Updated Find the cheapest broadband discussion thread

AmberWH

That's a pain. I found that Talk Talk accepted my BT number, Plusnet accepted my Talk Talk number, and then Sky accepted my Plusnet number. However the other day when I was so fed up with the huge hikes by Sky to my BB and Anytime Talk bill, and tried to sign up with EE, the forms I was filling in said no to transferring my number. The next day when EE rang me to find out why I hadn't gone through with it, they said they could have kept my phone number after all.

I still can't believe this isn't in the media - how could they raise the charges so much and call previous years' charges as "discounts"? British Gas was in the headlines for a much lower hike in prices. It is a cartel for sure!

R.A.M._It

Hi,

I have been with BT for 5 years now and every time my contract is coming close to an end I ring them up and threaten to leave and they come back with a better deal.

most notably was what happened to me recently, in this week.

I looked at my services online as I was paying £53/mnth for unlimited fibre broadband and phone with caller display and free evening+weekend calls.

So ring them to discuss and they aren't budging, so I scan the deals on all the comparison sites and find the one which gives me the same services and I find the cheapest with John Lewis Broadband for £35, so I apply then ring BT to say I am leaving and why, I also find that the new provider applies the cancellation within 14 days and you shouldn't pay just the same as cancelling after 30 days.

BT then ask what I will be paying in total, so I say £35/month and the operator knows I have 14 day cool off with the new provider. They then comeback and give me the same as what I am on for £30.79/month. So I accepted, keeping my 14 day cool off in mind.

I have gone through all the comparison sites and I can't seem to beat it for my area with the same services.

My wife & I also have a Sim only Mobile contract with them and I said I also wanted to cancel it as I found that 3 do 4GB with unlimited voice and text for £9 then then got me a deal which I can't find on their website for the same keeping both mobiles with them for £18/month.

So conclusion ring them threaten to leave if they don't budge apply for new contract with new provider then with-in your 14 days ring them up and see what they can do, if they can beat it then ring new contract and cancel with new provider.

Easy only hassle is ringing call centres ring very BT start from 8am so try ringing from then or 9am is the best time as you usually get straight through at that time. :T :money:

arealhighlander

I too cannot see this £100 back offer from EE anywhere but mentioned on here, u Switch are offering a £50 Amazon giftcard.

My current BT Infinity deal is about to end and will increase to about £44 a month.

I currently had BTs %4 Meg service but it appears to have been upgraded for free as its currently sitting at about 70.

Looking at deals, EEs 76 Meg deal works out a £32 a month (£26.45 if the £100 back works)

So I guess Ill go ahead with that and then contact BT and see if they will get it down to nearer the same, it would be handy to keep BT as I get free caller ID and access to BT Wifi when out so would be worth paying a few quid a month more for, but not £20 odd

mocksy21

I've tried in the past to get broadband with Talk Talk and when they've come to install the phone line they won't do it saying i only have a cable box and to sign up with Virgin as it's compatible with the cable box in the street. I've now been with them for 3 years and they won't give me a cheaper package . Is there an alternative to this as it seems i have no choice but to pay them more for my loyalty?

thanks

teddysmum

Having spoken to my sister again, it appears that she cant take her number that has been from BT, to Post Office (then TalkTalk)to PlusNet, because it is a move to a house which has never had a phone line.


Unlike my sister with her poor £1 offer from PlusNet,I was immediately offered the same deal that I have had for a year, less the £40 voucher and line rental accounting for last year's £1 increase in line rental. I asked for a reduction on a calls package , but was told that BT charge directly for line and calls so don't let them deal on them ;just broadband and extra,so I got free caller display.


Last year £15.49 line, caller display 99p ADSL free,calls £8 : £24.39
This time : line £16.49,free ADSL and caller display,calls £8 : £24.49

Mister_G

teddysmum wrote: »

Having spoken to my sister again, it appears that she cant take her number that has been from BT, to Post Office (then TalkTalk)to PlusNet, because it is a move to a house which has never had a phone line.

I think that Ofcom would be interested to know the reason why Sky can not do this. Under the Ofcom number portability rules, there is no reason why the number can not be moved.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/information-for-industry/numbering/number-portability-info

electrician

Hi All, I am looking around to change broadband and phone line and currently with Talk Talk, so going on the Plusnet and EE websites it came up I would need to change my phone number ! It was originally a BT number and still goes back to there exchange !

ffox

I had problems with Plusnet in getting refunded of advance credit paid to them. They were unable to provide a service and refused to reimburse the advanced credit citing a legal precedent that allows them to do this. I eventually got my credit back but not without some difficulty. If you're ever given the opportunity to pay in advance don't do it.

In other news, on the few occasions that I have had to get in touch with them it has more often than not ended up in a more confounding situation than a resolution. They always misunderstand and misconstrue what is said to them or requested of them. Their call centre staff are based in UK (Sheffield say) but English still turns out to be a foreign language. They have figures right in front of them and they can't add them up. This is almost what you'd call borderline illiteracy. Call centres abroad do a better job and I can imagine why they have been working so well for some other companies.

I can't imagine how any customer could trust any of these companies, this one in particular, to provide an internet service.

teddysmum

ffox wrote: »

I had problems with Plusnet in getting refunded of advance credit paid to them. They were unable to provide a service and refused to reimburse the advanced credit citing a legal precedent that allows them to do this. I eventually got my credit back but not without some difficulty. If you're ever given the opportunity to pay in advance don't do it.

In other news, on the few occasions that I have had to get in touch with them it has more often than not ended up in a more confounding situation than a resolution. They always misunderstand and misconstrue what is said to them or requested of them. Their call centre staff are based in UK (Sheffield say) but English still turns out to be a foreign language. They have figures right in front of them and they can't add them up. This is almost what you'd call borderline illiteracy. Call centres abroad do a better job and I can imagine why they have been working so well for some other companies.

I can't imagine how any customer could trust any of these companies, this one in particular, to provide an internet service.

You pay line rental in advance in exchange for having a discount on the monthly charge. If you leave before the time the payment covers then you have broken the contract, so why should they not charge full price for the time the service was used ? As the discount is a few pounds, leaving well into the term could mean that the money paid would have been used up at full price so you are 'owed' less than you think.

I disagree about call centres abroad being better as there are frequent problems with language and the fact that they work to a script with little allowance for anything that doesn't fit, meaning you go over the same things again and again.

Two big companies that have outsourced their call centres have had so much trouble from them that they are building up the UK base again.

AmberWH

In reply to Electrician - I had the same problem (losing my landline number) when I tried to change to EE, but they phoned the next day to ask why I hadn't proceeded with the form filling on their website and I explained it was because I would have to change my number. They told me that actually they could have arranged for me to keep my number after all. It was too late however as I had renewed with Sky - worst luck!