Broadband Price Increase and Line Rental

Max1980

Hi all,

I have a question about how to deal with a price increase from my broadband provider. I paid for line rental for a year and then got a letter about a month later saying that they were going to increase broadband prices and that I had 30 days to disconnect (not because they're nice, but because Oxcom doesn't let them change the conditions of the contract without giving their clients a chance to leave without having to pay for the increase).

I called hoping to get out of the contract and tried to find out what that would be like. I imagined that they would have one of two choices:
1. Cancelling the broadband and line rental, refunding the unused part of the line rental that was paid
2. If that was not possible, then they would allow me to leave after the line rental payment period had ended

The logic was that there should be a possibility to disconnect without being negatively impacted by the change in price, and that if I was forced to forfeit the 9 months of line rental, which is more than the increase for the rest of the period, I would be more impacted than if I took the increase. The company agreed that this was the case and their recommendation was to just stick with them despite the increase.

Does anyone know what my rights are in this case? I am forced to either lose what is left in the line rental contract or accept the price increase or are they considered part of the same contract and they should therefore allow me to unsubscribe? Is there any precedent to this from Oxcom or anyone else?

Thanks.

PS: I have an 18 month contract and a 12 month line rental contract, which means that they claim that I have to pay the increased prices until the end of the 18 months and not the 12 (I wouldn't have minded being allowed to leave after the 12 months, to be honest). I'm not sure if that makes a difference.

JJ_Egan

You can cancel the broadband as per the letter .
Will they refund your separate contract for line rental unlikely but you need to ask your provider . Nothing to stop you having broadband with another provider .

I would phone up and ask to cancel the BB and see if they make an offer .

macman

JJ_Egan wrote: »

You can cancel the broadband as per the letter .
Will they refund your separate contract for line rental unlikely but you need to ask your provider . Nothing to stop you having broadband with another provider .

I would phone up and ask to cancel the BB and see if they make an offer .

Unless it's an LLU provider-the OP didn't say who the provider is.