£3 Fixed Annual Increase too high for me

[#1]

I see that Plusnet are going to make a fixed £3 per month increase instead of the CPI + 3.9% each March.

Looking at what I pay now this will work out as 11.5% increase or 3.9% + 7.6% CPI with the old method. 😲

Considering CPI is 2.8% today and expected to go lower this appears to be somewhat greedy by Plusnet.

[#2]

This was 'imposed' by OFCOM. They wanted subscribers to know what mid term price rises would be. There was uncertainty of the CPI + method.

Is it right? No, it should be the price that you agreed at the start for the whole term.

[#3]

OFCOM might have objected to the CPI + 3.9% type of increase as being an indefinite figure for the consumer but they did not suggest any particular increase figure especially not one that is extortionate if inflation is at or near target as it is at present.. It is another example of the industry taking the mickey and possibly working in tandem as the £3 figure seems to be the norm across several companies. The timing of the move to that figure is also suspicious as it comes off the back of a period of high inflation when £3 might have seemed reasonable and possibly not as subject to adverse comment as now.

The only advantage for the consumer is that they can easily calculate what the true monthly cost will be over the duration of the contract and compare that with offerings from companies who do not have increases in-contract ---there are several, but usually not the biggest players.. If customers voted with their feet then this dubious practice might get stamped out.

[#4]

I could not agree more with what @jgb said.
It's what made me move to an Altnet. Fixed price for 2 years, less that what I was paying PN, and getting 940Mb ip and down

[#5]

---

@mystreet1 wrote:
... it should be the price that you agreed at the start for the whole term.

---

Isn't the increase of £3 mid contract exactly what you agree to at the start of the contract?

CPI + 3.9% attracted criticism as the inflation could not be specified 12 months in advance and was therefore deemed unfair. Now clearly identifying the mid contract increase makes it very simple to calculate the overall cost of the contract.

To put a positive spin on this, it equates to a reduction of £1.50 per month from the overall average contract cost for 12 months, repayable over the second 12 months.

[#6]

As @Baldrick1 says the simple £3 annual increase makes calculation of the overall contract price possible but prospective customers need to be aware that the timing and duration of the potential contract does make the calculation a little less easy. Even a twelve month contract ( not that these are around much) can have a price increase if it spans the March date, and an 18 month contract can be subject to either one or two increases depending on the start date, whilst a 24 month contracts will suffer two increases. As I said there are other providers out there, mainly on Altnets, where in contract prices do not apply, and also where exorbitant out of contract prices are not to be found. It is very much a case of buyer beware.

[#7]

@Richchad 

"£3 Fixed Annual Increase too high for me"

"I see that Plusnet are going to make a fixed £3 per month increase instead of the CPI + 3.9% each March.

Looking at what I pay now this will work out as 11.5% increase or 3.9% + 7.6% CPI with the old method. 😲

Considering CPI is 2.8% today and expected to go lower this appears to be somewhat greedy by Plusnet. "

This was exactly the calculation that I did when this was first announced.

It is the primary reason that I will be leaving shortly before the end of my contract - next April, so will just catch next year's increase.

I'm sure that I'm not the only one - I wonder how many customers this decision will cost Plusnet?

.

[#8]

Looking at what I pay now this will work out as 11.5% increase or 3.9% + 7.6% CPI with the old method. 😲

Considering CPI is 2.8% today and expected to go lower this appears to be somewhat greedy by Plusnet. "

This was exactly the calculation that I did when this was first announced.

It is the primary reason that I will be leaving shortly before the end of my contract - next April, so will just catch next year's increase.

I'm sure that I'm not the only one - I wonder how many customers this decision will cost Plusnet?

.

[#9]

I suppose the best time to sign up or renew your contract is early April, that way you would have no increase until the following March so only 12 * £3 on a 24 month contract. Still a mis-leading rip off and no doubt the April offers price will have the increase built-in.

On current offer prices it seems unfair percentagewise that those paying £27.99 for 74Mb will pay the same as those paying £44.99 for 900Mb.

It’s great for those who have a choice of networks to choose from but in my small market town it’s Openreach or nothing except for Virgin in some parts, not available at my address. Mobile signal at my address is OKish most of the time but does vary.

If they can predict that they are going to increase the cost by £3pcm each 12 months why can’t they be honest and fix contract prices accordingly. For most people no engineer visit is required when changing ISPs so why (in those cases) can it not be like gas and electricity where you can change supplier easily and rapidly with no break in service. OK it’s not quite the same thing but the changeover is just someone at a keyboard in most cases. In my experience changing ISP has very little downtime.

It may well be an Ofcom inspired idea but banning the practice in favour of fixed price contracts would be clearer and more honest.

[#10]

@Batfrog

I have noticed in the past that as the price increase date approaches, Plusnet indicate that prices will not increase until the following year and so  the best time might be sometime in March but, as you say, prices tend to bounce around a bit especially around that time of year

It would have been better if OFCOM had decided that ISPs had to offer fixed prices for the contract duration, but at the very least they should have required companies to work out the effective monthly cost for the duration of the contract taking account of in-contract increases and to display that cost prominently.  I know that prospective customers should read  T & C's but most see the headline price and not the other info in small print. 

[#11]

I'd have thought it would make more sense for ISPs to still use a variable price increase of CPI+3.9% but to cap any increase at a clearly stated amount such as £3.

Plusnet used to offer very competive prices for new customers and also for existing customers when chosing to renew a contract but that no longer seems to be the case. At the moment Sky (£27 / month) and Now TV (£23 / month) offer better value on fibre deals than Plusnet as does Virgin media (£26 / month) on their network and also 3 for their 5G service (£24 / month with 1st 6 months at £12) .

The current price on offer from Plusnet of £27.99 for new customers, together with a price increase of £3 from next March is way too much and suggests to me that Plusnet is gradually becoming more inline with EE prices and that the Plusnet brand name will not be around for much longer.

My Unlimited Fibre contract currently costs £26.97 / month for which I get about 23Mbps download and it will end next May, but on my account there is currently a derisory offer of £27.99 to "upgrade" to fibre immediately for another 24 months. This is mis-leading advertising as its not actually an upgrade because the landline phone service would be removed, although I'm not personally concerned about losing the landline phone service.

I've been a customer of Plusnet since about 2016 and the service has been reliable but now I can't think of any reason to accept  my current renewal offer or to renew my contract when the current one ends in May 2025.

[#12]

@delta777 

I think you will find that you will get a better offer when Plusnet email you about one month before end of contract. I did but it was not enough to make me stay as I could get similar full fibre speeds from Zen via City Fibre at almost the same price  ( within pennies) with no mid contract price rises and also I could sign up for a very competitively priced  digital voice service which only required me to plug my existing phone into their Fritzbox router.. No porting of my number, no ATA hassle with settings etc. I was not quite ready to entirely ditch the landline.

If you monitor the "upgrade" offers via your member centre you will find that prices do go up and down and you may see an offer that is attractive. I did so and saw such variation and  also times when faster speeds were cheaper than slower speeds! I suspect it depends on what rivals are offering.

[#13]

Quoting from the original message...

"see that Plusnet are going to make a fixed £3 per month increase"

Are you sure that it is three pounds per month (equating to 36 pounds per annum increase, ignoring anything else) ?

That would be an unmentiontionable.

[#14]

From Plusnet T&Cs...

For customers who signed up on or after 11th July 2024:

• On 31st March each year the monthly plan price for Broadband will increase by £3. All out of bundle charges (including UK call rates and international call rates) will increase by 5%. Other prices, content and terms may change at any time during your contract. We’ll tell you about important changes in advance, and if a change is detrimental you may be able to end your contract without any fees. See Price Changes below for more details.

For customers who signed up before 11th July 2024:

• A percentage price increase will be applied to the price of broadband, line rental, call plans and call charges. This price increase will be applied on or after 1st March each year and will be equal to a percentage comprising of i) the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rate figure published by the Office for National Statistics in January of that year plus ii) 3.9%. If you have previously signed up to a fixed price contract, and are still within your minimum term, these price increases will only apply once your minimum term ends.

As my existing 24 month contract ends August 2025 I will get the CPI + 3.9% instead of the fixed £3 pm increase?

[#15]

@Richchad 

As my existing 24 month contract ends August 2025 I will get the CPI + 3.9% instead of the fixed £3 pm increase?

It doesn't depend on when your contract ends, it's when your contract started!

If it started BEFORE 11 July 2024 then you will get the CPI + 3.9% , otherwise yout will get the fixed £3.

[#16]

@MisterW 

That is why I stated "my existing 24 month contract" and gave the end date so obviously it started before 11th July 2024.

I just wanted clarification that I was reading it correctly.