Citizens Advice is urging internet service providers to stop charging cancellation fees to customers who have consistently poor broadband connections.

In the first half of this year, cancellations cost customers an average of £190, while in extreme cases charges reached a ridiculous £625.

The charity also cited a number of cases where cancellation fees were handed over to debt collection agencies.

Some people who moved house before their contract ended were charged too.

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Cancellation Aggravation

Most of the complaints received by Citizens Advice over the past year related to substandard service. Of the 3,300 complaints in England and Wales, the three most common were:

• cancellations and withdrawals (23%);
• complaints and redress (18%);
• problems with costs, billing and payment (15%). 

Stepping in

The Citizens Advice Bureau is appealing to internet service providers to stamp out this unfair practice so that customers aren’t tied to a poor service.

One client who contacted the CAB had been charged a cancellation fee even though there wasn’t one in the terms and conditions of her initial contract. She tried to switch broadband because her connection speed was slow; so slow in fact that she repeatedly had to pay to use an internet café.

If you're having problems, you can call Citizens Advice Bureau on 03454 04 05 06.

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Have you ever been charged a cancellation fee for switching broadband providers? Tell us about it in the Comments below.

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