I hate broadband

...this is is what it's come to. Pure hate for broadband. I'm developing nostalgia for the simplicity of trusty old dial-up.

My Wanadoo broadband, which took five weeks instead of 10 days to transfer to my new house has now stopped working.

My new friends at the call centre (we're becoming very familiar) tell me the account was accidentally split into two thereby stopping me logging on. Another 24-hour delay.

I should count myself lucky I'm not with OneTel... see our readers' comments.

The trouble is that by signing up to a 12-month contract, consumers are losing their ultimate power - taking their business elsewhere.

So today's money tip: find a no-contract broadband provider. Check out the advice in Ask an Expert and our chief hack Mike has some handy advice.

- Andrew Oxlade

Comments

[Nick Gibbins]

Last November I moved house and, foolishly, decided to switch ISP's as well. I notified my new provider (BT) several weeks in advance to ensure a smooth transition. There followed a series of events comparable to something out of a Kafka novel. After two and a half months and countless phone calls to their call centre I finally got BT broadband in February of this year.

I did eventually win a pitifully small amount of compensation from BT but the damage is done. Once my 12 months contract is up I will be moving my phone and broadband to another provider.

My advice to anyone thinking of signing up for BT broadband is DON'T!

[Bob]

it's not broadband that's the problem, its those idiots at wanadoo

[Andrew Oxlade]

Thanks for the comments. I love the Fiat analogy!

A few weeks ago, Wanadoo would have qualified for Lada status in my eyes!

Everything is working now but my anger hasn't eased. I still plan to further highlight Wanadoo's bogus 10-day claim.

By the way, This is Money is still receiving lots of OneTel complaints (and some emails from people who have now receieved compensation!). We'll keep you posted with more stories in the Money Savers section.

Cheers.
Andrew

[William Fletcher]

I disagree - comparing broadband to dial up is like comparing a Aston Martin to a Fiat :-)- says MG

Er............not if you are lumbered with AOL - it jams up EVERYTIME on start up! It has the reliability of an Allegro with sugar in the petrol! Anyway I thought FIAT own Ferrari............just think a Ferrari with a FIAT Strada motor..........you have AOL!!

[geoff]

Well, I have wanadoo(freeserve broadband) and I am quite happy. Quick service,helpful support and the promise of quicker speeds in the future for under £20 a month.

Geoff

[Moneygeek]

I disagree - comparing broadband to dial up is like comparing a Aston Martin to a Fiat :-)

Yes I agree, sometimes the service you expect is not always up to scratch, but the 'always on' Internet access and the speed at which you can do work, play games and have fun is well worth the wait.

12 month contracts are not that bad, especially since broadband prices have come down and dial up prices can work out quite expensive if you use the Internet regularly.

MG