When to switch provider

pyrrhus80

Just a quick question (hopefully)

My contract with Plusnet is up in a month's time and they have informed me that my price will be almost doubling.

When is the ideal moment for me to sign up to a new provider? I don't want to get a fine for switching too early (while I am still in contract) - but if I wait until my contract runs out, I'll inevitably end up paying under the new price for however long it takes for the switch to take place.

Brie

Have you checked what other providers might cost and then gone back to Plusnet to negotiate?

400ixl

Have they actually told you that when your minimum contract term runs out (your contract is not almost up) it will become a rolling monthly contract at twice as much?

Have you asked them what the price would be to enter into another minimum term contract which will likely be very similar or maybe less than you are paying now.

You can then compare this to see if it is worth switching.

oldernonethewiser

I was with Plusnet a couple of years back and they were not interested in negotiating a lower price, so I moved. 

Check to see what's available and if you see something suitable then move to them. Make sure the move happens the day after your minimum contract term with Plusnet ends.

Neil_Jones

it was a difficult slog last time to get anything out of Plusnet, but it is possible.

For my parents account had to play hardball to get anything at all (and what I did get I wasn't entirely happy with, but it was better than nothing), and for myself had to put a leave notice in, and then I got the call with a deal that was a no brainer to take.

Note though that if you're in a FTTP only area and you're currently on FTTC, you may not be able to move to another FTTC package.  You can only stay on that with your existing provider.

wongataa

Your contract doesn't end.  The minimum term ends and you go onto a monthly rolling term.

It takes about two weeks to transfer to a new provider. I would start a transfer about a week before my current minimum term ends.  A week or so on the higher tariff won't be much in the scheme of things in the end.

If you switched a few days before the minimum term ends it would not be an issue.  You would just pay for those days with your previous ISP as well as your new ISP.  Any early termination fees would be minimal or non existent for a day or so.

pyrrhus80

400ixl said:

Have they actually told you that when your minimum contract term runs out (your contract is not almost up) it will become a rolling monthly contract at twice as much?

Yes.

400ixl said:
Have you asked them what the price would be to enter into another minimum term contract which will likely be very similar or maybe less than you are paying now.

No. It's probably worth a try but - honestly - every time I have tried this with previous providers, they haven't been interested

oldernonethewiser said:

Check to see what's available and if you see something suitable then move to them. Make sure the move happens the day after your minimum contract term with Plusnet ends.

That's kinda the point of my post. How do I make sure the move happens on the day that I want? Do I get the option of specifying the day? If so, how far in advance can I ask for?

pyrrhus80

wongataa said:

If you switched a few days before the minimum term ends it would not be an issue.  You would just pay for those days with your previous ISP as well as your new ISP.  Any early termination fees would be minimal or non existent for a day or so.

So an early termination fee is entirely calculated based on how much time is remining? There's no additional fixed penalty?

iniltous

Its in the name , ‘early termination charge’  , a charge for quitting during the minimum term , and is based entirely on the amount of time left on the minimum term , before you quit , so quite g with a week left is much less than quitting with 3 months left , but obsessing on getting the switch done on the exact day the minimum term ends is ( IMHO ) hardly worth the effort, a day or two early , so one or two days ETC will be peanuts, as will a day or two ‘late’ paying the out of contract price for those days , chances are in both cases the extra payment would be something like a £1 or £2 , for example if you pay £30 a month ( around £1 a day ) and the out of contract price is £45 ( around £1.50 ) , two days late is 2x 50p , so £1 , hardly a huge deal.
If moving between Openreach based ISP , then 10-14 days before your minimum term expires is the optimal time to contact the new provider, that way the change will be close to the minimum term expiration 

TBH , simply assuming that you won’t be offered an incentive to stay , so not bothering to ask is a little shortsighted, get a price from a competitor who aim at the same type of customer ( Now for example ) contact PN retentions with that price , if they won’t budge what have you lost ?, 

400ixl

If I log into my Plusnet portal there is a deal sitting there waiting even though I am only 6 months into an 18 month contract that I could take up (its actually slightly cheaper than the deal i am currently on.

You should have similar.

I could equally swap to someone like Vodafone but I like my sanity and am fed up of helping relatives and friends who chose the bottom feeders like them and TalkTalk based on price.

Neil_Jones

pyrrhus80 said:

wongataa said:

If you switched a few days before the minimum term ends it would not be an issue.  You would just pay for those days with your previous ISP as well as your new ISP.  Any early termination fees would be minimal or non existent for a day or so.

So an early termination fee is entirely calculated based on how much time is remining? There's no additional fixed penalty?

ETCs are pro-rated to the end of your deal and are usually slightly higher than it would cost if you see the whole contract out..

So for argument's sake if you left 30 days before the date and your ETC is £30 a month, then your ETC would be £30.  If you left 14 days before it would be £14, and so on.

Although that being said even if you do move provider after the date and Plusnet charge you for the folliowing month you'll get the bulk of that back anyway.