Can I leave Plusnet with CPI price rise coming

NeillB

Plusnet have a Consumer Price Index rise coming plus an additional 3.9% on top of that on 31st March 2022. I got the email today.  My minimum term expires on 1 June 2022 but can I leave unhindered as per the OFCOM ruling if I give 30 days notice from the time I am told of a rise? The CPI bit has me confused. 

matelodave

You need to check your specific T&C's (not other people's as there were a flurry of contract changes for some providers a year or so ago - BT changed their T&C's around three times in about six months so you may need to check the actual date of your contract and see which T&C's applied.)

Most, but not all companies started inserting the 3.9% = CPI clause about 18 months ago so it probably depends when you started your present contract  (I think it was a direct response to Open Reach adding it to their contact costs).

It probably wont do you much good to terminate as any new contract will be factoring it in and probably including it in their T&C's although you could do the sums to see whether paying an early termination fee could be worth paying if you can get onto a less expensive deal - it depends how Plusnet calculates them.

I've just swapped from BT at £60 a month to Vodafone at £31.50 a month and so not only saved around £30 a months but also £3 a month in the CPI uplift (but I did have the advantage that my BT contract ended in mid January)

Neil_Jones

NeillB said:

Plusnet have a Consumer Price Index rise coming plus an additional 3.9% on top of that on 31st March 2022. I got the email today.  My minimum term expires on 1 June 2022 but can I leave unhindered as per the OFCOM ruling if I give 30 days notice from the time I am told of a rise? The CPI bit has me confused. 

All new Plusnet contracts taken out since October 2020 include a CPI rise.

18 months before 1 June is 1 December 2020.  So the answer to your question is:  No because that's you agreed to.

NeillB

INeil_Jones said:

NeillB said:

Plusnet have a Consumer Price Index rise coming plus an additional 3.9% on top of that on 31st March 2022. I got the email today.  My minimum term expires on 1 June 2022 but can I leave unhindered as per the OFCOM ruling if I give 30 days notice from the time I am told of a rise? The CPI bit has me confused. 

All new Plusnet contracts taken out since October 2020 include a CPI rise.

18 months before 1 June is 1 December 2020.  So the answer to your question is:  No because that's you agreed to.

I renegotiationed a 12 month new minimum term in June 2021 that was able to take into account the CPI plus 3.9% and keep me on a new low monthly tariff.  So the answer was for me yes last year contrary to what you have stated. 

NeillB

The CPI and 3.9% rise is still a rise so as far as my understanding goes under Ofcom rules I've 30 days to find a better deal and can leave unhindered once i receive notification of any price hike. 

dreamypuma

The Ofcom ruling allowing consumer to leave penalty free, is for rises you have not contractually agreed to.

As boring as it sounds, you need to check the T&C's which form the agreement between you and your ISP. These will have been revised on renewal. 

southsidergs

To answer tbe OP's question, it will tell you on the communication if you can, nobody on here will be able to tell you 100%

matelodave

Neil_Jones said:

NeillB said:

Plusnet have a Consumer Price Index rise coming plus an additional 3.9% on top of that on 31st March 2022. I got the email today.  My minimum term expires on 1 June 2022 but can I leave unhindered as per the OFCOM ruling if I give 30 days notice from the time I am told of a rise? The CPI bit has me confused. 

All new Plusnet contracts taken out since October 2020 include a CPI rise.

18 months before 1 June is 1 December 2020.  So the answer to your question is:  No because that's you agreed to.

If you think you managed to negotiate out the increase, then you had better check the contract documents between you and Plusnest to make sure that they do include it.

One would assume that if you had, you may not have had an e-mail telling you that you are subject to the increase. As others have all said, the devil is in the detail and would be subject to your specific agreement with Plusnet and not necessarily anyone elses.

Neil_Jones

Actually I've gone back and checked:

https://www.plus.net/help/legal/plusnet-price-guide-for-residential-products/ - "For any customers who signed up to a contract from 30th June 2021"

The October date I've mentioned was posted, and is in the Wayback Machine so I knew I wasn't making it up:

https://web.archive.org/web/20210102153855/https://www.plus.net/help/legal/plusnet-price-guide-for-residential-products/ - "This Price Guide applies to any customers signing up to a contract with Plusnet on or after 7th October 2020, and any customers whose fixed price contract minimum term ends on or after 2nd December 2020."

So they've obviously updated it earlier this year and probably wasn't communicated.

My 18 month deal ends April 2022, and I remember I got it relatively close to the 7th October date.

The_Fat_Controller

@NeillB as above, it all depends what your contract negotiated in June 2021 says.

My ISP offered contracts that were really fixed price excluding the CPI+ increase, but they cost more in the first place, so it was a bit of a guess as to whether you would win or lose over your term.

Even with the current rampant inflation I renegotiated my price to a level where I will win over the 18 months I have agreed.