BT have today sent me an email, to remind me that my current broadband contract ends 'soon'. But it doesn't end 'soon' at all. It ends in December. That's four months away. And getting another contract is a quick and easy matter nowadays. You don't need to prepare months in advance.
Or at least I don't. I haven't entered into a host of subsidiary agreements with BT, the kind that might get set up if there is a TV or Sport add-on, say. That might present some difficulties. I just have plain broadband with no add-ons. There's a tie-up with my BT Mobile SIM-only deal, in that I receive a £5 discount on the monthly phone payment so long as I get my broadband from BT, and this would be withdrawn if I didn't stay with BT Broadband; but it doesn't in any sense 'lock me in'.
So what are BT up to? They are of course are trying to hustle me into 'upgrading' to one of their latest Broadband packages before I need to. And (surprise, surprise!) they are all more expensive. I wouldn't necessarily be paying very much more, but any price hike is contrary to my Five Year Savings Plan.
My default intention, when giving the next broadband contract serious attention in late November or early December - and not before - is to retain my present Fibre 1 package at the same cost as now, letting it run on out of contract (so that I can change to another plan - or indeed another provider - anytime without penalty). If that's not possible - say the existing contract can run on, but without the hefty discount BT gave me last time) - then I'll look at switching to a cheaper product, maybe with BT, but more likely with somebody else. 'Downgrading' does not seem to be a concept BT have heard of.
Incidentally, I have no quarrel with BT's performance as a broadband provider, but their Rolls Royce plans come at a Rolls Royce cost. I am not prepared to pay for a plan with bells and whistles I won't use. Even Fibre 1 (which is pretty basic now) is really too comprehensive, and (despite that hefty discount) too expensive for my modest needs. I certainly don't need the three key offers included in the sort of plan BT want me to 'upgrade' to: extra download and upload speeds; extra mobile data; and access to their 'home tech experts'. Nor do I need parental controls, Wi-Fi hotspot access, and BT's own internet security. And a big definite NO to their TV and Sport.
All I want is moderately fast, reliable, no-frills broadband from someone whom I have confidence in. If BT can meet that straightforward brief at a pleasing cost, then I'll renew with BT. If they can't, then it'll be hello to a rival.
And I'm quite prepared to play the normal silly negotiation games. It's worth the effort, when you look at the savings over an eighteen or twenty-four month contract period. I know what I need. I will stick to my guns, not be deflected, and get a decent deal if one is there to have.
The ace up my sleeve is that I don't really need broadband at all. Nor even a landline connection. I can usually manage with 4G alone, and happily do so when away caravanning. It's a bit of a nuclear option, to abandon wires, but ten years from now we won't be using wired connections, and I'm just anticipating the future. And I will do it for the sake of saving more money for the big things I really want (an expensive electric car; and after that, an expensive makeover for my home). I might even enjoy the act of walking away. Up yours, BT! Hello, Freedom! (And never mind the days when there's no 4G signal at home!)
But for the next four months, while I'm still getting broadband from BT, there will no doubt be more emails from them, ever more urgent in tone, building up to a crescendo as the end of the contract gets close. Their frantic marketing would be almost amusing, if it were not so irritating.
I hope BT will read this, and make a note not to bombard me with their unnecessary messages. I will come to the table in my own good time.
