Martin Lewis’s Money Saving Expert helped one man slash his broadband bill by a staggering £756 using its “haggling” tips.
In its latest newsletter, MSE shared the success story of Phil, who renegotiated his Virgin Media contract for broadband, phone, and TV by following their advice.
Phil explained: “I went through retentions, turned down their offer of £129 per month, and they put me through to a UK team. They offered £94 per month. I told them my wife was looking for a better price, so we settled on £87 per month, saving £756 over the next 18 months.”
These savings are particularly impressive, given the recent mid-contract price hikes. This year, customers have faced an average 8.8 percent increase, which is costing them an extra £182.40 for broadband and £94.80 for mobile services annually, according to Uswitch.
The research also revealed that loyal customers are hit hardest by these rises. Those who’ve stayed with their provider for between seven and nine years experienced much larger month-to-month price increases compared to recent switchers.
For instance, broadband customers who’ve been with the same provider for seven to eight years are paying £22.10 more this month—45 percent higher than the national average price rise of £15.20.
In contrast, those who switched providers less than a year ago saw their average price increase to just £11.75, which is 23 percent below the national average.
However, there are ways to reduce these costs. MSE offers several key tips to help reduce broadband bills through haggling. First, they recommend doing a “channel audit” to check what services are actually being used. Many people are paying for channels or packages they don’t watch, so cutting these can immediately reduce costs.
Timing is another important factor, according to the savings gurus. Those who are near or past the end of their contract are in a stronger position to negotiate. This is because providers are more likely to offer discounts to retain customers who are out of contract and able to leave without penalties.
MSE suggests marking the contract end date in the diary to haggle at the right time.
When negotiating, MSE says people should benchmark their current deal against offers for new customers and deals from other providers. Having this information gives a factual basis to aim for a better price.
Many providers, including Virgin Media, offer exclusive deals to existing customers that aren’t publicly advertised, so it’s worth checking for these before calling.
If the deals aren’t satisfactory, don’t be afraid to walk away. Sabrina Hoque, telecoms expert at Uswitch.com said: “Most broadband and mobile contracts range from around 18 to 24 months.
“Your provider will let you know when your contract is about to end, so don’t be tempted to ignore these emails when they come through – it really only takes a few minutes to run a comparison and see what else is out there.”
