Possible move to O2

I have only just discovered that if I switch to O2, I can get BB at 'upto' 20Mbps download and 1.3Mbps uploads with 'Unlimited' downloads all for £9.79/month (as an O2 Mobile customer) and first 3 months free, then I can get £75 discount through Quidco which works out at £13.11 for the year - £1.10/month!!!

I'm struggling for reasons to not give this a go, the obvious one is that I am under contract until 14/12 (I am a bit bemused by the fact that I am getting a £3/month discount for signing up to a new 12 month contract, so £36 over the year, but I'm sure I was told it would cost me £70 something to buy out my contract) but apart from that it appears a no-brainer, O2 seem to get more than their fair share of awards.

Give me a reason to stay?

What happens to my F9 account if I move?

What happens to my referrals if I move?

If you can get LLU service from O2 then at those prices it's a no-brainer!

When you request your MAC, raise a ticket asking for for your account to be reverted to a FREE Dial-up PayG account. Your Mailboxes will stay live as long as you collect your mail at least once a month using POP3.

If you leave your DD details on your PlusNet account, they will pay your referrals yo your Bank account each time the balance reaches £5.

Sorry to see you go but we live in very cost competitive times.

If you aren't already with Quidco then they will take £5 from the £75 as an annual subscription. I believe TopCashBack give you the full £75.

I don't know where you get the £70 buy-out from. News to me. Or do you mean to buy out your Plusnet one? That sounds daft if you only have 3 months to go, surely it would be just the three months charges?

In reply to a post by Wheel_Nut:

Your Mailboxes will stay live as long as you collect your mail at least once a month using POP3

You sure of this? It's usually that you must connect to the Internet every so many months with your dial-up a/c, but I don't know Plusnet. Worth checking.

In reply to a post by Wheel_Nut:

Sorry to see you go but we live in very cost competitive times.

From my own investigations O2 also provide McAfee AV for free too. Maybe PN could do this?

What else could PN do? My first suggestion would be to offer free Voip. Not particularly costly but quite a benefit to the user. Pricing? Apparently 85% can have Market 3 pricing. I'd question the arithmetic of that. Higher speeds? O2 do LLU on my exchange. Not only does it work but it will be a while before we have a stable 21CN connection. How about throwing in a few BTOpenzone minutes per month too?

I guess that for many people the reliability of PN is just not exciting enough either!

Come on PN - Kick A*** !!

Meldrew

The £70 "Buy-out" is probably comprised of:

Return of 9x£3 discount already received for having signed up to stay for 12 Months

Plus 3 months charges for balance of 12 month contract. I don't know which product he is on.

I am absolutely certain of my assertion. I am speaking of PlusNet, not Orange, Wannadoo or Freeserve which required dialup access once a month or so.

So am I certain having tracked down PN's T&Cs.

From their
3. Broadband Specific Cancellation Policies @ : http://www.plus.net/support/service/policies/cancell...

6.When we receive confirmation that the migration has completed, our systems currently will automatically downgrade the account to a non-subscription dial-up account.

�This non-subscription account will be subject to our normal procedures, and will be closed if left unused for 90 days.

�Although an account that has been migrated out will be downgraded to a non-subscription account, customers who require this specifically should still request it when making the MAC Key request.

This has come up many times on the Community forums. Plusnet regard accessing mailboxes as using the account - just checking emails is enough to keep the account active.

Edit: Nearly a year ago I created a PAYG dialup account to do some specific testing. I've never connected via dialup to that account but I do poll the mailbox daily. It's still active.

Edited by jelv (Tue 29-Sep-09 19:23:05)

...told you so!

OK I was just warning to be careful; better safe than sorry

Different ISPs have different strategies. Orange requires you to connect via dial-up or reactivate on website every 9 months; Tiscali never removes dial-up a/c's.

One can only go by what is written in the T&Cs which is what I found; anything else is non-binding.

In reply to a post by jelv:

Edit: Nearly a year ago I created a PAYG dialup account to do some specific testing. I've never connected via dialup to that account but I do poll the mailbox daily. It's still active.

I did much the same but my email account died. Although that was probably 2 - 3 years ago so things may have changed. I didn't do anything about it at the time as the need for it was passed.

In reply to a post by Wheel_Nut:

The £70 "Buy-out" is probably comprised of:

Return of 9x£3 discount already received for having signed up to stay for 12 Months

Plus 3 months charges for balance of 12 month contract. I don't know which product he is on.

Hmmm. That would be a nice case of double-counting, though I am quite prepared to accept what you say.

I would agree but remember that this has been calculated by a script jockey in a call-centre so is unlikely to have been given a sanity check.

No, it makes sense; he only got the 9 x £3 discount because he committed to 12 months. By leaving at 9 months he is repudiating the contract.

Yes, but if you void the £3 discount contract then there is no 12 month contract and therefore only a 30 day notice period.

If he waits until after 22 October, he only has to give 10 days notice and there is no further liability.

Yes, but you can't turn the clock back unilaterally! A contract is an agreement that, once made, can only be voided by both parties consenting.

Yes. That is why the Script works it out to £70 odd.

The conundrum exists because the OFFER to terminate the 12 month contract ihas been made by PlusNet. Now, paying the discounted 3 month charge would complete the contractual obligation without the need to pay back the £3 discount given. Alternatively, PlusNet could offer to waive the 12 month contract if the customer pays the discounts given. Either of these would be more reasonable than charging BOTH.

I believe that this is Bob's point.

Yes, I see your point. I concede that buying out the remaining 3 months at the discounted rate would be more reasonable. I would expect the discounted contract to permit that, because once you agree a price, discounted or not, that should be the price for the whole term

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

No, it makes sense; he only got the 9 x £3 discount because he committed to 12 months. By leaving at 9 months he is repudiating the contract.

Edit - rest of this now redundant as I read your later reply to Wheel_Nut afterwards.

If he pays to the end of the 12 months then he has not repudiated the contract. Therefore to charge him a penalty is invalid, as not only has he paid in full for that which he contracted for, he has done so in advance so helped Plusnet cash flow.

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 30-Sep-09 08:18:02)

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

Yes, but you can't turn the clock back unilaterally! A contract is an agreement that, once made, can only be voided by both parties consenting.

Edit - rest of this now redundant as I read your later reply to Wheel_Nut afterwards.

He hasn't attempted to void the contract. He is terminating the service proved under it and expecting to pay the full amount for which he contracted. A penalty charge for early termination but with full payment may or may not be sustainable in court, it is certainly lousy business practice.

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 30-Sep-09 08:18:57)

I believe that this is Bob's point.

Indeed, the first of the two alternatives is my point .