The importance of reviewing and renewing your broadband contract
Even if you have a busy family life and a demanding career, it’s vital to set aside time for reviewing and renewing your broadband contract
The phrase “not enough hours in the day” could have been coined for modern family life.
As such, it’s easy to allow contracts and policies to automatically renew, rather than going to the effort of running price comparison searches and negotiating new contracts.
Yet this can be a false economy.
Some firms take customers for granted and diminish the quality of their offerings, while other companies effectively tax loyalty by increasing annual fees or premiums with little justification.
Those tempting introductory deals don’t last forever, and standard contract costs for services like home broadband can be significantly higher once the grace period is over.
Reviewing and renewing your broadband contract might not feel like a priority, but it’s important for ensuring your ISP isn’t charging over the odds.
That’s especially true if you’re not entirely happy with the speed, service or support you’re currently receiving.
Customer service levels can decline, broadband speeds may begin to fluctuate depending on rising local demand, and other ISPs might introduce products and services yours can’t match.
Ten tips for reviewing and renewing your broadband contract
Reviewing
- Organise existing paperwork. Even in the digital age, most companies still supply paper contracts. File documents in chronological order in an accessible folder, to compare with new deals.
- Set a calendar reminder. Outlook, Google Calendar, a wall planner – it doesn’t matter. Set the reminder a month before your current contract ends, giving you time to research the market.
- Do some finances. Consider whether your existing contract is still affordable. Would your bank account benefit from cost-cutting, or could it support an upgraded package?
- Study monthly usage. Many ISPs provide data trackers, which might suggest a fixed data deal would suffice. Or maybe a faster connection is needed due to increased online use?
- Conduct line speed checks. Is your existing ISP giving you the fastest downloads and uploads your home can get? Could another landline provider or cable service do better?
- Check offers on BroadbandDeals.co.uk. We have hundreds of deals with all the leading providers, from rolling 30-day contracts to two-year packages with no setup costs.
- Research other people’s experiences. Which? is a great resource for this, while Trustpilot and Reviews.io are among the impartial websites publishing ISP customer reviews.
- Look for offers. Many firms offer new customer incentives, from hardware (like mesh extenders) to freebies (unlimited anytime calls). What would suit your needs best?
- Feel free to negotiate. You don’t have to accept the same deal everyone is offered. Play ISPs against each other, ask for extra freebies or request a small extra monthly discount.
- Think about potential changes in circumstances. If there’s a prospect of moving house or switching career in the next year, this might affect the optimal package – and its length.
Renewing
