Virgin Media more than doubling charge, and no other providers available

QrizB

Depends where you are. The base package is defo £35pm where I am.

Yes, when you get a quote for Starlink it checks your location and then gives you a price based on that.

At my address (Hampshire) I only get offered the £75 package, but using a family member's address (Cornwall) I'm offered the £35 one.

QrizB

I have shopped around for an alternative provider, but there are no other companies offering a broadband service to my address (either fibre, FTTC or ADSL). I don't live in the middle of nowhere - I'm in Greater London.

This seems odd. Has your property ever had telephone service from BT? Or are you on a relatively new-build estate where Virgin has an exclusive deal with the developer?

iniltous

As already asked ,don’t Openreach supply service ?, although there are a few places where Virgin did a sweetheart deal with a developer and only Virgin is available, this is still pretty unusual, and unless it’s something like a MDU ( where it’s effectively private property and the freeholder can allow in whoever they want, and refuse anyone they don’t want ) with regular single dwellings, even relatively new builds , once the roads and footpaths are adopted by the local authority, Openreach (and everyone else with code powers ) can then access those roads and footpaths to put in services .

Is there anything out of the ordinary about your address ?

Put your address in here and post the results,

https://www.broadbandchecker.btwholesale.com/#/ADSL/AddressHome

itm2

Openreach do cover the area (I've had a BT phone line and ADSL in the past), and most of the area currently has access to Openreach FTTC services. The problem is that planning permission to upgrade my nearest BT cabinet to fibre was refused by the council about 12-13 years ago, and from speaking to an OpenReach engineer in the street a couple of years ago, I understand that they decided not to re-apply as it was not considered commercially viable.

I did read that Openreach were planning to offer FTTP services to my address "some time in 2026", but for now there is nothing available.

This is what I get when I plug my address into the broadband checker:

beckstar1975

Not sure where you are in Greater London but we have v little options here but we do have Community Fibre which is really good and quick, they put in their own connections. Have you looked to see whether they are available where you are?

itm2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81861496#Comment_81861496

Community Fibre don't cover my area either :0(

iniltous

Unfortunately it does seem that you are between a rock and a hard place ….weird in a way that the council are responsible for your lack of choice , presumably they were OK with the Virgin (or cable company that preceded them ) putting up far more street furniture that the single FTTC ‘cabinet’ that Openreach would have stood up close to the existing copper cabinet , but it is what it is .

I’d guess that if Virgin are taking advantage of their monopoly position the council effectively endowed them with and they are rinsing the local population that have no other option , that when a viable alternative does comes along , the exodus from Virgin should be amusing , but in the short term , you seem to be stuck, it’s not an enviable position, negotiate for a better price but be stuck for 24 months , when FTTP from another source may be around the corner, or pay what Virgin want on an out of contract price but able to dump them as soon as an alternative is available.

Starlink may be too expensive, what about 5G , that any good in your location ?

itm2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81861080#Comment_81861080

Many thanks for that - I do indeed have offers for signing up for another 24 months, and the prices are reasonable. So problem solved for now!

Kim_13

If there are no other providers then the only option would be to make do with 5G until you could qualify again as a new customer to Virgin. Tell Virgin you had tested the Vodafone speeds and were happy with them and could not afford more than £X for broadband (take off £4 from your acceptable figure to factor in a mid contract price hike) even if it would be a better service. Retentions may offer better once you have actually given notice to cancel.

HHarry

I swapped to 5G internet last year and it’s been very, very good. I paid £90 for the hardware, and £22.50 a month for unlimited data.

Speeds are better than ADSL, and I imagine that in London you’d do significantly better than rural Wales.