Roll-Over Contracts

Ofcom today confirmed that rollover contracts, which tie landline and broadband customers into repeated minimum contract periods unless they opt out, will be banned from December this year.

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/arcs/...

The contracts, also known as Automatically Renewable Contracts (ARCs), roll forward to a new minimum contract period � with penalties for leaving � unless the customer actively opts out of the renewal. The ban will apply to ARCs for landline and broadband services sold to residential and small business customers.



The full news release can be found on the Ofcom website.

<Sigh>. I've been on BT's voice ARC and they send you a reminder letter near the renewal date and make your options very clear. There were also other non-ARC contracts available just not quite as good a deal. It seems to me that all this does is remove an option that CPs had for selling cheaper contracts because a few people couldn't be bothered to read the small print when they signed up or ignored the letters that were sent to them.

Thanks, guys :-/

So, contract ends, BT could then stop service because the customer is "out of contract". The customer then needs to call up and agree a new contract ... Can you imagine the furore if BT did that - even though they will be perfectly entitled to do so.

Why should OFCOM effectively penalise BT just because people do not bother to read what they are sent, or remember what they wwere told and fail to act on the reminder letter that arrives a month before. I have two sitting on my desk.

didn't they also limit maximum contract lengths, making the "discount in return for commitment" quite hard to do now.

In reply to a post by yarwell:

didn't they also limit maximum contract lengths, making the "discount in return for commitment" quite hard to do now.

That's possible. I came off my ARC in Feb. this year. It was no longer the cheapest option.

In reply to a post by MHC:

BT could then stop service because the customer is "out of contract".

A common fallacy! You are never "out of contract"; you have just exceeded any minimum term and continue to be under contract indefinitely until either party legitimately terminates it.

@Andrue: Totally agree. This prohibition just panders to the lazy elements of the population, to the detriment of the rest of us getting a good deal by committing for longer.

That is my point ... BT can then legitimately stop service on day 366 with no notice whatsoever.

"Legitimately" is the operative word! They can only terminate under certain specific conditions in accordance with the provisions of the Agreement, like breach, misuse, bankruptcy, cease of phone line, complaint by 3rd party, ... They cannot terminate unilaterally just for the hell of it.

They certainly can - if you sign an agreement to take service for 12 months BT are agreeing to provide it for the same period and can terminate at the 12 month break point.

How much contractual experience - especially in the field of telecomms, do you have? Probably a lot less than I do.

In reply to a post by MHC:

They certainly can - if you sign an agreement to take service for 12 months BT are agreeing to provide it for the same period and can terminate at the 12 month break point.

BT are entitled to terminate the customer's service with 28 days notice at any time.