A survey published this week shows that the telecoms giants BT and Talk Talk have the
worst customer satisfaction ratings out of all the major broadband providers.
They scored 38% and 45% respectively
with their customers, while Sky (48%) and EE (49%) came close behind them in
the survey of 1,800 people.
According to the consumer group ‘Which’,
frequent price rises, connections that drop, unreliable speeds and "woeful
customer service” all contributed to the poor scores,
These four companies account for
almost three-quarters of the UK broadband market. And BT alone accounts for
almost a third of the country's broadband connections
Who came top in the survey?
Zen Internet had the highest customer
rating at 86%, followed by Utility Warehouse (81%), John Lewis
Broadband (68%), SSE (66%), Plusnet (65%), Virgin Media (52%), Vodafone (50%)
and the Post Office (48%).
The customer score is based on
satisfaction levels with their provider and whether they would recommend them
to others. Those surveyed were also asked to evaluate aspects of the service,
with five stars being the highest rating in seven categories, including speed,
reliability and customer service.
Just four of the 12 providers in the
survey scored more than three stars for speed: Zen Internet, Utility Warehouse,
Virgin Media and Vodafone.
According to Alex Neill from ‘Which?’,
"The big players still have a long way to go to satisfy their customers,
so if you're unhappy with your broadband, complain and look to switch if your
service doesn't improve."
A TalkTalk spokesperson said:
"Our extensive improvement programme has already led to fewer faults,
faster average speeds, shorter times to resolve issues and customers reporting
higher satisfaction levels."
A BT spokesperson said it was
disappointed with the survey result and apologised to any customers who had
been let down. "Generally, our broadband performs extremely well for
customers and offers very reliable speeds at peak times, according to the
latest Ofcom broadband speeds report."
Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, said
last month that broadband customers who suffered poor service may get automatic
refunds under new plans (see our blog article dated 24.03.17).
In Ofcom’s own survey, 51% of broadband
customers said they were "very satisfied" with their provider, with
36% fairly satisfied. This means that a significant minority (13%) experienced
poor service, mostly due to slow speeds or loss of connection.
BT had the lowest score for "very
satisfied" of the four providers in the Ofcom survey at 45%, followed by
TalkTalk on 49%, Sky on 52% and Virgin Media on 55%.
Last month BT agreed to Ofcom demands
to legally separate Openreach, which runs the UK's broadband network, in a bid
to give better service to both consumers and broadband providers.
Digital Minister Matt Hancock said:
"Too many people are suffering from poor customer service when things go
wrong with their broadband. Getting a better deal for consumers is at the heart
of our Digital Economy Bill, which strengthens Ofcom's power to make sure
providers pay automatic compensation when service falls short."