Line rental and broadband package - what would you do?

bazzabear

bazzabear

bazzabear

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Our contract with BT runs out on the 3rd. We currently pay £27.33 for line rental, FTTC (which gets us about 60Mbps) and 'Halo1' whatever that is.

In their email entitled "Your contract is almost up, let's get you an even better one", their best offer is the same package for £41.99, and locking us in for 2 years. With a little small print guaranteeing it will increase further in March.

I was already considering switching to Sky anyway, to amalgamate our contracts for TV and hopefully get a better deal. Also because their boxes acting as wifi repeaters seems a worthwhile advantage.

Anyway - here's the complication. Openreach have been working around our estate for the past 2 or 3 months getting everything ready for FTTP. I am wondering whether I should wait until that is completed before I make any move.

Any thoughts? Anyone been in a similar situation?

Thanks for any advice. :)
 
I have added myself to their mailing list, so they should tell me when it's done. But in terms of advance warning, it just says 'in the near future'. I've been meaning to try to grab one of the workmen and see if they know, but haven't had the opportunity yet. :D

BT's offers page is great. See if this works:
https://ibb.co/Yf54K1j

Yf54K1j


I like where at the top it says I can renew for less money - and then all the offers say how much extra I'll have to pay.

Sky's page on the other hand looks like things will be cheaper - but it's not working very well at all, keeps failing and having to re-start.
 
Actually, I've just spotted something. On the image I've linked to, you will see that a term of the new offers they have suggested is:
"Keep the same monthly price when your contract ends".

It doesn't say that for my existing contract on that page. But in their email to me about my contract expiring it says:

"You're currently paying:
£27.33 a month for Fibre with Halo 1 including Unlimited Weekend Calls and that will continue to be £27.33 a month on 03 December 2020."

Because they use the word 'on' rather than 'after' I had assumed that they just meant for one more month. But I can't see anything saying what it will revert to after that. So I'm beginning to think that if I do nothing, I will stay at £27.33. Which would be perfect while I wait out FTTP arriving.
 
bazzabear said:
With a little small print guaranteeing it will increase further in March.
Click to expand...

I've noticed they're all now doing this.

I had a bit of an argument with Three yesterday because despite being locked into a contract, they will increase your monthly price by 4.5% every April regardless.

Not that i was buying an iphone 12, but was using it as an example, if you took a 24 month £60/month contract out now, in 5 months time that will have increased to £62.70. By the time you're on month 17 of your contract that price will have increased to £65.50 which is quite a way over the "£60/month" that they advertise it as. Obviously they can get away with it because it's in the T&Cs of the contract. Was part of the reason i only took out a 12 month SIMO deal rather than 24 months - which i would have been happy doing so - but figured i'd just pull out a new deal next year which may well be cheaper than 2 years of mandatory price hikes.
 
Having thought about this a bit more, and assuming I'm correct about the current contract price remaining if I do nothing...

Does this seem extremely underhand to anyone? It seems to me that they have deliberately omitted the "Keep the same monthly price when your contract ends" statement from the current package box, to trick people into changing to a higher price for the same package.

If I let myself, I could get a bit angry about this. The more you read into it, then more it appears that the whole thing is an exercise in misinformation to gouge more money out of you.
 
Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
Doesn't make sense to me
Current price for 76mb FTTC is £31.99
Fibre 100 when its available is £32.99

Unless the HALO (which iirc is a sort of backup using mobile coverage if your main line fails) is £10 per month, if so I would ditch it personally
Click to expand...

Current prices from who? Are you talking about BT as a new customer or something? And Fibre 100 is FTTP?

I'm trying to get confirmation from BT at the moment that I can just stick with my current contract at my current price. If so, I'll stay with that until FTTP is available and decide what to do, and who to go with at that point from a stronger (out of contract) position.
 
bazzabear said:
Current prices from who? Are you talking about BT as a new customer or something? And Fibre 100 is FTTP?

I'm trying to get confirmation from BT at the moment that I can just stick with my current contract at my current price. If so, I'll stay with that until FTTP is available and decide what to do, and who to go with at that point from a stronger (out of contract) position.
Click to expand...

Yes those are normal BT prices available right now normally you get exactly the same as a renewing customer on renewal of line. Or you can cancel your existing and signup via the website.
(Dont forget cashback options as well via eg topcashback)

Yes Fibre 100 is FTTP.
From my experience a few months ago I could get fibre from BT and sky were still getting ready, assume its just BT getting their gear into the exchange faster
 
Cheers, that's useful. Still (just) makes sense to stick with what I've got (if I'm right that it's possible). But if I'm wrong, then your info will help.
 
im currently looking around too as im paying £42.08 to plusnet for 76mb/20mb fttc

just had a look at nowtv broadband 12months @ £24.00 for 66mb/18 fttc

im still undecided


edit.....scrap that, terrible reviews, oh well....if its too good to be true it probably is
 
GSXR Gaz Mc said:
im currently looking around too as im paying £42.08 to plusnet for 76mb/20mb fttc

just had a look at nowtv broadband 12months @ £24.00 for 66mb/18 fttc

im still undecided


edit.....scrap that, terrible reviews, oh well....if its too good to be true it probably is
Click to expand...

£42!! That’s a complete rip off.

I assume you don’t have any inflated bolt on on that?

The same product for a new customer is £25 a month and they get a £60 gift card for signing up and it’s an 18 month contract. You must have been signed up and accepting above inflation rises for years. If you don’t want to move just phone and ask to beat the new customer price, the chances are they will.
 
bazzabear said:
Our contract with BT runs out on the 3rd. We currently pay £27.33 for line rental, FTTC (which gets us about 60Mbps) and 'Halo1' whatever that is.

In their email entitled "Your contract is almost up, let's get you an even better one", their best offer is the same package for £41.99, and locking us in for 2 years. With a little small print guaranteeing it will increase further in March.

I was already considering switching to Sky anyway, to amalgamate our contracts for TV and hopefully get a better deal. Also because their boxes acting as wifi repeaters seems a worthwhile advantage.

Anyway - here's the complication. Openreach have been working around our estate for the past 2 or 3 months getting everything ready for FTTP. I am wondering whether I should wait until that is completed before I make any move.

Any thoughts? Anyone been in a similar situation?

Thanks for any advice. :)
Click to expand...

If you have Halo 1 your price shouldn't change, except perhaps with the yearly increase.

You probably need not do anything immediately if you don't want to, and you should carry on paying the same.

Their renewal offers are pretty bad with BT, so you should either stick with what you have, or barter to get the same deals as a new customer would.
 
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