Early termination fees for landline and broadband to be cut

It has been announced by the UK’s communications regulator Ofcom that there is to be a reduction in the early termination charges that consumers have to pay when ending their landline and broadband contracts earlier than the end of the contract period.

According to recent reports the UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has announced that the early termination fees that are charged by communications companies when a customer ends their landline contract earlier than expected are to be reduced dramatically. The reduction in fees will apply to landline customers and those that have combined landline and broadband services.

At present the early termination fees that are charged by providers when a customer wants to pull out of the contract early can be very high, as the provider wants to recoup the losses that are made from the contract finishing earlier than stipulated. However, according to reports the early termination fees could be cut by as much as eighty five percent.

One industry official said: “This is great news for landline and broadband customers. People can be taken in by a cheap deal or freebies and easily find themselves tied into long contracts. 18 month deals are becoming commonplace and with the landline and broadband markets moving so quickly, people can often find they are no longer on the best deal shortly after signing up to a new one.”

He added: “Currently, most providers will charge at least the remaining cost of the contract for early termination, these new rules from Ofcom mean customers never have to pay more than the payments left under the contract and should often pay less, to reflect the costs providers save because the contract ends early. This seems to be a fair way to treat customers and should go a long way to ensuring people can move freely to better deals for their broadband and landline services.”

Source – Every Investor