Ofcom wants to make it easier for consumers to change providers

Ofcom has announced a series of changes and proposals that it wanted to adopt in the past few days. One of these was setting the wholesale charge controls on BT’s Openreach division by lowering down the rates set by the firm to ensure that other providers can still provide competitive services.

Ofcom has proposed another set of measures, this time to make it easier for the consumer to switch to another broadband service provider. These measures are geared towards provided more protection for users as well from having their broadband operators switch them without obtaining their consent or without informing them ahead of time.

A study conducted by the regulator revealed that one in every five consumers who switched their broadband experienced a 1-week loss of service. An estimated 130,000 households have encountered problems with the wrong telephone lines being taken over during the process of switching or when they moved to another address during a twelve month period. Furthermore, approximately 520,000 homes have had their landline or broadband services switched without their consent in the last year.

In line with this, Ofcom has proposed a number of options to help consumers when they’re thinking of switching. The regulator’s preferred option involves a process wherein the new provider will be the one to manage the switch, which would be verified and checked by an independent third party to protect against slamming.

Ofcom Chief Executive, Ed Richards said: “Smooth switching processes are essential to ensure that consumers can change providers with confidence. Many people think that the current systems are too difficult and unreliable which is why we have made it one of our priorities to tackle this problem.”

“Ofcom has improved consumer information on broadband speeds and enhanced competition in the market but it is also essential that people are able to switch easily to exercise their choice. Today’s proposals are designed to make the process easier, more reliable and safe from slamming. We believe that the proposals would improve consumers’ experience of switching and ensure that they continue to benefit from competition.”

Ofcom’s list of proposals will be able to benefit consumers in a number of ways:

• simplifying the process so that consumers are not confused by different methods of switching;
• ensuring that all providers can compete so consumers can continue to benefit from innovation, choice and value for money;
• addressing technical problems when switches take place, which currently can lead to the wrong line being switched and consumers losing service;
• ensuring that consumers have accurate information on the implications of switching so that they can make informed decisions on whether to change providers; and
• simplifying the switching process so consumers do not have to contact different providers when moving to a bundle.