Renew before 23/3 or pay extortionate out of contract price?

[#1]

Your broadband (Unlimited Fibre Extra) & line rental contract is coming to an end on 23rd March

So, I had my 'contract for the above ends on 23rd March' email, which also states: "When your contract ends your monthly price will go from £25.01 to £54.39. Annual price changes apply. Your current package also includes Unlimited UK & Mobile, charged at an additional £0.00 per month (annual price changes apply)".

Plusnet email best offer states: "Here is your best price (in line with Ofcom guidance): Unlimited Fibre Extra broadband and line rental for £25.99 a month, increases 31 March. 18 month contract. Add Unlimited UK & Mobile call plan to your package for an additional £11.76 per month, increases 31 March. Annual price changes apply".

Problem is I was meant to be moving with my girfriend and our son into her sisters house, but things have hit extremely rocky shores. If we do get back on track, do you think I'm best to sign up for this new 18 month offer, then cancel if say we do move out of here within the next 3 months, then pay the heavy cancellation fee from Plusnet for the remaining 15 months?

- or - 

Stay out of contract but pay the extortionate £54.39 a month charge (crazy I know), but if we DO move, it should be cheaper than paying the exit / cancellation fees on the newly accepted £25.99 a month offer.

But if we DON'T end up moving, I will have paid £163.17 (excluding any March 31st increase) for just 3 months broadband and line rental

When I log into my account, there is (well was) a 12 month contract offer for around £27 a month (ex. March 31st price rise), so surely going on this then if we move 3 months down the line, then surely an exit / cancellation fee for the remaining 9 months not used will be cheaper of the options on offer?

Other half says to stay out of contract, but I can't see this moving going ahead 100%, so if still not moved out of here after say 5 months, then I would have paid a staggering £271.95 (ex. March price increase), whereas a new 12 month contract would only cost approx. £324 for the whole 12 months (ex. March price rise) then whatever cancellation / exit fee cost would be.

Any sensible, serious advice please?

Would rather stay with Plusnet for uninterrupted service as I need decent connection while working from home while still living here, and can't seem to find any company offering a month by month contract (that will no doubt involve a hefty one off set up fee).

Thank you. 

EDIT: Just re-read the bit that states "Here is your best price (in line with Ofcom guidance): Unlimited Fibre Extra broadband and line rental for £25.99 a month, increases 31 March. 18 month contract. Add Unlimited UK & Mobile call plan to your package for an additional £11.76 per month, increases 31 March. Annual price changes apply".

So it's NOT even the same package as what I am currently on, they want another £11.76 on top of the £25.99 for the call plan (ex price increase).

Sheesh : (

[#2]

Just found a 30 day rolling "no contract" example but with a hefty one off set up fee 

[#3]

Perhaps your best option might be to ring Customer Options Team on 0800 013 2632 selecting option 1 then option 2 (If you are thinking of leaving). They may be able to offer a better deal.

[#4]

If you look carefully , the offer says it increases in 2025 and not in a few days.

[#5]

I have an offer and rang the all in one cancellation , keep etc number and asked for the offer from last month, which holds until midnight on March 30th. I was told ok but no free calls However, yesterday, I used the renew link instead of the look at your account one, on the email, which has offered me poor quote for  days and the renew link came up with the good offer on my membership page.

Under the old contract, in a pink box, it asks if I am happy and invites looking at the calls page, but I was told I could not have the freebies as the system won't allow. When I clicked I got a choice of pay for weekend etc, and international, with Anytime and no calls costing £0.I ticked for Anytime and the page said that calls had been included free, so the call centre person asked me to go back to the offer (on my page), but all I got was buffering and the call went dead.

The call centre person said I got the free calls offer because it referred to my current contract, but my argument was that I had to have some calls (specifically Anytime) didn't I, before ordering a renewal ? and that's when the phone went dead.

I can do without all this with my state of health.

[#6]

I called again and spoke to a very helpful lady, who tried her best. She also could not get me the offer, as the publicity people made it and they can't honour it. She said that perhaps they won't offer a 24 month contract as they expect that all phone lines will be gone early next year (and fibre in place/ really?)

They are not offering landlines any more and the 'new' offer referred to by the OP will not let you order what was Anytime calls, so if you get a line it's useless, but we agreed that as long as lines are there, use them, so the lady has kindly contacted 'upstairs' for a final decision.

Well a phone contract on our spare mobile and Lila Connect at a 'mere' 250 will be cheaper and faster than the alternative. We have fibre Extra, but only because it has security and a possible couple of mbps over the threshold for the same price as basic fibre and paid for security.

I think some old people (including me) will be very upset at losing their landline at short notice, but at  least I understand what's going on. What is the policy for people who don't have internet and should not be mocked for fearing losing their phone security ie emergency calls.

'Fings ain't what they used to be' may be rewritten with petrol cars, landlines and other things added with electric cars, telepathy and edible clothing, made from seaweed being the future.

[#7]

Plusnet have always been (at least for a long time) a slippery outfit to deal with. Like your more than double out of contract price mine too was double some 18 months ago.

I read somewhere that the best time to tell them you’re leaving is first thing in a morning because the CSA has a daily budget and when it’s gone it’s gone !

Now, true or not on that occasion I was gobsmacked when they matched an offer from ‘Now Broadband’ for £24.99 for FTTC and all calls !

My recent renewal was a change of product but when I said I thought I could do better a £75 gift voucher was suddenly offered, again early morning so…..

As I’ve said before when it comes to Plusnet the ABC in the Police training manual advice applies;

Accept nothing

Believe no-one

Check everything

And above all make sure they email exactly what your offer is.

[#8]

Until now I have found Plusnet to be very accommodating, also having two lots of good matching/beating Now prices  and the last 24 month contract ,though I found a few days ago that my sister has been paying half my price for the same contract, same exchange and only one month after mine. I am shocked at how fast the losing of home phones has progressed and convinced that they would honour my February offer I have waited until just two weeks to go, so have little time to organise anything.

As my first question , given a positive answer, was 'Would one be free to leave, without penalty, should land lines be 'pulled' ?', I was quite shocked to hear that I  couldn't have my offer with landline and free calls, as the email and offer page suggest it's OK, but then conveniently goes to buffering. I was told that staff, for calls are only offered three boxes ie w&e, international and no calls. This is very odd as the person above's and a more recent same offer to me suggested a price for the disappeared former Anytime calls.

Virgin are still offering their landline and calls packages (the latter cheaper than Plusnet's), but their out of term prices are huge, with no guarantee of a good offer and would there be extra costs to get reconnected elsewhere, if you left ?

[#9]

@andyt1970 another option for short term contracts is Andrews & Arnold - they do charge £45pm for FTTC, but that is regardless of the contract length. There is a set-up cost for short contracts (from 1 month), and for contracts of less than 12 months they charge £25 for a router (or you can use your own if you have one). They can add VoIP for £1.44pm.

[#10]

Hi, anyone know what happens to our landline telephone number if I don't do anything and become "out of contract" from midnight and pay the £50+ a month until we move (definitely happening now).

Take it it will become broadband only (through telephone line) but no call package obviously, meaning will our current telephone number become dead? What happens if someone calls up, can we answer but then pay for any outgoing calls, as we'd use our mobiles. Sorry for any mistakes, typing this in a real rush.

[#11]

@andyt1970 if you don't do anything, all your existing services will continue but at the 'out of contract' rate

[#12]

@andyt1970  If you are continuing your existing service beyond your fixed term contract and paying out of contract price nothing will change. Your phone will continue to work as usual, your number will not become dead and you will pay for outgoing calls. The PSTN  telephone service stops if a new broadband only (SOGEA) contract is started. 

[#13]

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@andyt1970 wrote:

...

When I log into my account, there is (well was) a 12 month contract offer for around £27 a month (ex. March 31st price rise),

...

Hi Andy, could I trouble you to confirm that a 12 month contract renewal is indeed being offered in the Plusnet online account portal?

Many thanks.

[#14]

Andy, could you make do with mobile internet ? If so Smarty is £16 for unlimited call, texts and internet, on one month contracts. We have used it at our caravan in Wales and it was at least as good as ADSL and we have had two children gaming on it at the same time.

I think I will be going, though a call centre lady has escalated my request for the deal they say the system won't request. Oddly there seems no way of ordering what was Anytime calls. The lady sent me details of what she has requested, also telling me to expect a reply, today, but all I have is a text referring me to the help page which just has a message saying they understand that I have been in touch.

I would like to stay but don't hold up much hope for success, but I will wait until Monday, when the lady's team are back, but it cuts me to less than 14 days left in contract as it's last day is April 3rd. However LilaConnect can install on April 8th and Virgin (who still do phones ) April 3rd or 5th ; not sure but within a day, so it's decision time.

[#15]

FAO Jorvik, yes there was a 12 month renewal option but this has now gone since my contract ended on 23/3/24.