Virgin Media 'secret' pricing?

Irratus_Rusticus

Been bundled with Virginmedia since Noah was a lad. Moving in coming months when sold to area not covered by cable so can't renew contract or face early disconnect fees.

As I'm out of contract with no loyalty discount, am paying £50.77 pm for 'Super 50 Fibre' BB, XL TU and landline. No TV and no complaints about quality.

But I'll need mobile web access more than in past so had cunning plan to buy sim free phone and opt for sim only deal (maybe with VM for UL mins, texts and 4GB @ £15pm). Can use wifi to keep data use down.

Hardly use landline so thought why keep it before move? Read up all the VM website and downloaded their pdf tariffs. Thought I had the figures clear, rang VM CS to confirm what I would pay if I cancelled the landline in favour of a mobile sim deal.

Told me if I cancelled phone I would be automatically put on 12 month contract for my remaining broadband at £30.25pm, loyalty discounted (Noah effect) to £25.25.

Kept saying I didn't want contract due to early exit fees. Gradually emerged that I could be facilitated in my "non-regular" proposal to delete my phone service without automatically entering a BB contract, but this would cost me not £30.25 but £35.78, as the BB would be stand-alone.

I asked why this higher price is nowhere in the legal stuff's fine print. VM said they don't offer non-contract deals and the higher price is something called "true retail cost" of their broadband before discounted in bundle offers, so no legal obligation to mention the non-contract BB price. "That's why we are here on the phone, to explain this."

I asked how I as a long standing loyal customer could verify the extra £5.53 was a universal fee not made up just to punish me for wanting no landline and was told I had to take their word for it.

If I wanted to go ahead and cancel the landline they needed a month's notice (I pay month in advance anyway). Over many years they have always changed services (up or down) on day asked and within the hour and credited back if necessary.

No room to bend they said. Doing their best for me "offering" a non-contract BB-only price they said. The computer usually says no (literal translation). I'm already on no-contract BB so they aren't offering me nowt. Butwhy not let them put me straight through to their mobile folks to sign up for a mobile SIM straight away to get the "deal" they had offered me on standalone broadband?

Got to admire that last bit. I feel all loyalty loved up by VM.

Is it legal not to display all pricing? What happens to other awkward people who want broadband only when their contract ends? Presumably they pay the secret £35.76 too? Or maybe not if they didn't take a bundle at the start?

visidigi

http://store.virginmedia.com/broadband/compare-broadband/index.html

Toggle at top of page shows BB and phone pricing and BB only.

BB only has always been more, on the basis the phone can make them more revenue if you use it

Nothing new here at all...all as expected.

Irratus_Rusticus

visidigi wrote: »

http://store.virginmedia.com/broadband/compare-broadband/index.html

Toggle at top of page shows BB and phone pricing and BB only.

BB only has always been more, on the basis the phone can make them more revenue if you use it

Nothing new here at all...all as expected.

Thanks for answer. Yes, read that page and always understood BB alone costs more. But that page (and everywhere else read) says nothing about a higher cost once the 12 month contract ends other than lose any loyalty (contract) discount. Bear in mind they also take a loyalty discount off the quoted contract price if you renew it and have the sense to ring and ask for a discount. So the loss of the loyalty discount plus the hidden "retail" charge is over £10 for the same service when out of contract.

My question is how a so-called retail fee can be kept off the fine print?

[Deleted User]

Can't see anything has been "hidden" at all.

visidigi

Irratus_Rusticus wrote: »

Thanks for answer. Yes, read that page and always understood BB alone costs more. But that page (and everywhere else read) says nothing about a higher cost once the 12 month contract ends other than lose any loyalty (contract) discount. Bear in mind they also take a loyalty discount off the quoted contract price if you renew it and have the sense to ring and ask for a discount. So the loss of the loyalty discount plus the hidden "retail" charge is over £10 for the same service when out of contract.

My question is how a so-called retail fee can be kept off the fine print?

The price does not change after 12 months (separate mid-term price rises aside), unless you call them to renegotiate, where they can move you to the current applicable pricing (which is likely to be higher than what was agreed 12 months prior).

I have been with VM since telewest - currently I pay 34% less than the list price for my package. Because I negotiated.

You wont hear me complaining I am paying less than the tariff!

Irratus_Rusticus

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

Can't see anything has been "hidden" at all.

Probably my useless explaining as VM CS admitted the retail price (their words) is not explained anywhere because, they say, they have no legal obligation to show it.

"The price does not change after 12 months"

Exactly. Also with VM since Telewest and if I ever went off contract the bundle price didn't go up (just lost any loyalty discount which triggered me ringing for a new contract deal).

So if you follow their website literally, a new customer opting for 50MB BB alone would pay £30.25 after the first six months. If our history repeats itself they would not pay more than £30.25 after the 12 months. But they could ring and negotiate a loyalty discount to renew a contract. No different to a bundle renewal?

No mention of a "retail price" hike once out of contract.

So like for like, if I drop out of my phone service, I'd reasonably expect to be on the same non-discounted price of £30.25 for BB unless the terms and conditions told me I would pay £5.53 more than the folks who never had a bundle?

VM admit this extra fee is not revealed so that's not arguable. The question yet again is why is it legal not to publish it? On face value, it looks like a punishment/disincentive to drop off the phone rental. BB-only customers would presumably not face it once out of contract. (We agree the cost doesn't go up).

If a "retail cost" can be off the page like this, why bother publishing any tariffs?

Maybe I'm not explaining this well?

tomtontom

They don't have to publicly publish every tariff they offer. If they wanted to they could offer every single customer a different tariff, this is fine as long as they are clear in the tariff offering to that individual customer.

Irratus_Rusticus

Okay, no contract expert myself but MSE is the place to be I guess!

VM make great play about their "legal stuff". But the contract you get sent is only for the period of the contract, I realise. It's complicated to argue anyway because we all know everybody can in theory argue a better personal deal. Survival of the fittest.

But it sticks in the throat learning of a new and unarguably hidden extra charge after many years custom just when I had a cunning plan to save a few quid.

And knowing they do make personal deals, it is total baloney that they have to charge me this extra £5+ a month to "help" me stay on out of contract broadband only.

If I could get a rolling BB deal until I sell up I'd maybe move on principle.

Thanks for letting me vent.

visidigi

They have by far and away the best interest solution in the country and they know this.

There is no obligation for them to offer you the same price as a new customer (I have never paid more than a new customer in the whole time I have been with them since the original 12 month contract minimum term)

kwikbreaks

tomtontom wrote: »

If they wanted to they could offer every single customer a different tariff

In practice they do. They run their business like a car boot stall.

If you don't call in and haggle you may well end up paying more than new customers. If you haggle you'll get a lower price but be locked in for at least 12 months. The real annoyance is that even when you've agreed a price and a new minimum term they will like as not try upping the price on some pretext or other a bit later on. You will be offered a free exit when they do that but if you call in again you may well end up with an even lower price and a fresh 12 month contract.

This fluidity of pricing and the hassle of constantly calling in to avoid being ripped off was what finally led to me giving them the elbow.

DavidP24

OK forget Virgin, the issue is you are moving and you do not want to be tied in.

That may mean a change in speed for a while

So you can move to a month to month contract with Plusnet but you always pay when you terminate rather than move a line.

Other option is to terminate Virgin and go mobile

You can get an EE Osprey2 Mini MiFi router and a data sim, I managed to get a promo 100gb sim but they only do these twice a year. Still as a temporary solution they are OK and if you have 4g they are pretty fast.

Then when you move you will be a new customer to all suppliers and can get the best deal going.