How to beat broadband price hikes

It’s not all bad news when your broadband provider increases prices. You’ve got an opportunity to see if you can get a better deal.

When you sign up for something, you expect the prices to stay the same while you’re in contract. But sadly the likes of BT, Sky and Virgin don’t agree.

We’ve seen broadband bills jump up at least every 12 months, if not more, over the last few years, despite the actual costs for the companies actually falling. No doubt we’re subsidising the continued Premier League TV coverage price war.

And it’s already happening in 2019, with Sky announcing an average increase of 5% from April. Others will likely follow with their own increases.

But what can you do about it? Well if you’ve been plagued by substandard internet connections, the increase is often a chance to get out of your contract. And even if you’re happy with the service you get you might be able to use an increase to save money.

Your rights when broadband prices go up

Price hikes usually mean you can leave penalty free – even if you’re still within the minimum contract period.

To do this you need to let your provider know that you wish to leave, usually within 30 days of being notified of the increase. You will have to wait until you’ve had that letter or email informing you of the increase. You’ll also have to give notice.

If you’re out of contract then you can leave at any time, though you will also have to give notice, normally a month.

However before you do this, find out if you’ll get a refund on anything you’ve paid up front for, like a 12-month line rental saving package with BT.

Get a better deal

This is a good opportunity to see what you can save – either by moving to a cheaper company or negotiating for a discount. So it pays to research not just what you’ll be paying after the increase, but also what other offers are out there. You could cut your bill by hundreds of pounds each year.

Switch to a different provider

Some of the best deals are for new customers. Sign up via a cashback site and you can get as much as £180 back. Plus you can usually combine these with other promotions. So when I switched to Virgin a few months ago, I was given a huge discount on a super fast connection for the first year.

> How to save on broadband and phone bills

Haggle for a discount

Once you’ve done your research on competitor’s deals, call up your current supplier and tell them you’re thinking of leaving as a result of the price hikes. You should be able to haggle a discount or some extras.

I managed to get my fibre broadband bill with BT down to £5 a few years ago this way. If I’d wanted I could have got a discount on TV or BT Sport too but I decided instead it was cheaper to axe the TV service completely and get deals on NOW TV passes.

Cancel and get your partner to join as a new customer

A final option if you want to stay with the same company, and are willing to get a new landline number, is to cancel your contract and get your partner to sign up as a new customer. He/she can then get all the savings you get as a newbie, but you shouldn’t see any gaps in service. And don’t forget the cashback!

The danger of TV and mobile bundle deals

If you’ve got TV with your broadband, then it’s unlikely you’ll be able to quit your contract when broadband prices go up – even if TV prices are going up too. If this applies to you it’s worth calling up and seeing what can be done. Even if they let you separate the two contracts so you can continue your TV service but switch your broadband, be prepared for a price hike. That’s because there could well be a discount on your TV because you have other services via the same company. 

It’s not just pay TV. When BT hiked prices a couple of years ago, I not only had my phone and broadband through the telecoms giant, I also had my mobile phone contract. 

As part of being a BT customer I got £5 off my monthly mobile bill. So if I was to leave BT I’d still be in contract with BT Mobile, but would have to pay the extra £5 a month. In the end we followed the last tip above. Becky signed up as a new BT customer and I transferred my mobile account over. So we got big discounts as newbies and I kept my £5 saving.

How to cut the cost of your broadband and landline bills

3 thoughts on “How to beat broadband price hikes

  1. I got a great deal with mobile fone via a cashback website but now the last 2 times of trying to claim the cashback I am getting the run around. I’ve sent in bills like they wanted then get email saying it been claimed by them so 21 days I’ll get it etc
    22 days go by I’ll email and then get told I sent wrong month. So I’ll send all 3 months just incase and am still waiting now for March and June’s. They ignoring my emails now. Metrofone is name of company. Any advice please.

    1. I’m not a fan of those deals where you have to claim cashback each month. Right now though companies are still going to be under pressure so I think you’ll have to give them a bit of extra time and chasing to see if it’s just a lack of staff causing the problem.

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