BT have announced that price changes will affect customers from 5th of January 2013 driving up line rental prices over the £15 mark for the first time. Standard line rental is increasing from £14.60 to £15.45 per month with other increases to calls, broadband and vision prices.
BT note the prices are limited to a maximum of 5.9% for broadband and voice services but the large increases are in the Vision section, with one Sky Sports option going up by 38.9%! If you take BT Vision alongside broadband and phone you may notice that your overall price could be 10% higher in some instances depending on which options you take. Early termination fees are also due to receive price increases. A summary is available below including the percentage change whilst full details from BT are available here.
| Product | 2012 Price | 2013 Price | %age increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Line Rental | £14.60 | £15.45 | 5.8% |
| Unlimited Anytime Plan | £4.90 | £5.15 | 4.9% |
| Unlimited Evening & Weekend Plan |
£3.15 | £3.30 | 4.8% |
| BT Broadband Option 1 | £17.80 | £18.85 | 5.9% |
| BT Broadband Option 2 | £22.50 | £23.80 | 5.7% |
| BT Broadband Option 3 | £26.80 | £28.35 | 5.7% |
| BT Infinity Option 1 | £21.00 | £22.20 | 5.7% |
| BT Infinity Option 2 | £26.80 | £28.35 | 5.8% |
| BT Vision Essential | £4 | £5 | 25% |
| Single Vision pack | £7.20 | £7.50 | 4.2% |
| Sky Sports 1 or 2 (individually) (12 month) | £12.90 | £15.00 | 16.3% |
| Sky Sports 1 or 2 (individually) (24 month) | £7.20 | £10.00 | 38.9% |
| Sky Sports 1 & 2 (12 month) | £18.20 | £20.00 | 9.8% |
| Sky Sports 1 & 2 (24 month) | £12.30 | £15 | 22.0% |
Line rental costs going up will affect a large number of broadband users as a standard phone line is required to use broadband. It is suggested that people shop around to find the best line rental price as you may find that it is cheaper from your broadband provider or another WLR (Wholesale Line Rental) provider.
It's also likely that line rental prices of other providers will go up, although there is usually some delay in this. Sky have only just recently announced an increase to line rental, with this rising from £12.25 a month to £14.50 a month from the 1st of September. The Sky increase in line rental is only for new customers signing up, and existing customers will continue to pay the lower rate. The historic line rental charges for BT with dates of commencement are below:
| Date | Price |
|---|---|
| January 2013 | £15.45 |
| December 2011 | £14.60 |
| April 2011 | £13.90 |
| October 2010 | £13.29 |
| January 2010 (VAT related increase) | £12.79 |
| April 2009 | £12.50 |
| April 2008 | £11.75 |
staff member)
9 months ago
staff member)
9 months ago
I wonder if I can buy my line and avoid years of rental?