Scores of savvy readers have shared their tips for fighting back against the mid-contract broadband and phone price racket. Last week, we called for a stop to grossly unfair mid-contract price rises, which will see millions of households face inflation-busting rises of 13 or 14 per cent in the coming weeks.
Customers of BT, EE, Plusnet, TalkTalk, Three, O2, Virgin Media and Vodafone are set to see their broadband and phone bills hiked.
Hundreds of readers have been in touch to express their support for our campaign. Many agree that households should not have their broadband and phone bill prices increased mid-contract, by an amount they do not know when they sign up to a deal. Most have been told by their providers to expect double-digit rises to their bills in April and May.
But amid this frustration, scores have also shared ingenious tips and tricks for beating the price rises. Here are some of the best.
We would love to hear your success stories – with these techniques and your own.
In touch: Scores of savvy readers have shared their tips for fighting back against the mid-contract broadband and phone price racket
Ask for a social tariff, says Rosalyn
Reader Rosalyn Paine suggests that those on low incomes look into social tariffs.
‘My mum had a BT Basic tariff and found it very helpful,’ says Ros. ‘It certainly reduced her telephone costs and enabled us all to keep in touch with her.
‘She also had low-cost wi-fi, which I was able to use when I was with her to order her shopping.’
Most broadband and phone providers have special tariffs for people on low incomes.
Providers may not always go out of their way to advertise these, but those in the know can save hundreds of pounds.
For example, BT’s Home Essentials phone tariff offers unlimited calls to UK landlines and mobiles for £10 a month to those who are eligible. It also has a broadband deal for £15 a month.
EE and Vodafone have basic broadband deals for £12, while Virgin Media’s costs £12.50.
People on universal credit will be eligible for these tariffs. Some providers also accept customers on other benefits, including pensions credit. The table on the right provides a summary of some of the most popular deals and who they are intended for.
If you think you may be eligible, contact your provider and ask for its social tariff, or contact an alternative provider if its deal suits your needs better.
Switch to Freeview, says Martin
When Martin Window received a letter from Virgin Media saying his bills were going up by £15 a month, it was the last straw. He was already paying £125 a month for phone, TV and broadband.
‘To my mind, asking for anything on top of that is pure avarice,’ he says. So Martin, 69, from Waterlooville in Hampshire, has decided to ditch the TV package and opt for Freeview instead.
‘I started to pay attention to what we were watching,’ he says. ‘With Virgin TV, it looks like we’ve got hundreds of channels, but lots are duplicates and there is rarely anything we actually want to watch.
‘We mainly watch things on the BBC, Channel 4 and 5 so I don’t think we’ll miss it – and we’ll save a lot of money.’
Threaten to cancel, says Lisa
Lisa James, 79, was shocked to receive an email from Virgin Media saying her bills would rise to £151 a month from April.
‘It’s greed,’ she says. Lisa phoned to complain and was offered a deal for £100 a month.
Still dissatisfied, she told Virgin Media that she was going to switch to BT and got put through to the cancellation department. That was when their tune changed.
‘Eventually I spoke to someone who offered me 18 months for £69 a month,’ says Lisa. ‘I felt like telling them no, but accepted. It was the thought of all the hassle to change everything – when you’re elderly it’s such hard work.
‘So I took the deal, but we shouldn’t have to mess about like this every year or two.’
Switch to a smaller supplier, say Susan and Trevor
Reader Susan Bowley, 77, has switched to Lebara for her mobile phone contract and pays just £4.90 a month. She also has free roaming in the EU and some other countries, and 100 free minutes a month to call 42 other countries.
‘I used to be with Sky, but they started charging for roaming so I decided to look elsewhere,’ says Susan, who lives near Bristol. ‘Lebara uses the Vodafone network, and I get excellent coverage.’
Trevor Heel, 62, from Bournemouth, has a mobile phone contract with smaller supplier ID Mobile, which uses the Three network.
‘I started my contract just over three years ago at £5 a month, and I’m still paying that amount,’ he says. ‘I get 500 minutes and 1GB of data, which rolls over for one month if I need it.’
Shop around for new deal, says Derek
Derek de Vere, 63, from York, was fed up when TalkTalk said it would raise his bills yet again in March. He was initially attracted by TalkTalk’s £27.50-a-month deal.
‘But I’ve seen two hikes since then, to £41, then £43.50 – and it was going up again to £53.50,’ says Derek. ‘So I am switching to Sky and will be paying £29 a month, for unlimited calls and broadband.
‘The broadband will be slightly slower, but it will still be more than adequate for my needs.’
Keep a good record, says Paul
PAUL Law has been promised that his Virgin Media bills won’t be affected by the price rises in April. But he has kept a record of his conversations to stay on the safe side. ‘I was offered a new package this month and challenged the sales person several times as to whether my bills would rise in April,’ says Paul. ‘They promised me they would not, but I will only know for sure when I get my bill. So, for peace of mind, I recorded the conversation.’
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