BT Sport fiver a month

Paperweight

pen1 wrote: »

I don't know whether there's a specific statement from OFCOM on the matter.

However, OFCOM are a monitoring service and specify in multiple places on their website that "we can't investigate individual cases".

See, for example, http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/complain/phone-and-broadband-complaints/sales/

They can launch investigations, however, if for example, there is a widespread issue and they are not satisfied that providers are doing sufficient to remedy it.

In this instance, it appears that OFCOM have alerted BT that they are receiving a volume of complaints, and BT have responded by making a team available to address these complaints; and have asked OFCOM to refer complainants to the webpage at http://btsupport.custhelp.com/app/answers/blank/a_id/53696/?s_cid=con_FURL_btsportreferral

So, that's OFCOM's response, as I see it. They've given BT the opportunity, in the first instance, to resolve complaints via their own complaints process.

Thanks Pen1.
As I understand it then, OFCOM are aware of a large volume of unhappy customers and have instructed BT to sort it out. I do not believe that the matter ends there however. As you imply by your "in the first instance" comment, they will continue to monitor the situation and could potentially intervene again if they feel that BT has not done enough to resolve the problems. So we should keep complaining.

Also, as I am sure you are aware but others may not be (I certainly wasn't), OFCOM and the ombudsman are not one and the same. The fact that OFCOM are currently watching with interest and referring complainants back to BT, does not mean that the ombudsman is doing the same. I am sure that the ombudsman will be reporting back to OFCOM the volume and nature of the complaints that it is receiving. So once again.... keep complaining. As mentioned elsewhere however, there is a process that needs to be followed before the ombudsman will get involved. The MSE Resolver system however makes that process very easy and guides you through it.

Bottom line is, if we want something to happen and we want to stop BT from getting away with their unacceptable behaviour, we have to keep complaining and escalating.

pen1

Paperweight,
OFCOM will probably have contacted BT due to the volume of consumers who have completed a "Monitoring form" via the "Complain to OFCOM" buttons on their website; or contacted them in another way.

If people remain dissatisfied after following BT's complaints process, then they remain free to provide additional feedback to OFCOM via their website etc.

I would be cautious about thinking that OFCOM will offer fast formal intervention, however. OFCOM has been receiving high volumes of complaints for example, about providers making it difficult to cancel/terminate their broadband & pay-tv contracts, and have only recently opened a formal investigation after the issue escalated over several years.

As you are now aware, OFCOM and the "ombudsman" are not one and the same. OFCOM require Communications Providers to subscribe to an ombudsman serice as part of their Complaints Codes. However, the requirement doesn't include pay-tv (Sky voluntarily permit submission of pay-tv complaints by its customers); hence my opinion at post #284, that many of these complaints are likely to be outside of the remit of the Ombudsman, unless for example, there was a consequential dispute about the re-contracting of broadband.

I am not trying to discourage anybody from complaining, but just trying to be realistic having "been there" about what the various authorities will or won't do.

Paperweight

Thanks again Pen1. I understand that the ombudsman will not intervene over BT TV or BT price rises, but believe he might on the basis of BTs clause 57 and my claim that I have been materially disadvantaged and should therefore be allowed to terminate my bb contract FOC. BT claim that the BT Sport contract and the bb contract are separate and that I can therefore only use clause 57 to terminate my BT Sport contract. However, I believe that this is disingenuous and misleading as free BT Sport was an overt marketing offer from BT to encourage take-up of BT bb (and was definitely a major inducement to me). Thus the TV element is bound up with the bb element. At least, that is how I see it and how I hope the ombudsman will see it. My understanding (which may well be wrong) is that the ombudsman will not just consider the legal/contractual terms of the issue but will also include an assessment of "fairness". Hopefully he will agree with me (and many others) that BTs actions, whether legally watertight or not, are simply unfair and disingenuous.

electrician

Just phoned BT and downgraded to Sport Lite with no tie into another contract (will go and check T&Cs !), I also noticed that they hadn't set up my yearly line saver and only offered 1 month free and a new years contract to set it up WHEN IT WAS THERE FAULT ! as 'the system cancelled it' so I only have to bide my time for another 9 months and then i'm off to another supplier with everything !

Jed_Exodus

So after last night where BT were telling me my contract is coming to an end, I checked with them today and it would appear my Infinity contract was for 18 months and not 2 years. I still have 7 months left, so I still wouldn't call it "coming to an end".

On top of this I decided to look into getting BT TV. I was looking at the free pack so I can watch the Sports channels for free. The TV contract is for one year and so I decided to start the ordering process. Half way through it asked if I would like to renew my Broadband contract, I untickedd the box and carried on. Much to my surprise at the end it stated that my BB contract would be extended for 12 months. So I went back and unticked the box and it made no difference. So I didn't order.

This conduct is unacceptable, and I don't buy into the earlier advice of "not using webpages". It's 2015, I have neither the time nor inclination to waste my time waiting on hold to talk to someone in India, when most companies have webpages that work and are not deliberately confusing.

BT need to sort themselves out or they need to be sorted out.

pen1

Jed_Exodus wrote: »

... Much to my surprise at the end it stated that my BB contract would be extended for 12 months. So I went back and unticked the box and it made no difference. ....

That's because BT TV is dependent on you having BT Broadband. Thus you couldn't fulfill the TV contract without having a BT Broadband contract covering the whole of the TV minimum term.

Therefore, if you agree a 12 month contract for BT TV & don't have 12 months remaining on your Broadband contract, BT extend the Broadband contract to align the minimum term with the TV minimum term.

Jed_Exodus

That's not true because it also says you can get the BT TV if you're out of contract on BB for around £6.50 per month.

[Edit] I see it would be beneficial to keep BB contract as long as both expire at the same time.

pen1

Jed_Exodus wrote: »

That's not true because it also says you can get the BT TV if you're out of contract on BB for around £6.50 per month. ....

I think that you may be referring to the additional cost of BT Sport Lite via a Sky box (£6.75), when not in a broadband minimum term and choosing not to renew?

There's 3 issues/contracts in play here- BT Broadband, BT TV & BT Sport!

In any event, BT only provide the their iptv-based streaming tv service on their own network, so you would have to be a BT Broadband subscriber to receive BT TV throughout the minimum term of your TV contract; and that's why BT re-align the broadband minimum term, where necessary, so that it covers the whole of the TV minimum term.

The "legal stuff" for BT TV Starter Pack, for example, states:

BT TV Starter pack

£4 a month from month 13. You'll need BT Broadband or BT Infinity. Existing broadband customers must have 12 months remaining on their contract, or re-contract for 12 months. BT TV Starter includes a YouView box, but if you stop your service in the first year we will charge you up to £99. HDMI connection required.

http://www.productsandservices.bt.com/products/options/

Jed_Exodus

No if definitely states that if your broadband contract runs out while you have BT TV then you will be charged £6.75 for BT Sport Pack. See image below.

In light of their claims that these two contracts are not linked in any way they might want to be careful when forcing people to renew one to take the other.



Doesn't matter whether you click Renew or not here, it renews it anyway.

pen1

Ok, Jed Exodus, but that's nevertheless referring to the cost of BT Sport if your BT Broadband minimum term expires. It doesn't change the fact that you can't have BT TV unless you have a minimum term BT Broadband contract that covers the whole of the TV minimum term.

At the end of the minimum term, the contracts for BT Broadband & BT TV would continue on a rolling 30 day basis. You could only continue to sunbscribe to BT TV if you continue to subscribe to BT Broadband.

If you kept BT Broadband & BT TV but chose not to renew the BT Broadband minimum term, then you would have to pay an additional sum to receive BT Sport (as that page indicates). If you renewed BT Broadband, this wouldn't renew BT TV, however. BT TV would continue on 30 day rolling basis and you could, for example choose to cancel BT TV and move BT Sport to a Sky Box or watch it via the app.

I'm no legal expert on the question of "linked contracts". I know it's contentious- the issue also affects Sky, for example, who have separate contracts for telephone, broadband & tv, but have regularly marketed them as "bundles". It's something that I think individuals have to argue on an individual basis, because there's not a lot of real support available from outside parties, in my view.

I've had BT TV in the past and am looking to go back to it, but am waiting because I'm 8 months in to a 12 month BT Fibre minimum term & would lose the ability to negotiate the right Fibre package (considering reverting from Infinity 2 to Infinity 1!) as taking BT TV would extend my existing Fibre Broadband contract; so I appreciate what a mess all the re-contracting requirements etc. can make when considering changes.