If you haven't checked how much your home broadband is costing you for a while, it's a good idea to make sure that you haven't been hit with unwelcome price rises.
Many new customers when signing up to internet packages are offered special deals, with the likes of tech leaders such as Sky, BT and Virgin all offering cut-price offers which make browsing the web much more affordable.
But when these bargain buys come to a close, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) can then charge their standard rate - which is more often than not, much more expensive. Anyone noticing the charge will then be hit by the inflated fee, until they grab a new deal or switch to a rivalling supplier.
Read more: Millions of BT, Virgin and Sky users affected by broadband shake up next week
For example, David Snelling of the Daily Express reports that he has recently been hit with a hefty hike. When he initially signed up for his current package in March 2021, he secured high-speed broadband of 200Mbps for just £47.75 each month.
The 18-month contract has just came to a close, and despite receiving the exact same speeds - David's bill has risen by £15 to £60.75 per month. Although it doesn't sound like a great difference, this accrues to £180 per year in the long run.
ISPs should in-fact warn you when your deal is ending via email or post, but it can be easy to ignore the correspondence due to clogged up junk emails and letterbox spam. It's a fantastic idea to check when your deal is set to come to a close, so you can in-turn check the current market for cheaper options before the price hike hits your monthly bill.
At the time of writing, there are some great deals available - and by not renegotiating your contract with your current supplier or parting ways for a new offer could end up being quite costly amid the ongoing cost of living crisis. For example, Virgin Media is currently offering 108Mbps broadband for just £26 per month.
When that contract ends, the price almost doubles to £51. BT's Fibre Essentials plan is now just £24.99 but that cost rises to £29.99 once the deal ends.
Sky users will also find leaps in their broadband costs with the firm's basic speed currently costing £25, but this rises to £30 when the contract comes to a close. If your deal has ended and you're now paying more, give your ISP a call and see what they have to offer as you might find a deal that reduces the price again.
If they won't budge, take a look at what's available on your street as you might find a rival ISP offering better speeds at cheaper prices. For example, BT is currently offering its lowest ever price for standard broadband and Sky has launched a prize freeze which means the cost of the contract won't go up when the usual increases kick in next year.
Don't forget that lots of smaller firms are slowly rolling ultrafast broadband with some, such as Comunity Fibre, Toob, CityFibre and Hyperoptic, delivering 1Gbps downloads for under £35 per month.
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