Customers deserve more than bully-boy tactics
The news that BT will hike up the phone bills of customers who do not sign up to a 12 month contract shows that the company favours the stick over the carrot, says uSwitch.com.
BT is informing customers this week that, from 1st October, call charges and connection costs will rise 10% and line rental will jump 50p to £13.29 for customers receiving paper bills or £12.04 for those receiving them electronically. Customers can avoid the increases if they pay for a year's line rental up front by debit or credit card.
Ernest Doku, communications expert at uSwitch.com, says: "In a year of pay freezes and spending cuts we would question why phone customers are being slapped with increases of up to 19%. Customers will be well aware that this is the second round of price rises from BT this year. In a space of less than 12 months customers are seeing call charges jump from 5.4p to 6.4p per minute, call connection fees go up from 9.3p to 10.9p and line rental up from £12.79 to £13.79. This is on top of a shift in off-peak hours from 6pm to 7pm and an imminent VAT increase that will inevitably push bills up further come January.
"Customers have the opportunity to reduce their line rental cost to just £9.49 a month by paying for 12 months up front by credit or debit card - but this may not be a realistic option for those already struggling to make ends meet. However it's a good tactic on BT's part to prevent customers from moving away. It's just a shame that the company is instilling the fear of a price hike to retain customers rather than entice them with attractive new deals.
"The good news is that BT has given customers several months to prepare for the price increases and is being very clear about what it will mean for customers. Those wishing to stay with BT should consider signing up to an Anytime calling plan which offers inclusive anytime calls, which will reduce the impact of the connection and call charge rises.
"Whether BT's competitors will follow suit remains to be seen, but customers who still make the majority of their calls in the early evening may find that switching to a different provider could help them keep their costs down. Primus, for example offers line rental for just £8.99 a month with free evening and weekend calls - a saving of over £30 a year on BT's current charges. Customers need to be careful about not breaking the terms of their existing contract though and BT advises customers who are concerned about the changes to contact them directly to discuss their situation."