Elderly Customers Being Overcharged by BT

Maido99

Hi everyone, I’m looking for advice and real‑life examples from others who may have experienced something similar.

After reviewing my elderly father’s BT bills, I was shocked to find he has been paying around £53 per month for a landline‑only service. This is far above BT’s current pricing for far more comprehensive packages, and it appears he may have been left on an outdated legacy tariff for years without any review or safeguard.

What concerns me most is that he’s a long‑standing, loyal customer in his later years, and it feels as though this situation could easily affect other elderly people who don’t regularly scrutinise their bills.

Has anyone else come across cases where an older or vulnerable relative has been kept on an inflated legacy BT tariff or overcharged for landline‑only services?

I’d really appreciate hearing about similar experiences — how you discovered it, how BT responded, and whether you were able to secure refunds or tariff corrections.

I’m in the process of raising this formally, but I want to understand whether this is an isolated issue or part of a wider pattern affecting senior customers.

Thanks in advance for any insights.

Thank you,

Grumpy_chap

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6653991/elderly-customers-being-overcharged-by-bt

Service providers are not under any obligation to change customers to an alternative tariff.

Did BT ever send any marketing communications suggesting alternative tariffs which your father did not act upon?

iniltous

Is this £53 including Anytime or Unlimited Calls ? , if it is then the price isn’t particularly out of line with what you would expect to pay as a new customer , a check of the BT website shows for a standalone telephone service ( so no BT broadband alongside it ) with the Unlimited Minutes call plan is £48.20 on a 12 month contract, that’s a new customer price , so chances are it will be at least £5 more once on an out of contract basis .

If your father has no broadband from any source ( so no Virgin or Alt Net suppling broadband) then a ‘landline only’ discount is available on that price , it can reduce it by something like £11-15 a month , but that has to be requested by calling BT so they can do the necessary checks regarding qualification for it , but it’s not BT’s responsibility to search out customers that qualify, as with everything else , it’s the customers responsibility.

flaneurs_lobster

Maybe the question the OP needs to answer is why has this situation been allowed to exist "for years without any review or safeguard" when the person best placed to make these checks is the OP themselves?

See also current tariffs for gas & electricity, mobile phone, policy costs for insurance etc.

Ayr_Rage

I fall into the demographic of "state pensioner" and in all honestly fail to see how anyone these days can avoid the advice to check all of their service contracts for a better price on a regular basis.

The onus is and has always been on the consumer to purchase the correct product for their needs.

It is not up to the likes of BT to offer cheaper prices if the customer happily continues with their current product.

Age is no excuse, however if they really are vulnerable too then get them registered as such and have them appoint you as an authorised contact for the account.

Unless you have PoA then it's up to your father to raise the issue.

QrizB

I’d really appreciate hearing about similar experiences

Almost verybody knows that loyalty isn't rewarded, whether with telecoms, insurance or whatever. New customers get preferential deals, where permitted by law (domestic energy being one exception, where the regulator has instructed that new-customer tariffs must also be offered to existing ones).

MSE exists in part to help people ditch-and-switch and get the best deal for their own personal circumstances.

brewerdave

Nothing new here - my aged mother was paying eye watering amounts to BT prior to her death in 2015.

My sister had POA latterly, but the phone contract was just left to run !!

TimeLord1

How often does he use it, maybe get him switched to in contact number only and just emergency outgoing calls.

Ofcom Ruling: In 2017, Ofcom found that BT landline-only customers were being overcharged. BT was forced to cut line rental by £7 a month for about one million customers, many of whom were elderly or vulnerable.

Is he registered as a vulnerable customer?

pseudodox

Is he making good use of the landline for outgoing calls? If the price includes unlimited anytime he could actually be getting his moneysworth. I just got my landline bill and whilst I pay £12 for unlimited calls this past month, had I been on pay per minute I would have spent over £30 on just 3 long calls that I had to make. The remainder short calls would have pushed it to over £40. There are very few months where I don't at least break even on the £12 charge. But as with anything these days it is up to each of us to keep an eye on our bills and contracts and get them changed to suit circumstances and needs.

littleboo

When was the last time you checked their bills?

twopenny

It's not that unusual. I worked at a solicitors with an insurance department. There were enough older people who didn't want the hassle of changing their insurance company despite the person in charge offering and they were paying way over the odds.

Not necessarily an age thing. My neighbour in her 90s got smart meters when they first came out. Others in their 80s have sold 2 cars and bought 3 this year done online. (Looking for something easier to manage).

It very much depends on the individual. Time to sort him out but don't leave him with a yearly contract to manage by the sound of it.