14 February 2024 , 09:10
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Millions of O2 and Virgin Media customers are set to be hit with broadband and mobile price rises of up to 8.8% from this April.
Virgin customers will see their bills increase by the Retail Prices Index (RPI) figure for January, plus an additional 3.9%. The RPI January figure was today confirmed to be 4.9%, which means an increase of 8.8% in total for this April. Virgin said the average increase for customers will be £4.16 a month. Vulnerable customers on Talk Protected, Essential Broadband and Essential Broadband Plus packages will not see their prices change in 2024.
O2 customers will also see their bills rise, but the price increase will only apply to the airtime part of your bill, so what you pay for minutes, texts and data. The increase will not be applied to your device plan, so what you pay for your handset. Because of this, O2 says the effective average price increase will be 5%. Customers whose plans started before March 25, 2021 will see prices rise by RPI alone.
A Virgin Media O2 spokesperson said: “2023 was a record year for traffic on our networks as customers used our mobile and broadband services more than ever. We are investing heavily to ensure we continue to provide the fast and reliable connectivity our customers rely on, and the amount we receive from price increases is greatly outweighed by the £5m we invest every single day to upgrade our networks and services to give customers a better overall experience.
“It’s clear that we continue to offer excellent value, with customers paying less and receiving more. Recent independent analysis found that the cost of telecoms services has fallen by a fifth since 2017, while at the same time speeds and usage have increased significantly. We will be writing to all impacted customers directly to explain when, why and how any price changes may come into effect.”
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How to cut your broadband and mobile bill
If you're out of contract, start by checking prices elsewhere using a comparison website to see what other deals are available. For your mobile bill, take a look at how many minutes, texts and how much data you currently use, so you can find similar plans that suit your needs.
For broadband, look at your current speed and if you need this fast of a deal. You may find you're actually paying too much right now for allowances or speeds you're not using.
If you've found a cheaper deal, you can switch to this if you're out of contract. Alternatively, you may want to try haggle down your current provider. When haggling, explain the better deals you've seen elsewhere then ask if the company can match or beat that price.