Broadband News

Half of consumers experience switching problems

Tuesday, 31 August 2010

By Garnet Roach garnet@consumerchoices.co.uk

Nearly half of broadband customers said that they had encountered problems switching provider, according to consumer watchdog Which?

The most common problems were that the previous broadband provider continued to take payment; that there were problems setting up the new connection; and that subscribers were left without a broadband service for more than a few hours.

But “don't let the risk of problems put you off switching to a better broadband provider,” said Which?

Although nearly half had experienced problems, 78% of consumers still switched broadband provider recently - and said that they found the process easy.

However, the number of people who did find the process difficult had increased from 8% last year to 13% today.

Ceri Stanaway, Which?'s broadband expert, said: “It's reassuring that most people find switching broadband provider easy. Changing your broadband deal can save you money and get you a better service, so if you're not happy with your current broadband provider, vote with your mouse.

“But the broadband world is getting ever more complex, particularly as providers increasingly bundle broadband together with other services such as phone and TV. We'd like to see providers do all they can to make the broadband switch easy for customers and halt the upward trend of people who find it difficult.”

The majority of the 10,000 Which? readers polled for the survey had been with their current provider for more than a year, while 65% had been with their supplier for more than three years - with only one in six considering switching at the end of their contract.

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