Product refresh - charge for excess usage

[#1]

Well I've voted for 1Gb chunks because If I regularly go over I should increase my usage allowance by the necessary number of 1G's or change to a higher usage package, and I don't expect it to be a rip-off fee per G, £1 max, preferably a lot less!
And as I've said in the other thread, the cap should be the default option at sign up, and you get a nice big heading email if you hit it.

[#2]

I hope it's OK posting my thoughts on this even though I am not currently a customer - but will be back next year.
Would it not be possible for a system to calculate (based on the usage so far that particular month) at the moment you reach your limit how much extra you would need - rounded up to the nearest GB - till the next billing period and be offered that as an option at £1/GB as well as Option 4?
e.g. If, by the 23rd day of June's billing cycle, you have used 10GB then it would be reasonable to expect that you could use 10/(24)*30 (12.5)GB by the 30th day so why not be offered the chance to buy an extra 3GB so that you don't have to change any download habits.
If this has been suggested before my apologies.
Edit: I haven't submitted a vote as I am not, strictly speaking, a PN customer.

[#3]

The problem I can see with that Mav is out of the ordinary usage sending you over the limit, such as school holidays or one off large downloads.  For example my wifes a teacher so our usage always goes up a fair bit when shes on holiday and potentially home all day for a week (or 2, or 8!).  Also I occasionally work from home, or do the odd like project/experiment at home and could be downloading and extra 5 or 10GB, this could then push the daily average that would be calculated to work out how much extra would be needed, so the extra amount I need is far too high.  Maybe also I'm just heading off on holiday for the last week or 2 of my billing period!
Having said all that I do like your thinking Mav!
I'm unsure on how to vote on this one as I can understand both sides of this.  Plusnet will want a low headline price to make the products attractive.  This may have to rise if the extra usage was sold in 1GB chunks or rolled over in order to keep Plusnets margins the same.
Phil

[#4]

Like Leng, I would like to see usage assessed over a longer period. I am asked for an estimated annual mileage for car insurance purposes and incur no penalty if I do 50% of that in three months. If I am prepared to sign up to a 12 month contract with Plusnet, then I think like my usage level should be assessed over 12 months too.

[#5]

It's definitely a bit too expensive at the moment, but still pretty much on par with other ISPs
I think the main problem is that it's switched on by default - as was said earlier it should be off by default with an alert sent out when you're nearing your usage limit advising on how to turn it on if needed...

[#6]

Quote from: pjmarsh

The problem I can see with that Mav is out of the ordinary usage sending you over the limit, such as school holidays

As I stated here my daughter is normally well within her monthly allowance but the school holiday scuppered that so the formula would have to factor these in.

[#7]

Quote from: pjmarsh

The problem I can see with that Mav is out of the ordinary usage sending you over the limit, such as school holidays

I was thinking of three options being offered when you go over your limit.
Example (based on what I posted above):

Quote

You have reached your monthly (10GB) download limit and blah blah blah speed now restricted till your next billing date on xx/xx/xx. You now have three options: 1. Purchase an extra 3GB for £3 which will enable you to continue downloading at the current rate till the end of the current billing cycle. 2. Purchase an extra 1GB at £1 till your next billing cycle (but remember that you may go over once more and receive another message like this one. 3. Do nothing and your speeds will return to normal on your next billing date.

[#8]

I've just changed my vote to "Other" because Mav's suggestion in Reply #21 addresses my thoughts more directly.
Edit: I've changed it back again to 1Gb chunks as Mav's option 1is really 3x option 2.

[#9]

That option 1 makes no sense.
Assume that I am on Extra using 50GB per month
Move to Value - cost reduction in market 3 £5
Run out of usage after 1 week - pay £3 and I can use as much as I like - unlimited usage for £9.49

[#10]

Mmm - I see what you mean.
Perhaps it should read:

Quote

1. Purchase an extra 3GB for £3 which should enable you to continue downloading at the current rate till the end of the current billing cycle. Bare in mind that you will receive this message again if you go over the 3GB within that time.

Is it getting too convoluted now

[#11]

Quote from: davidj60

Quote from: PlusComUK It should not be seen as £5 for a little over limit, but a total of say £11.49 (£6.49 + £5) for 10gb plus a bit ! On Market 1 its £17.99 for 10GB plus a bit!!! -or upgrade to 60GB for £17.99 - but I know I'd never get near 60GB on a regular basis

look at what you said in your post............if you run the chance to over run your usage, then at the same cost surely it is better to have the 60 GB allowance. It is better to be looking at it, rather than looking for it.  It is also considerably cheaper by what you just said

[#12]

I think you should be able to carry over any excess usage. Seems unfair to pay for something then not be able to use it.

[#13]

If you look at it in a non broadband sense but in another service sense (mobile phones) you pay your monthly fee and get X minutes and Y texts, if you use more than X minutes you start to get charged the going rate, if you don't use all your minutes they don't roll over.  In a way though with broadband it is a bit unfair, you're not paying for your normal Gb (you already did that) you're buying from PlusNet 5Gb which you should be able to use at your leisure so in that sense it should roll over, or, be limited to 30 days.
So you're on 10Gb and towards the end of the month you need to use an extra Gb so pay £5 for 5Gb, 30 days later (or if it runs out, whichever is sooner) that 5Gb is used up.
Another option would be that if you're in your last day before usage resets and you're up to 9.5Gb and looking at going over your 10Gb limit, PN don't count it up to 11Gb, basically giving you an extra 1Gb for free only on the last day of the usage counter though, if you go over 11Gb on the last day then you can just switch off the add extra option (though if you're only using 10Gb in a month then you're unlikely to use 1Gb in a day).
I'm not going to vote because I'm not on a metered package so it doesn't affect me, just throwing out some ideas

[#14]

An analogy I am thinking of is monthly shopping.
You pay for all you expect to need on the first of the month but by the 28th you've run out of potatoes. You wouldn't expect the store to insist you bought £10 worth when a £2.00 bag would suffice.
Also, any that you haven't consumed by the end of the month can be eaten within the following month with the potential result that you won't need any extra towards the end of that one.
Does that make sense?

[#15]

We could expand that analogy further, you only need 1 potato but Tesco only have bags of potatoes so you need to purchase a whole bag even though you require just the one, the potatoes also have a use by date after which you can't use them (or shouldn't use them, are spuds use by or best before?) which admittedly for potatoes is probably quite a while but for stuff like milk or perishables is probably in the region of days.  Mind you, if it was a friendly local store you could say "ere, Bob, I only need 1 spud instead of 10, can you gimme this ere spud and next month I'll pay for 10 but only have 9?" as in, if you have 10Gb but for that month use 11, you can opt to have 9Gb next month instead of 10.
Of course, this all depends on how PN has to pay for the extra usage, if it costs them a lot more to give you an extra 1Gb than it does to supply the initial 10Gb then, well, PN is a profit making company so any choices we suggest to them should take into account that they have to make a profit on every product and expansion on the product sold.