Landline providers set to cut contract fees

Customers of the three big landline telephone providers – BT, TalkTalk and Virgin – have agreed to slash the cost of ending a contract early.

Currently, fees for early termination can stretch to as much as £33 however telecoms regulator, Ofcom, have demanded these are cut by up to 85%.

Although the landline providers argued that their fees were not unfair, all three of the market leaders agreed to the price cuts which will now see termination costs come in at as little as £2.

Talking to BBC news, Ofcom said the price cuts were a much needed step in the right direction:

“We very much welcome the reductions made by BT, TalkTalk and Virgin Media which mean that consumers will face much lower charges if they wish to end their contracts early.”

Meanwhile, BT defended charging its customers fees of tens of pounds for cancelling their contracts:

“If a customer leaves within the minimum contract period that they signed up to, they are charged the amount we expected to receive from them, less the cost we save as a result of them leaving early, as this is what we are legally entitled to,” said a BT spokesperson to BBC news.

“However after discussion with Ofcom, we have agreed to reduce the charges for landline (or landline plus broadband) services over the coming months, to help them reach an industry-wide agreement on charges.”

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