Today I decided it was time to tackle my ever-increasing Sky bill.
I had discovered that I was paying £44 a month for broadband, which seemed decidedly uncompetitive. After negotiating my way through Sky’s Virtual Assistant, I was eventually connected to Maria.
Maria: I understand you’re experiencing a Broadband Issue regarding the duration of your broadband contract.
Me: It is NOT an issue with broadband, which is working well. I have been paying too much per month and I want to discuss a substantial reduction to be competitive with the other service providers in my area.
After a little more back and forth, we finally got to the important bit.
Maria: I see the actual price is £44.00. I can reduce your bill by £14.00, making the total amount £30.00.
That sounded considerably better, but I wasn’t going to say yes until I knew what I was agreeing to.
Me: Does taking the £30 price start a new minimum-term contract, and if so for how long?
Maria: Yes, it’s for the next 24 months.
Me: When does my current contract expire?
Maria: It looks like your service is out of contract.
Me: Funny that 🙂 Maybe because I have had it so long. So if I find another service provider I can do so without penalty, it seems.
Maria confirmed that I could indeed move to another provider without an early-exit fee.
I wasn’t particularly keen on tying myself down for another two years, so I tried again.
Me: I do feel that £30 is better, but I am reluctant to commit for two years. Can you offer me the same price for a shorter contract?
Maria: Unfortunately, the £30 price is only available on a new 24-month minimum-term contract.
Fair enough. At least I now knew where I stood. I also established that if I left Sky I would have to return their router.
Then came the important question:
Me: Is your £30 a fixed rate for the two years?
After one amusing typo in which Maria appeared to offer me broadband for £3 a month, she corrected herself:
Maria: No, it’s for the next 24 months and it’s £30.00.
Me: So £30 and no change—so it’s fixed?
Maria: Yes, that’s right. Your monthly price is fixed at £30 for the next 24 months.
Me: OK, we have a deal.
Then I thought: why stop there?
I was also paying around £47 for Sky Signature, and I wasn’t convinced I was getting full value from it.
Me: I also need to discuss the £47 Sky Signature. I am not sure if I need or am using the Signature bit to the full. Can I discuss downgrading?
Maria came back with another offer.
Maria: The actual price for your TV is £42. The £5.00 has already been added for you, and I can reduce it by another £10.00, making the total £27.50. The broadband is £30.00, so your total will be £57.50.
Me: Yes, that’s good and tidy. I can live with that 🙂
And so we had a deal.
My broadband came down from £44 to £30, and the television element came down to £27.50, giving me a new combined monthly bill of £57.50.
That’s a saving of roughly £24 a month, or approaching £290 a year, compared with what I had been paying.
Maria said the changes should appear on the account within 72 hours and that written confirmation would follow by email.
I finished by saying:
Me: OK, thanks for doing a difficult job and dealing with all sorts of people.
There is perhaps a lesson here. Companies don’t necessarily volunteer their best price to existing customers. Sometimes you simply have to ask—and be prepared to keep asking until you get a clear answer.
In my case, an hour or so of persistence was worth nearly £300 a year.
Not a bad return on my time.
I
