UK broadband providers were put through their paces and one company ended up at the bottom of the list.
All of the UK’s largest Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have just been rated by their customers and it seems like TalkTalk needs to up its game seriously. That’s according to the latest results from which? The consumer champions have confirmed that this popular ISP is at the bottom of the list in their latest broadband survey.
Around 4,000 UK households took part in the annual tests, with TalkTalk scoring just 51%. Customers gave the telco the lowest possible ratings for technical support, customer service, and that all-important download speeds.
One in five who left TalkTalk also said they left because their connection was too slow, and some current customers said which? they would not recommend the supplier.
And not only TalkTalk did not do well in the current report. Which? also says Virgin Media has received lackluster reviews from customers. The ISP, which brings fiber broadband to millions of homes, ranked tenth with a total customer value of 54%. One of the biggest annoyances customers have with Virgin is the price, with many paying upwards of £40 a month for their connection. Because of this, this provider had some of the lowest ratings when it came to value for money.
Sky also suffered in the new report, as the ISP was ranked eighth with a customer rating of 56%. According to which? Sky customers were most likely to have a problem with their connection in the past year.
Wi-Fi Internet Router (GETTY)
Among the big providers, BT came out on top with a respectable 5th place in the league and a customer score of 59%. – that’s better than its main rivals, but nowhere near as good as the smaller competition.
So who was the overall winner? According to Which?, Zen earned the highest customer rating with an impressive 81% customer rating — marking the eighth year in a row it has held the #1 spot.
Zen scored highly across the board, including top scores for customer service and technical support. Although Zen doesn’t offer plans as cheap as some of the other companies, Zen doesn’t bake price increases into its contracts and has once again been dubbed “Which?” Recommended Vendor.
Other winners included Hyperoptic (65% customer rating) and Utility Warehouse (63%).
These shock results can’t come at a worse time for consumers as all major ISPs hike prices at record highs in the coming days. In fact, companies like BT, Virgin and TalkTalk add over 12% to bills, which could result in some customers paying an extra £100 a year.
Speaking of news Rocio Concha, what? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “It is unacceptable that the major broadband companies are raising the prices of their mediocre services by such huge sums during this unrelenting cost of living crisis.
“Which? is calling on all providers to allow customers to cancel their contracts free of charge if prices rise, and to cancel 2023 price increases entirely for financially vulnerable consumers.
“With just days to go before the inflation-dampening price increases go into effect, out-of-contract customers should take action now to switch, cut costs and avoid paying a lot more for their current service.”
