The ‘big four’ broadband providers – BT, Virgin Media, Sky and TalkTalk – all missed a deadline to implement a ‘simpler’ switching service.
On 14 March, those companies were meant to have introduced One Touch Switch, a fresh system that puts the onus on your new supplier to manage when you want to change.
But, the missed deadline marks the second time the fresh switching system has been pushed back. Back in 2021 when the plans were first announced, Ofcom declared 3 April 2023 as the date customers could switch under the new approach.
However, that has since been nudged to 14 March and, subsequently, 12 September.
Under One Touch Switch, providers will also have to reimburse customers if anything goes wrong and you are left without a service for more than one working day.
‘Competition among broadband providers is limited’
Following the delay, USwitch wrote an open letter to BT, Virgin Media, Sky and TalkTalk, urging them “to do the right thing” by not contributing to any further delays for the change to go live.
Within the letter, the comparison site noted: “Without improved cross-network switching, you are making it harder for customers to consider their choices. This limits genuine competition in the market, where great value and customer service is rewarded”
Meanwhile, many broadband prices will hike between 7.5% and 10.4% next month, according to Which?’s telecoms forecast. To beat those hikes, read YourMoney.com‘s guide to keeping your broadband price down this April.
This increase – put down to inflation – means it is no longer acceptable for customers to not have more flexibility with their broadband provider anymore. Further, 79% of Brits asked by USwitch feel broadband providers need to make it easier to switch providers.
Internet bills for UK rise by £427m
The service’s telecoms expert, Ernest Doku, said: “As the timing of the missed target dates falls close to industry price rises, the consumer impact of the delays shouldn’t be overlooked.
“Broadband price rises have already cost consumers an estimated £427m more on their bills since 2023, with further rises of up to 8.8% expected from April – compounding the financial pain for customers. Many are facing an aggregate increase of 23% to their broadband bill since March 2023.
“Without a simpler cross-network switching process, it’s harder for consumers to have full confidence to take advantage of all the options in the market and leave when price rises hit. Our own data show that broadband customers can save as much as £179 if they switch.”
Ernest added: “We need a genuinely competitive broadband marketplace, where a customer can easily consider their choices and benefit from the best offers – no matter who provides the network infrastructure.”
Reply from providers:
Talk Talk
“We’re working closely with other providers to support the implementation of One Touch Switching, and are committed to delivering it as quickly as possible for consumers.”
Sky
“We’re committed to implementing the One Touch Switch process and have been working with industry to implement this as soon as possible. It’s a significant change and collectively we need to ensure that it works as seamlessly as possible for customers from day one.”
BT
“ We fully support the move to OTS and remain committed to delivering it by (or ahead of) the deadline This is a highly complex, pan-industry endeavour to build, integrate and test a new switching system. It’s critical that trials are properly completed across all major CPs to ensure best possible customer experience when switching.
“We’re disappointed that Vodafone have made inaccurate claims as part of a recent switching campaign. They are apparently willing to launch OTS without adequate cross industry testing and have quoted misleading pricing comparisons to generate headlines. We encourage them to work with us and industry to deliver OTS as soon as possible.”
YourMoney.com also approached Virgin Media for a response, which had not been received at the time of publication.
