40% of Broadband Customers Have Been with the Same ISP for 10 Years

Broadband customers are remarkably loyal to their provider, despite the penalties they pay in out-of-contract price hikes.

Just 15% of customers have switched broadband provider in the last two years, and 40% have stuck with the same ISP for more than a decade.

That’s according to a survey of 1,000 broadband customers conducted by Which? magazine, which also quizzed loyal customers about the reasons why they haven’t switched.

Many of these customers stick with same ISP because they think their supplier is the best on the market—or that other suppliers are worse.

Overall, 29% of loyal customers said they believed their ISP to be superior to other providers. 26% hadn’t switched because they feared other suppliers would be worse, and 25% felt their current provider offers the cheapest prices.

Virgin Media’s customers were the most loyal, with 79% saying they’d subscribed to the cable provider for more than five years. 37% of Virgin ‘remainers’ said they thought the company was the best ISP on the market—perhaps responding to the dazzling speeds delivered by its cable network and to its expansive TV offerings.

But earlier research from Which? has showed that loyal Virgin customers are among those hit hardest by post-contract price increases. If you fail to renegotiate your broadband contract with Virgin after it expires, you could end up seeing price increases of 57% a month, potentially adding £192 to your annual bill.

Sky Broadband’s customers were the second most faithful, with 23% staying simply because they like the company.

BT Broadband’s subscribers, meanwhile, feel loyal to the company.

Meanwhile, it was price persuading TalkTalk’s customers to stay put, despite the budget provider’s sometimes dubious customer service. 73% of its loyal customers said they believed they were getting the best price on the market.

But again, those TalkTalk customers should check their contracts to ensure they’re still being charged those cheap rates they signed up for. Prices on TalkTalk’s Fibre plan rise by 60% a month after the first 24 months and if customers aren’t proactive, they can end up paying £162 more a year for their ‘cheap’ broadband.