Moving from BT to Zen Internet

Stompa

FlatFour said:

@M25 - oddly, here, only Zen offer 1,600mbps, BT do not currently.  Do they really add a second box (second line?) to get that speed?  I thought a single fibre could support up to 10gbps, with proper hardware both in the home and exchange.

I don't think they add a second box, they just replace the existing box with an updated one that supports the higher speed.

iniltous

Openreach fit a 2.5Gb ONT pretty much as standard now in preparation for higher speeds  , anyone with a 1Gb ONT that orders speed in excess of that (  EE as well as Zen in most areas offer 1.6Gb ) would need a ONT swap , but there is no difference at all in the GPON network, no second box , no second fibre , it’s the electronics that need changing not the ‘fibre’ .

southsidergs

FlatFour said:

iniltous said:

Ignoring the obvious, that you agreed to taking Halo at some point ,

If you don’t receive or need it’s  ‘benefits’ then clearly it was an unwise decision to take it  , however the Hybrid Connect (a 4g router that takes over if your landline goes down ) clearly has a value , and you should get that equipment even if it’s never used in anger , the whole home WiFi is more variable, if the standard router covers the entire home , then paying for whole home is pointless, as far as getting the WiFi discs I don’t know if you need to ask first them ,  or they supply the first one automatically but I believe you can get several if the  property needs several to cover the entire area , the yearly visit needed a to be booked but again is of variable value if nothing changes year to year , and the double data on mobile plans again much depends on what mobile plan you have , obviously having a mobile with Vodafone for example makes this  benefit pointless .
The Halo price match , guarantees not to pay more than a new Halo customer , you can’t compare the Halo price to a basic customer without Halo price , possibly (deliberate) misleading wording but a moments thought should get the customer to realise it’s only applicable to Halo.

Im not defending or promoting Halo 3+ BTW , its a product I’d avoid simply  because it’s apparently is very difficult to remove once you have it , but it clearly can be useful to the right person , possibly with a very large house , susceptible to the line going off , with a BT mobile and who wants a visit every year to confirm their setup is ‘optimal’ .

I suppose the conclusion is now pretty clear , you have Halo , your renewal is based on renewing Halo , hence the disparity on price compared to a basic same speed service , it’s difficult to quantify the real benefits but BT used to state that Halo represented a saving on the individual elements , as a very rough tally , Hybrid connect £8, Whole home £10, double data maybe £5+, it’s the home vusit that’s difficult to price , probably £120 (just so it’s an easy yearly division to £10) but they would argue it’s ‘worth £33’ for £20 or whatever they charge you .

If I agreed to it, then it wasn't explained at all.  I.e. I did not agree to it if details were omitted.

There's no way I would pay extra for:

 - Mobile Data when I don't use, nor plan to use their Mobile Network.

 - 4G Mini-Hub / Hybrid Connect.  Pointless as it'd never work here.  Really, signal black spot, it's a pain.

 - Wifi Discs.  Pointless, I have one old laptop on Wifi and it works just fine. I can even access WiFi on the driveway.

If, at any point, I was asked "would you like to pay extra for these" the answer would have been "No".  I was not asked.

This "Halo" product is the only 900 mbps product I get offered if I log in.  I signed up for the only 900 mbps they offered me, no alternatives presented.  That's at best scummy sales technique.

Basically, I asked to upgrade to a 900 mbps product, from 500mbps, but was solid a bunch of worthless extras on top.  Presented with no alternatives it's impossible to choose.

Yes, I perhaps should have checked more closely.  However, I wasn't given options, so had no idea what they'd done.  I think this is just a case of a sales person pushing a more expensive product, totally neglecting the customers requirements and omitting better options.

BT, at best, both misled and mis-sold me.  I suppose my being used to expensive - at least relative to the speed - broadband due to that old rubbish ADSL connection, the pricing of something significantly faster didn't ring any alarm bells.  Aka, I trusted I was being sold the product I asked for.  Just 900 mbps, no discussion of any extras other than the phone line.  Note that, at the time getting Fibre, the Phone line was still on copper.  We got moved to the VOIP service some time later.  Actually far sooner than the "next three years" estimate.

Don't get me wrong, I can see how Halo 3/3+ might be perfect for some.  Large house, several people (adults + kids for example) all benefitting from house-wide solid Wifi coverage, a backup option so little Timmy can still do his online homework if the connection goes out and mobile plans for everyone.  I get it.  However, NONE of this was even discussed with me.  It was a simple, I'm on 500 mbps, I see that I can get 900 mbps now, can I have that please.  That's it.  If I was explicitly asked if I'd like to pay extra for various things I'd never ever use, I'd of course have said no.  The fact that I was signed up for them anyway, speaks volumes.  As does the lack of visibility on other deals when I sign in.  I literally just thought BT was getting obscenely expensive vs. others.

Edit: meant to share that I'm far from the only one being sold unwanted extras.

Summary of what people have reported, indeed, I've found various examples of this myself:

Unrequested Extras: Reports of "Halo" packages (3 or 3+) being added, which include extras like "Hybrid Connect" (4G backup) and "Complete WiFi" that may not have been requested.
Overcharging/Higher Fees: Charges that do not match the agreed price, often driven by unexpected add-ons or hidden,, significant price increases after an initial period.
Unauthorised Contract Changes: Cases where a new, more expensive contract was set up or extended without the customer's permission

This was the result of a Google search on BT unrequested extras and charged more.

As mentioned, only being quoted the higher "halo" price when enquiring about an upgrade to 900 mbps, didn't give me anything to work with.  I thought speaking directly to someone was how to get the best deal, but with no regular options being offered when logged in to my account, I was totally unaware of the cheaper options... which led to this entire thread.

But were you sent confirmation? Probably yes. Not reading it & not questioning it for years would be your responsibility not "mis-selling". You may think thats harsh but it's facts

FlatFour

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81845804#Comment_81845804

I don't actually know what I have… is there any obvious way to tell by looking at the thing? Just curious really. 900 is the fastest option they offer at my address… odd that Zen offers more…

@southsidergs - no confirmation other than the speed increase "you're now on Full Fibre 900" type of thing. I did however get sales calls / eMails about SIM upgrades through EE, but I put that down to regular marketing stuff and I told them I wasn't interested. A BT sales person did a scummy thing, and I'm far from the only person they've done it to. I'm over it now and moving on.

My next bill should, in theory, be negative as they took the payment for Feb at the higher rate already late January.