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Anonymous User
Not applicable

£44 EACH TIME you restart combo package, not just initial set up cost

£44 EACH TIME you restart your Now TV combo package

I chose the NOW TV combo package because it was no contract and supposed to be easy to cancel and restart. This seemed perfect for my holiday apartment which we visit for a month or two at a time through the year. Everything worked fine and we enjoyed the service for September, then cancelled.

Only on applying to restart for the Christmas holidays did I discover that I would be charged £44 AGAIN for set up!

It does not make this clear on the website and of course this repeated set up cost puts a completely different perspective on my choice of broadband/tv/landline set up. If I have to pay £44 each time I restart, then it would be cheaper to take out a normal broadband contract for a year, even though I’m not at the apartment for months at a time.

So, beware, cancelling and restarting costs you £44 a throw. What appeared to be the perfect solution for holiday homes is no such thing!

Do you think Advertising Standards would be interested in how these no contract packages are sold? Or was it just me who naively assumed the £44 fee was a one off initial set cost?

11 REPLIES 11
Andy
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User

 

Welcome to the forum. I can see your point but I doubt you would have any grounds for complaint. That's the whole point of a no-contract option is that you can just take it for one or two months and then walk away, but there are costs associated with activating and deactivating lines. Once you've paid and walked away and NOW TV have deactivated the line both sides have finished their obligations. If you come back at a later time you are signing up from fresh like any other customer. In essence you were thinkng it would be along standing commitment on both sides to activate and deactivate the line whenever you needed it, which would be a contract option of sorts in its own right.

Anonymous User
Not applicable

Thanks for the reply Andy.

 

I understand that I may have been naive, but I do think it absolutely incumbent on NOW TV to make it crystal clear, in bold letters, that you will incur a £44 reconnection fee each time you reconnect on the ‘no contract’ plan.

 

To me, the ‘no contract’ bit meant no need to sign up for a full 12/24 months,  and when you’ve got a place you use on and off, this would be ideal. At best, you must agree that the package descriptions and terms and conditions do not stress the repeating reconnection fee. We are, on the other hand, sold the ‘cancel and reconnect at any time part’ loudly and clearly. Not fair really.

 

To save idiots like me choosing ‘no contract’, thinking we can come and go easily, please ask NOW TV to make it clear in their package descriptions that you pay as new every time. Now I know I have to pay £44 every few months, on top of my normal subscription, I may as well take out a cheaper long term contract with someone, even though I won’t be there to use the service for months at a time.

 

Yours ,

 

Keith 

 

Andy
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User

 

I can tag @Simon-J , one of the Community Managers, and ask him to pass on your feedback to the powers that be, but obviously it's out of my hands if they will make any changes to wording or not.

 

Have you tried giving the broadband team a call when you need to sign back up? No idea if they would be willing to or not, but you could explain your situation and see if they can offer any discount or flexibility over the set-up fee? Nothing lost other than a few minutes of your time.

Anonymous User
Not applicable

I called the broadband team to ask for reconnection for Christmas and the next couple of months. It was they that told me of the £44 reconnection fee. The guy did go off and speak to a manager, but the reply was no, I have to pay £44 to reconnect - no sign of good will there then...

 

I would appreciate it Andy if you would bring my comments to the attention your Community Manager.

 

Thanks,

 

Keith

Anonymous User
Not applicable

Hi Andy,

 

Any response from @Simon-J? 

 

I have also discovered that, if you disconnect, then reconnect, you have to take receipt of new Now TV boxes, even though you already have the original ones! If you re-order, even if you already have all the gear, they HAVE to send out new gear.... what a waste of time and money!

 

It should be made really clear that the Combo no contract package is definitely not an easy disconnect/reconnect service...  it should be sold as a 'join, then dissconnect once when you want' package. There should be no mention of 'reconnect anytime', without make it very clear that you will be starting from scratch again, including reconnection fee and delivery of boxes.

Andy
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User

 

I've tagged @Simon-J in the previous post for you so he will be aware next time he logs on, however I'm just a customer like you so I'm afraid I don't have any more influence over what happens next and whether NOW TV change any wording they use or not. Sorry.

ukbobboy
Legend

@Anonymous User @Andy

 

Hi Keith

 

I'm not a combo user and I may be missing something here but it seems to me that there is a cheaper way to do things, here's my simplistic view:

 

1) The £44.00 setup fee is a one-off cost, so leave the line activated and that way you will not have this as a recurring fee when you want to use your holiday home.

 

2) Buy your Now TV passes from retail outlets and activate and cancel them only when necessary, therefore you start your pass when on holiday and cancel it when your holiday is finished, that saves you from incurring any additional unwanted and unnecessary costs.

 

Keith, maybe I cannot see the totality of your problem but from what I can understand my suggestion could be the solution you're looking for.

 

Good luck.

 

 

UK Bob

 

 

 

Andy
Legend 5
Legend 5

@ukbobboy The OP is looking at ways of avoiding having to pay for broadband connection whilst not at holiday home as a way of reducing ongoing costs, rather than the issue of pass prices.

ukbobboy
Legend

@Andy @Anonymous User

 

Hi Andy

 

I do realise that Keith does not want to keep paying the start-up fee every time he goes on holiday that's why I suggested leaving the "connection" on, that way the fee will not reoccur.

 

As for passes, only buying them when you want to use Now TV services is the very essence of using the "no contract" policy, and is definitely cheaper than cancelling and restarting the "start-up fee".

 

I'm I missing something here, I thought that Keith wanted to save some money.

 

 

UK Bob