BT to hike landline and broadband prices
Millions of BT users will see their bills rise from July 2016.
BT is putting the cost of landline, broadband and TV up – again.
The telecoms giant has started writing to customers to inform them of the changes which will come into force from 3rd July 2016.
The price hike represent the third major increase for customers since December 2014.
What's changing?
BT is writing to customers to let them know how they will be impacted, but here’s a rundown of the main changes.
Line rental
Standard line rental is rising from £17.99 a month to £18.99 a month, which represents a 5.6% rise.
Line Rental Saver, an option which allows you to get a 10% discount on line rental by paying for a year upfront, is also going up 5.6% from £194.28 a year to £205.08 a year.
Call costs
The set-up fee for landline calls is rising from 17.07 a minute to 19p a minute, an 11.3% rise.
The rate for calls to UK landlines and 0870 numbers will move from 10.24p a minute to 11p a minute, which represents a 7.4% increase.
Call packages
The cost of the Unlimited Anytime calls package will rise from £7.95 a month to £8.50 a month, an increase of 6.9%.
Broadband
The cost of standard copper broadband is jumping from £13 a month to £15 a month, a massive 15.4% increase.
Fibre broadband deals are also going up.
BT Infinity 1 is going up from £20 to £21 a month, a 5% increase. Meanwhile the Unlimited Infinity 1 package is rising from £23 a month to £26 a month a 13% rise.
TV
The BT Sport Pack is also getting more expensive. BT is putting the cost up from £5 a month to £6 a month, a 20% increase. However, it will remain free if you have BT TV.
Compare broadband deals with broadbandchoices.co.uk
How to beat the price rises
If you're unhappy with BT’s price rises you can take action.
As the price hikes are above inflation, Ofcom rules mean you can escape your contract penalty-free - as long as you let BT know you’re leaving within 30 days of getting your price rise notification.
However, you should bear in mind that BT isn’t the only company upping its prices.
Sky TV customers will see bills rise from 1st June and Virgin Media hiked prices in February on line rental and for many of its bundle customers. While Talk Talk increased the cost of line rental and its Simply Broadband package back in October.
The best thing to do is compare deals to see if you can get something better. You can use broadbandchoices.co.uk to shop around.
Alternatively, you could try and see if you can haggle for a better deal with BT. Read: How to save money on your BT phone, broadband and TV bills for some tips.
What does BT say?
BT says it’s softening the blow of the price rises with an improved service.
It’s promising broadband customers a free speed increase, a free upgrade to their usage allowance or move to unlimited usage and better online security for all via its BT Net Protect software. Meanwhile Unlimited Anytime calls customers will benefit from free calls to BT Mobile.
It also claims that all 10 million customers will benefit from faster service if they have a fault with their line this year. Plus the firm is launching a comprehensive defence against nuisance calls, dubbed BT Nuisance Call Protect that will ensure 25 million unwanted calls are diverted a week.
John Petter, chief executive of BT Consumer, says: “It is clear that customers want better service and that is what we are going to give them.
“We have also done our best to ensure that all of our customers will get more value if their price is going up, and we know they want faster speeds and better online security from their broadband.
"We realise that customers never welcome price rises, but we have again ensured that low-income customers avoid increases. And we continue to highlight money-saving options for all customers.”
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