Content sponsored by bOnline
By Emma Lewis, bOnline
Broadband and mobile phone customers signed up with some of the big names like BT, EE, Plusnet and O2 are being hit by price rises of as much as 8.8% this year. Under existing rules, broadband and mobile providers are allowed to bump up prices mid-contract in line with inflation – plus up to an additional 3.9% on top of this.
Most use data about inflation from the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) for December, or Retail Prices Index (RPI) for January, to calculate how much their prices will increase by. CPI inflation was last month confirmed to have gone up to 4% for the 12 months to December – pushing the cost of broadband and mobile up to 7.9% for some customers.
RPI data for January was released on Monday (1st April) and came in at 4.9% – a total price increase of up to 8.8%. This news comes despite the fact that Ofcom has announced it’s looking to ban ‘confusing’ mid-contract price rises linked to inflation. As an alternative, Ofcom wants providers to lay out increases in ‘pounds and pence’, giving customers a clearer idea of what their future bills will be. A final decision is expected in the coming few months.
What Can Customers Do To Avoid The Price Hikes?
Sadly, in general there’s not much you can do if your VoIP or broadband provider decides to put their prices up mid-contract. The right to do so is often included in the small print and there’s generally a hefty exit fee to pay if you choose to leave before your contract has finished. However, as a way of beating some of the biggest price rises (particularly for VoIP digital phone systems) many people are now looking to move to smaller providers as soon as they can. This is particularly the case if they run a small or micro business or start-up, because every penny counts.
Specialist VoIP and business broadband provider bOnline works with sole traders, small businesses and growing start-ups to get the right deal for them at the lowest possible price.
Anthony Karibian, founder and CEO of bOnline, said: “Phone and broadband providers love April because it’s ‘National Price Hike Month’ and they can help themselves to fat margins. Unfortunately, we all know it all comes at the cost of the small business heroes who don’t have the time and resources to shop around.
That’s why at bOnline we save our best deals for April and make it super easy to sign up or start a free trial in minutes.”
Don’t forget, with landlines being shut down completely from the end of 2025, now is the ideal time to make the jump.
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Get VoIP This April Starting From As Little As £1 A Month
Smaller VoIP and broadband providers like bOnline also tend to focus more on personalised customer service and helping customers find the package at the right price. bOnline itself is also making it even easier (and cheaper) to switch to VoIP with its free 7-day trial.
Signing up online takes just 2 minutes and there’s no obligation to continue after the trial. It’s just a really good way to test out all the business-friendly VoIP features on offer, like call divert menus, hold music, calling waiting, video calling, access to call analytics data and much more. Then, if you do decide to sign up to a monthly fixed-price package, they are currently offering an attractive introductory offer of just £1 a month for the first 3 months. Just use code 3FOR3 to get the discount (offer expires 30th April 2024).
Although the landline switch off isn’t due to complete until the end of next year, it’s strongly recommended you look for a digital phone provider now. Even if your business doesn’t currently use a landline phone, there may be other things like payment or security systems that do in fact use the old copper landline technology and therefore need upgrading. It’s also worth avoiding any kind of last-minute rush.
We’ve put together a few articles you might find useful:
- How VoIP Can Help Your Small Business Through The Recession
- Does a Small Business Need a Specialist VoIP Provider?
- Switching To VoIP: What Small Business Owners Really Want To Know
Content sponsored by bOnline
