Broadband - any reason to consider staying with BT?

JBEAN

I have 99% made up my mind to switch my broadband from BT to Virgin Media - is there any reason not to?

Reasons to leave..

- I am frustrated beyond belief with my internet service which has been dropping out intermittently - several times a day - for weeks now. I have had 3 engineers visit our property and apparently fix the fault - and on the last visit this week I was told that although it is still dropping out - it can take 10 days for it to properly "settle" down after the repair. My speed is usually up to 20Mbps.

My landline is also crackling intermittently

i can't get any joy from customer services - just endless waiting on the line waiting to answer the same old questions, turn off hub, reset everything etc etc

the last contact with them they agreed to call me saturday to see if the fault has cleared

However, I have had friends nearby suggest that Virgin Media would be a better option as their fibre is so much faster and more efficient than BT.

I am tied into BT until August - but would be prepared to pay the penalty if necessary, as I would rather spend the next 7 months getting a decent service from another provider than spending all this time on the phone to BT trying to resolve the issues I have

I would really appreciate thoughts on switching...am I missing anything - or am I right in thinking that BT will never provide as good a service as Virgin's fibre?

I am a photographer - so spend a lot of time uploading photos. A faster broadband would definitely be advantageous.

At the moment I am paying £40.99 to BT for Broadband - Infinity 1 and line rental

I separately pay Sky for the very basic package

do I need to cancel my BT line rental if I change broadband. What if I want to keep my landline number?

Sorry if I sound stupid, but I have been with BT for over 25 years and have never changed anything with them....but their dire "customer service" is getting the better of me

AndyPK

Humm....

Be aware with virgin they love to put their prices up twice a year. If that annoys you then stay away.

If BT can't get openreach to fix the problem then who can?
I would use your 7 months to get this fixed! Keep on a them.

Keeping your phone with BT and having Virgin BB has to be the most expensive combination! It maybe worth doing though for the next 7 months if you can get the Virgin media BB only for £18 a month.

You should be able to transfer your number to virgin if that is what you meant.
You then pay virgin £19 LR instead

CHeck out
https://www.uswitch.com
to see if its still available.


Yes VM Is fast, although some area's complain it slows down in the early evening

JBEAN

Thanks Andy - apparently the cheapest Virgin can offer me is £30 p/mth

System

I have had 3 engineers visit our property and apparently fix the fault - and on the last visit this week I was told that although it is still dropping out - it can take 10 days for it to properly "settle" down after the repair. My speed is usually up to 20Mbps.

My landline is also crackling intermittently

I had this and it took 2 years to sort. Its a break in a cable interconnect usually where its near a road. The downside is that when they do a line test it usually temporarily "fixes" the problem for a day or two so the engineers find nothing when they test the line at your house. What you need to do is if like I did, when the engineer calls you to tell you they're on their way tell them NOT to do a line test before they come and test it at your house.

AndyPK

JBEAN wrote: »

Thanks Andy - apparently the cheapest Virgin can offer me is £30 p/mth

Arh yes, you seam to have just missed the £18 offer.


https://www.uswitch.com/broadband/packages/

are offering it for £29.

JBEAN

what a shame - but the £29 package still seems a good deal? Im happy to exchange a Tivo box for a sky one. So instead I'll be paying Virgin £29 for a year instead of BT - £41 and Sky £35. Unless Im missing something Ive got nothing to lose?

AndyPK

What you are missing is that BB only is £30/month

TV from virgin is ontop !

look at

http://www.virginmedia.com/

and select bundles


Don't expect virgin to be cheap, well not after 12 months anyway.

they now have a V6 box to replace the TIVO

And if you want a phone line you still need to pay someone ~£19/month