Can you have line rental separate from call package?

cloudyskies

Hi

Wonder if you could enlighten me on this!
Line rental is with BT, this is due to expire December this year. Call package again with BT, only for phone line as broadband is too poor, runs separately. Not entirely sure why they run separately but package contract ends July 2018! When it comes to renewing line contract next month I am guessing they won't allow me to run package along same timescale as line rental, therefore making it easier for me to possibly change, well not without a large penalty! I do feel it is putting me at a disadvantage as I feel I have no option but to stay with BT. Can I do anything to rectify this without being penalised.
Many thanks in advance.

iniltous

It's not clear who your broadband is with, is it BT but a separate contract to your (also with BT) line rental ?
If your line rental minimum term expires in December, you move automatically onto the standard 30 day notice 'contract' , so you would start to pay whatever £'s that costs, until at least July 2018 to guarantee avoiding broadband ETC's,but you could change line rental provider and keep your current broadband in certain circumstances, depending on the line rental provider you chose.
You get 'inclusive' weekend calls on any BT line rental , if you wanted evenings and weekends, or anytime calls, that would be extra, if you currently have a E&WE or Anytime calls, but don't want it, you would have to cancel that part otherwise it will continue with your 30 day notice line rental, you should be able to cancel the calls part without penalty, everyone is 'in contract' not everyone is inside a minimum term, there are several ways to have BT line rental but make calls that are charged for by other company's, other line rental providers don't have to allow this, and may block access to these company's.

If your broadband is contracted till July 2018 ( still 20 months away) , presumably you took a 24 month contract only about 4 months ago, obviously if you change broadband provider you have to pay ETC's (early termination charges) , but if you look for a new line rental provider but keep your current broadband you would have to make sure that they allowed other company's broadband on their 'line' as the likes of Sky and TALK Talk don't, they only offer their own bundles , line or line and broadband from them, not any mix and match with other company's products, so if for example you signed up to Sky for line rental, that would cancel your line (no penalty) but also your broadband (big ETC penalty) because you cannot have someone else's broadband on a Sky line.

You could pay broadband ETC's and move everything, or look for a line rental provider that allows other company's broadband,(they tend to be smaller 'niche' providers) or you could try and negotiate a BT line rental discount in return for a new minimum term 12 or 18 months, to try and get all 'contracts' minimum terms closer to each other, and shop around then.
Why did you agree to a 24 month contract for broadband if you were not happy with the line rental provider ?

cloudyskies

Thank you for quick response!
I didn't make it clear, I will try again:
BT provide landline, contract expires December 2016.
BT provide call package, which runs separate from landline contract for unknown reason, it expires July 2018.
I get satellite broadband from completely separate company, as BT do not provide a satisfactory quality of line, broadband is not connected to my query.
So it's the call package running separately from line rental I am querying. Basically is there any way I can run them together without being penalised, as it looks to me if I try to link a call package to the new line rental I will soon be negotiating, they will penalise me for the current call package which ends in July 2018. I think I am being disadvantaged as the line rental and call package don't run the same contract length! Hope that is clearer. Thanks

JJ_Egan

You need to ask this question via your BT members help pages/ community forum .

Your calls package seems rather odd in length .

cloudyskies

Gosh I wasn't aware there was one, I will try to find it. Thank you.

iniltous

cloudyskies wrote: »

Thank you for quick response!
I didn't make it clear, I will try again:
BT provide landline, contract expires December 2016.
BT provide call package, which runs separate from landline contract for unknown reason, it expires July 2018.
I get satellite broadband from completely separate company, as BT do not provide a satisfactory quality of line, broadband is not connected to my query.
So it's the call package running separately from line rental I am querying. Basically is there any way I can run them together without being penalised, as it looks to me if I try to link a call package to the new line rental I will soon be negotiating, they will penalise me for the current call package which ends in July 2018. I think I am being disadvantaged as the line rental and call package don't run the same contract length! Hope that is clearer. Thanks

Sorry for my earlier ramble as it didn't address your issue, is your 'calls' package some sort of business arrangement ?, I'm aware of long contract lengths for business (featureline) but nothing like that for residential situations, is BT definitely your call package provider ?, do your calls appear on the same bill as your line rental ?, normally (AFAIK) you can stop /start or change BT call plans on regular line rental plans without penalty
There are company's that call people purporting to be BT, ('oh we are part of BT' , but they aren't, ) move BT customers to their 'dodgy' company, and when the savings they offer dont materialise , have onerous penaltys to get out of the 'contract'

cloudyskies

Thank you iniltous.
Yes it is all with BT on the same quarterly bill and yes it is business, but the contract for line rental runs separate from call package!
From what you are saying though I am wondering if we could change to residential. I do recall we were advised, by BT to take a business line rental as opposed to residential although our business is now almost non existent. Can't remember when call package was organised whether it had to be business because line rental was.
Please don't apologise, you were trying to help me.