I've been keeping up-to-date with the problems with speed that have been reported on the support pages over recent days.
We have been experiencing drastic drops in download speed over the past few weeks. In the evenings, we are unable to watch a video on YouTube, for example, without it stopping to buffer every five seconds or so. My girlfriend is keeping (or at least trying to) up-to-date with an online project that posts a video blog each day. So far, she hasn't been able to watch a single video due to seriously limited bandwidth.
Performing a speed test on various facilities (including
www.mybroadbandspeed.co.uk as advertised on the PlusNet control panel) reports speed as low as 0.2mb. I have tried calling the support line, but give up after considerable time waiting in a queue with no answer. I understand that PlusNet are working on correcting the problem, and this is appreciated. However, when I am paying for a premium service, I expect a premium service. The service I am getting from PlusNet is, regrettably, unacceptable.
Given my line of work (I am an online software developer) I rely on having a solid broadband connection as I often work from home. Both my father and girlfriend's father have broadband from Talk Talk, which costs them nothing as part of their package. They both live within 1 minute of our house, and experience nothing less than the maximum speed of their line at nearly every given time. At peak times, the speed drops slightly, but is still considerably fast.
With this in mind, I would like to ask PlusNet for a response to the following questions:
1) Whilst I understand work is ongoing to resolve the known speed issues, when is this work expected to be complete, and how long will it be before full service resumes?
2) I understand that any broadband package is sold on a basis of offering "up to an agreed download speed". I also understand that this is dependent on many variables such as the distance between the exchange and the customer, the quality of the line, the setup within the home and the equipment used. With this in mind, I am pleased to report that when my broadband service has worked as advertised, I can achieve speeds of around 6.5mb. So with this as the benchmark of what I can expect, and the exceptionally low speeds I am actually experiencing, what is the procedure that I would need to follow to cancel my subscription and exit from my contract from you to seek an alternative supplier. Given the quality of service is currently unacceptable, I feel that I am well within my rights to end my contract early as the current quality of service provided by PlusNet falls well below that advertised.
Regards,
Matthew Alexander
