By Marc Allera, CEO, BT Group’s Consumer division.
In January, we announced that we would move away from inflation-linked price rises for our mobile, TV and broadband customers.
We acted after an Ofcom consultation proposed that when people sign up to a phone, broadband or pay TV contract, they should be clear and certain about what they will have to pay throughout its duration. The regulator said price increases being linked to future inflation created too much uncertainty for consumers.
Up until now, we have used a model that was introduced in response to Ofcom’s Fairness for Customers commitments in 2019 that adjusts customer pricing every year, on 31st March, by the rate of inflation (CPI) +3.9%. That price increase went ahead this year as normal at the end of March.
We want to act in line with Ofcom’s guidance to move from % figures and CPI-linked changes for our monthly plans and provide certainty for our customers on exactly what their price change will be, and when. So, starting today (10 April), we will introduce a new model for BT and EE customers’ price changes consistent with Ofcom’s approach that shows pounds and pence amounts in new and upgrading customers’ contracts. Plusnet will follow later this summer.
From 31 March 2025, for new and re-contracting mobile customers, this annual increase will be an extra £1.50 a month. It will be £1.50 a month for connected devices (including laptops, tablets and smart watches), £2 a month for TV customers, and £3 a month for broadband customers. Out-of-bundle services will be subject to an annual 5% increase.
There will be no plan increases for our customers in financially vulnerable circumstances on EE Basics or BT Home Essentials.
The cost of living and a digitally inclusive society are now more relevant and important than ever. I’ve written before about how our annual price change is never an easy conversation to have with customers. But it is a necessary conversation to have to help us manage our own rising costs and investments we’re making into networks and customer service, while also protecting those customers in vulnerable circumstances, experiencing financial hardship or digital exclusion.
It is also important to point out that our price rises have not risen in line with usage. Customers’ consumption of data, across the industry, has trebled across mobile and fixed networks in the past five years alone. All this while telco services continue to make up only a small and declining share of household outgoings, representing just 3.5% of average monthly basket spend.
Driving meaningful change
We are continually thinking about how we – and the wider industry – can play our part alongside policymakers to drive meaningful change, at a time when we can see so many people under pressure. Today, we provide broadband for 72% of those in the UK who take social tariffs, and we continue to give all our customers outstanding value for money: in real terms, people pay less for their connectivity now than they ever did and get much more.
Value for money is different from offering the lowest prices. The quality and reliability of mobile networks are now more important, to more people, than ever. The digital economy is the economy for the future, built on brilliant digital infrastructure. We know many people pay a little more to be on EE, which is why we’re proud to have been named the UK’s best network for 10 years in a row, according to RootMetrics. It’s testament to our approach of always putting network quality at the heart of our customer experience.
We’ll continue to invest and offer our customers the best and most reliable connection on our networks, with the latest tech and brilliant UK-based service. It’s all part of our ambition to be the most personal, customer-focused brand in the UK.
Follow me on X and Instagram @marcallera
Source: EE Newsroom
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