Contractless or Less than 12 Month Contract ADSL?

I am not able to get fibre broadband yet, but I have discovered it will be enabled next February, 8 months away. I need to change ISP's very soon, due to unavoidable circumstances.

I am wondering if it is possible to get a broadband contract for less than 12 months? As I only need 8 and want to change to fibre asap when it is turned on.

Does any one know of any companies that will do this?

Vivaciti, xilo/uno, aquiss, AAISP, PlusNet, and I expect many other small ones.

The first three are highly regarded here as independent suppliers/resellers. AAISP is very highly rated, particularly at fault fixing, but can be expensive unless most of your download usage is after midnight. They do have some new packages which may suit your usage pattern without costing the earth, but I haven't looked into those.

PlusNet would be my choice, which is why I chose them ! There's someone with a minor issue that was easily resolved but wasn't, who is making a huge amount of noise at the moment, and two or three vocal PlusNet detractors, but for around 600,000 customers and their prices they are very hard to beat.

Apart from the people just mentioned there have been vey few unhappy customers for a while, though many with some issue or another that does get sorted. The quality of the broadband and CS I find is comparable to O2 before it went downhill.

The cheapest way of getting broadband with PlusNet is by taking phone and broadband on a 12-month contract. I preferred to keep my phone with BT so had to pay a setup cost, but the on-going broadband prices are the same whether or not you take the phone.

Re the monthly aspect, I don't recommend that on PlusNet in your situation. The date of FTTC availability for you of FTTC could very easily go later, though occasionally it happens earlier than forecast. You can upgrade mid-term, though it would start a new eighteen month contract for the FTTC.

If at the time you wished to move away from PlusNet and get FTTC elsewhere then the buy-out prices are much lower than the standard monthly prices.

Just to confirm whether or not you would get the PlusNet banner prices, or the higher Market 1 prices, it would be a good idea to check your exchange's Market Status on this site and let us know. Market 2 or 3 is cheap, Market 1 more expensive.

Edit - all the others I listed at the start can also provide FTTC when it is available to you.

Edited by RobertoS (Mon 24-Jun-13 21:49:11)

When I was in the same boat I went for Vivaciti as they provided the Be Wholesale based package which gave me great performance (and control) whilst I waited for my exchange to go FTTC (which was happily enabled back in January).

Your other responses have provided valid responses.

However, you appear to assume that a "proposed-date" of February will not change - I would not be that confident.

On the basis that there will be some date slippage, I think I would tend to accept a standard 12 month Contract & then change next June!

Even if the Fibre arrives on-time, & you are on a 12 month Contract, I think you will find that quite a few Suppliers will simply let you change over early on the basis of a new Contract.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

The quality of the broadband and CS I find is comparable to O2 before it went downhill.

I assume you mean o2 CS going downhill.

Also I prefer to keep my line with BT, but what is the main advantage, the only to issues I have had in 9yrs with BB only got resolved by saying there was a voice fault to BT. Both issues were a fault out side of my house. My intention is to leave o2 and go to Plusnet.

Thank you all for your help.

I have been trying since I first posted to get my head round all the options and terms and conditions.

AAISP is just flat out too expensive for me. I don't always download more than 50GB a month, but I can see me going over that limit fairly often.

Vivaciti - is a reseller of the BE network? Does that mean they will be reselling Sky products now that Sky have bought out O2 and BE? My second highest priority for moving was to not have anything to do with Sky.

Vivaciti also seem to have 25+ packages available to me and I am struggling to work out which one would be the best fit. I want to have at least 16mb download, I live close enough to the exchange to make the most of that. I am not prepared to have a metered contract, it must be unlimited. I think I am going to have make a mega list of questions and e-mail them, probably do the same for Xilo and Aquiss.

Vivaciti, Xilo and Aquiss - do these companies offer a phone package? I can't find details of this or call charges on their websites. Or do I need to pay line rental to someone else? I make a lot of called to UK landlines and I am on a budget, really. If 18185 works that would be good enough.

Plusnet is looking most likely at the moment. RobertoS, how do you find the traffic shaping on Plusnet? Are there any times when it bothers you? Do you know anything about how much they monitor traffic compared to other providers? I am quite privacy concious. Would I have any problems using SSH on Plusnet?

I have been thinking about what you said johnjburness about whether or not fibre will actually be available in Feb as promised. I suppose my thinking was because I share a cabinet with a government organisation and quite a few businesses that it would be more likely. But nothing is guaranteed is it? Plusnet is so much cheaper on a 12 month contract, especially on special offer at the moment, I am having to consider it. I have been trying to work out if there is any other way I could make Plusnet any cheaper. I have been wondering if I didn't take out their unlimited call package, if I could use 18185 instead?

Don't get confused about PN traffic shaping. If you haven't come across this page have a good slow read . There is no speed capping at any time on the current unlimited products.

My personal experience of even that that traffic management is zilch, so I can't comment. I don't do P2P and a typical month is below 10GB total peak and off-peak. I don't see any complaints on these forums about it though, apart from the occasional person with a problem specific to their connection rather than the system.

There was a thread recently about Pirate Bay being blocked, even though PN said they don't block it. It turned out to be one of their peering providers doing it, and it got sorted. It isn't blocked on PN any more.

The telephone side of Plusnet I know nothing about except that some things you can get for free on BT you pay for on PN, (and on most others). I think all three of the ones you listed do phone. Vivaciti also allow you to keep it if you leave - I don't know about the other two.

Those three and PlusNet is a pretty good short-list.

Good Morning,

Apologies if you could not see our telephone services. There is a tab across all pages listed as "line rental" (maybe this too generic?). This will take you too http://www.aquiss.net/phone_line_rental.php

Our phone services are based on a monthly rolling contract and are separate from broadband services. We don't insist customers have to have both services with us, so if our phone service meets yours (or others) needs, then that's fine with us.