Landline only for elderly relative

bunty109

My elderly aunt (in her 90s) has been told by her existing provider (Shell) that they can no longer provide her with a service and she will need to migrate to another provider. She has landline and broadband but no longer requires the broadband because she doesn't use it (my uncle has recently died and he had an iPad).

I've just spoken to BT who offered me a deal with broadband and 700 mins calls for £34.99 a month, which is acceptable (family will use the internet), but they want to tie her into a 24 month contract. It's likely she will move by then and the expectation is that unless she dies, the contract will have to be ported to another family member or be paid.

She can have a landline only on a 12 month contract and BT appear to be her only option for that. It's a lower monthly charge than taking the Broadband but they want a £70 connection fee. If she dies, we wouldn't be held to the contract, but it would need to be paid in full if she moved and didn't take the line with her (and it's likely she could move in with relatives that wouldn't need the line). I appreciate that businesses need to make money, but feel really annoyed that we've so little options. My aunt lives 3 hours away and has no family nearer so the phone is an essential.

Anyhow, just wanted to ask if anyone here had any other options we could explore ideally tying us in to no more than a year? Mobile phones are not an option as she is exceedingly hard of hearing and not tech savvy!

bunty109

Just to clarify before anyone asks: if she takes a BB package family will use it when they visit as we go to stay for a few days and work from home. Other than that she has no family locally.

JGB1955

Perhaps the family that want internet access should pay for the privilege?  Seems harsh to expect her to pay for it.  Apologies if that seems an abrupt suggestion....  Is there no mobile tethering available for visitors?

bunty109

JGB1955 said:

Perhaps the family that want internet access should pay for the privilege?  Seems harsh to expect her to pay for it.  Apologies if that seems an abrupt suggestion....  Is there no mobile tethering available for visitors?

We don’t want the broadband. We can tether. Having the broadband was one option but requires a 24 month contract. Landline only (the preference) is cheaper but requires £70 charge  to sign up and is a 12 month contract. It’s cheaper than the 24 month BB package but the “connection charge” is a bit of a cheek. Ideally we’d like a landline only with no contract but that seems unlikely. Just wondering if there’s a 12 month landline and broadband to consider (with no connection charges)?

Sorry, I posted in a bit of a rage so wasn’t very clear. I guess the landline option is the one we have to go with but I’m incensed that there’s such poor options available for someone who is elderly and doesn’t need broadband. I know the way the world is going,but there’s still a large chunk of people who aren’t accessing the internet. 

iniltous

Is the BT line only deal the social tariff, if in receipt of qualifying benefits ( like pension credit ) it’s a pretty good deal , 
https://www.bt.com/content/dam/bt/help/home-essentials/102076_Home_Essentials_Online.pdf

Phone only £10, phone and broadband £15
Someone taking the phone deal even if there is a connection ‘fee’ it’s the equivalent of £15.83/month, which includes unlimited anytime calls

bunty109

iniltous said:

Is the BT line only deal the social tariff, if in receipt of qualifying benefits ( like pension credit ) it’s a pretty good deal , 
https://www.bt.com/content/dam/bt/help/home-essentials/102076_Home_Essentials_Online.pdf

Phone only £10, phone and broadband £15
Someone taking the phone deal even if there is a connection ‘fee’ it’s the equivalent of £15.83/month, which includes unlimited anytime calls

Thanks. She’s not in receipt of benefits otherwise that would be an option. It’s more the worry for her of taking on a contract she might need to break. Whilst she’s not on benefits, she’s very careful with money and any issues with utilities tend to stress her out a lot (even when I.’m dealing with them).