some staff there who deal with queries.

I've read quite a few posts from staff recently contradicting call centre staff and confirming feedback would be given to their managers.

limayankee

Looks like these silly early termination charges really do apply:
From an admin on the Plusnet forums:

The early termination charges are worked based on the standard cost of the service, not the discount or special offer rate which is why they may be higher in your circumstances.

Chris Parr
Plusnet Help Team