Any Virgin Broadband users out there?

[cleaver]

Hi All.

My elderly neighbours have asked me about finding them cheaper broadband/phone. They reckon they're currently paying £80 p/m with Virgin That figure includes international/national calls etc, but is still mad, if true (as there's no telly in their package).

So I have been tasked with digging them out a better deal elsewhere (won't be difficult to beat what they're paying!)

They say they have been told a few things which don't sound right to me:

1. Virgin do not allow anyone else to use 'their' fibre under the street. Apparently, a new provider would have to dig the road up and stick their own in

2. My neighbours will lose their Virgin email address if they go elsewhere

Just wondering whether anyone here (or friends/family) have switched from Virgin Fibre Broadband to anywhere else's fibre (TalkTalk, PlusNet or whatever), and whether they could bear out or refute these issues.

BTW, we all know Virgin will offer to slash their price when we say we are leaving them.....any examples of what discount people got when they said they were leaving would be brilliant

Thanks

PS. if, for any reason, you'd feel more comfortable PM-ing me about this, please feel free.

[Chris2103]

I can’t say for certain that they don’t allow others to use their lines, but I do know that they do run their broadband along a different cable / line than say BT etc as where I live I cannot get onto the Virgin network as they don’t have any cables laid around here. When they set up at my daughters they connected the house to a different connection box in the street than the BT set up. So it may be that they will not allow the competition to use their set up. Hope this helps.

[cleaver]

Thanks Chris.

Will start phoning the competition tomorrow - hope their sales people are clued up!

Any other responses will be very gratefully accepted, folks!!

[JohnMcafee]

It might be worth talking to Virgin.

The current Virgin advertised price is £42 per month for the basic phone/broadband package, there is an introductory offer of £27 per month for the first year, which probably isn't an option. But you may be able to negotiate a better deal somewhere between the two.
https://www.virginmedia.com/shop/broadband/compare.html

[cleaver]

Many thanks, John.

Just wanted to get all my ducks in a row (with what other providers offer) before we call them. Yes, ideally, be great to keep the neighbours with Virgin on a negotiated deal (for simplicity's sake). But I don't like the idea of them being ripped off. Also, I'm curious/troubled about what they've been told (or think they've been told) about fibre and losing their email address.

Thanks again, fella.

[Jules007]

Do they really need fibre and very fast speeds? You mention that they don't have any TV package so why would they need it, unless they use it for some business purpose? Most people don't need it, but think that they should have the fastest available.

We have a deal with Plusnet which gives us phone and unlimited broadband with all calls included day, night, weekends etc and a reduced rate to mobles. We pay just over £30 per month incl VAT.

We live in a rural village and the download speed is about 7mbs which doesn't sound much but is perfectly ok for everything including watching iPlayer. The only thing we can't do is watch iPlayer in HD but everything else is absolutely fine.

Virgin are at the moment busy digging up the streets in the village laying their fibre. I have no intention of changing over to them and will continue with Plusnet who use the existing BT wires. The over-enthusiastic Virgin sales reps will tell you that you can't use anybody else and that you have to use Virgin. What they actually mean is that if you want to have fibre then you do, but if you just want a standard conection like me then you don't.

Unfortunately your Virgin email address will be lost after 90 days. It's your choice, but to remain with Virgin and pay their high prices in order to retain your email address is a very expensive thing to do. You would be far better getting an email address which is independent of your internet provider even if you have to pay a small amount for it. This way you are not tied into anything.

[cleaver]

Thanks Jules.

Very first thing I asked is why they need fibre...they don't do gaming etc. Just surfing the net, emails etc.

They reckon Virgin took out their phone line, so would have to get one re-installed to switch from fibre broadband.

Totally agree about Virgin. We (stupidly) signed up years ago, but cancelled before it began, as their installers butchered our garden wall putting the feed in.

I'm with Talktalk....paying about what you do.

Thanks again, Jules

PS. The words "No good deed goes unpunished" are ringing round my head ATM!!

[Jules007]

Their BT phone line comes in via a wire from a telegraph pole and would only have been removed by BT so it is highly likey that it's still there and will be terminated either to a box outside the house or to a box inside, probably the BT master socket. Virgin would not have the authority to disconnect the cable from the pole to your house as this belongs to BT or rather Openreach, and they would certainly not have bothered wasting any time doing so.

Virgin will have disconnected the cable that feeds the house telephone wiring from the BT Master socket inside the house and then connected it to the new Virgin box. It's a quick and easy installation, but this could easily be changed back again.

[cleaver]

Ta Jules.

PlusNet reckon £50 to re-instate phone line (much cheaper than I thought). They do normal broadband (like you and I have) plus unlimited UK calls & 300 international minutes for 28 quid p/m.

Neighbours seem well chuffed....thanks all for the info & help.

Right, that's my good deed for the year out of the way.