Broadband And Landline Customers To Get Automatic Compensation
Customers who receive poor service from their telecoms provider are to get automatic compensation, the regulator Ofcom has announced. From 2019 they will get £8 a day if a fault is not fixed which will be paid as a refund through their bill.
This is less than the £10 that was proposed when Ofcom started its consultation earlier this year.
Providers will also have to pay £5 a day if their broadband or landline is not working on the day it was promised.
If an engineer misses an appointment, they will have to give £25 in compensation.
Ofcom has estimated as many as 2.6 million people could benefit from the new rules.
The scheme is a voluntary agreement between Ofcom and broadband providers. But five providers – which between them have about 90% of broadband and home phone users as customers – have already signed up:
- BT
- Sky
- TalkTalk
- Virgin Media
- Zen
The regulator also expects EE and Plusnet to join the scheme in due course.
Anyone wanting to obtain compensation under the current arrangements can find help on the Ofcom website.
Duncan is a technology professional with over 20 years experience of working in various IT roles. He has a interest in cyber security, and has a wide range of other skills in radio, electronics and telecommunications.