Post Office freezes broadband and home phone prices until October 2013


Updated on 27 September 2012 | 2 Comments

Good news for households struggling with rising costs as Post Office promises no price rises until October 2013.

The Post Office has pledged to freeze its home phone and broadband costs until October 2013.

This announcement comes as other providers like BT plan price hikes for the New Year. Read BT to raise prices by up to 5.9% for more details.

Safe bet

The Post Office already provides great value deals on home phone packages.

For example, the Post Office Home Phone Evening & Weekend package is 25% cheaper than BT’s Unlimited Evening & Weekend plan.

Currently BT’s package costs £17.75 a month while the Post Office only charges £13.25. And from the 5th of January 2013, BT’s package will cost £18.25 - when the price rises take effect.

That said, Primus offers an even cheaper deal than the Post Office.

But broadband falls short

Although the Post Office offers competitive landline and calls only packages its broadband bundles are less desirable.

On the Post Office Home Phone with Broadband Standard pack you pay £21.40 a month and get 5GB usage, a free modem, inclusive evening and weekend calls as well as weekend calls to UK mobiles. But you only receive speeds of up to eight Megabits per second.

This seems a bit slow compared to similarly priced and even cheaper packages elsewhere that offer speeds of 14Mb upwards.

The Talk Talk Unlimited Broadband & Phone Essential package, for example, comes with unlimited usage, evening and weekend calls plus speeds of up to 14Mb for a monthly cost of £17.75. That said, Talk Talk isn’t known for its great customer service. Read TalkTalk tops Ofcom broadband complaints list - again to find out more. 

Shop around

As costs creep up it is best to shop around and see if you’re on the best deal. But make sure you check how long you have left on your contract before making any changes.

How the Post Office compares

Here is a table looking at home phone only deals available at the moment. For the latest broadband and home phone offers take a look at this article Tesco Mobile offers free broadband for a year. Alternatively, check out Broadband Choices for a round-up.

Package

Calls

Monthly cost

Total year cost

Notes

Primus Home Phone Saver

Evening & Weekend

£10.19

£122.28

Summer special offer ends 30th September

Post Office Home Phone

Evening & Weekend

£13.25

£159

 

Utility Warehouse Evening & Weekend

Evening & Weekend

£13.75

£165

 

Tesco Home Phone Evening & weekend Calls

Evening & Weekend

£13.75

£165

 

BT Unlimited Weekend Calls

Weekend

£14.60

£175.20

Cheaper line rental option if you pay 12 months up front.

Post Office Home Phone Anytime

Anytime

£13.25 for six months then £17.75 for six months

£186

From 28th August to 14th October 2012  you pay just £13.25 for the first six months.

Primus Home Phone Max

Anytime

£17.18

£206.16

Summer special offer ends 30th September

BT Unlimited Evening & weekend Calls

Evening & Weekend

£17.75

£213

Cheaper line rental option if you pay 12 months up front.

Talk Talk UK Evening & Weekend

Evening & Weekend

£18.11

£217.32

 

Tesco Home Phone Anytime

Anytime

£18.25

£219

 

BT Unlimited Anytime Calls

Anytime

£19.50

£234

Cheaper line rental option if you pay 12 months up front.

Talk Talk UK Anytime

Anytime

£20.71

£248.52

 

BT Anytime Plan Plus

Anytime and cheaper mobile calls

£22.60

£271.20

Cheaper line rental option if you pay 12 months up front.

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Orange announces landline telephone price rises

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