GONE OFFLINE
Hundreds of BT customers complain of broadband issues – how to check the status in your area
Plus, find out if you'll be entitled to compensation
HUNDREDS of people reported problems with their BT broadband today.
More than 360 people logged complaints on the Downdetector website, which measures outages, this morning.
2
Some 91% of the issues reported were with the company's broadband.
Meanwhile 5% were complaining about emails and 4% about landlines.
Most of the reports came after 9am - just as millions of workers would have been logging on to begin their shifts.
However the issue appears to have been resolved now.
More on Money
Despite the reports on Downdetector, BT told The Sun: "We are not aware of a broadband outage impacting our customers."
The issue comes a month after thousands of BT users experienced problems accessing their emails.
More than 5,000 people reported problems at the time.
The problem started early in the morning, with customers reporting complaints just after 5am.
Most read in Money
Some vented their frustration on social media site X, with one saying: "BT your email servers are down and there is no response on your chat. What is going on?"
Another commented: "BT is your email system down? I'm not getting any emails at all and getting an error message."
A third wrote: "BT your internet mail server is down! Cannot get mail."
CHECK YOUR SPEED: Broadband
How can I tell if the internet is down in my area?
BT has a service where you can check if there's been an outage in your area.
You can use the service checker on its website so you can see what's happening.
You need to enter your phone number to check your line.
Alternatively, you can call BT's helpline on 0800 800150.
You can also troubleshoot issues with your BT broadband on their help page.
Plus you can check social media to see if BT has communicated about widespread service loss or if other customers are having similar issues.
Can I get compensation?
If you're affected by internet outages, you may be able to get compensation - although only if you experience the issue for a certain amount of time.
First you should check whether there's a problem with your router.
This can often be fixed with a simple reset.
But if it's clear your internet issues are beyond your control, you should contact your internet provider.
They should be able to tell you about any problems in your area and hopefully offer an estimated time for a resolution.
You will likely only be able to claim compensation if your connection goes down for more than two days.
After this point, you'll receive £8.06 for every day your internet was down.
BT is among the providers signed up to the Automatic Compensation Scheme, which means you should receive compensation automatically if something goes wrong.
You will still need to report the fault to your provider to be in line for the compensation.
However you won't need to take any further action to receive the compensation and it will be sent as a credit on your bill no later than 30 days after the issue occurred.
The scheme also means you can receive compensation if your service doesn't start when you expected it to or if your engineer appointment is missed.
You can get £25 for engineers who don't arrive on time or cancel within 24 hours, and £5 per day for new services that fail to start on time.
Other providers signed up to the scheme are Sky, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Zen Internet.
How BT ranked in recent customer survey
A recent survey by Which? ranking the UK's major broadband providers found BT had only improved by 2% since customers were asked about their experiences last year.
CHECK YOUR SPEED: Broadband
The consumer champion surveyed 4,000 broadband customers to get their feedback on service, value for money and reliable connections.
BT scored just 64% for customer satisfaction - however it did rank above Sky, TalkTalk, Now Broadband and Virgin Media.
Virgin Media and Now Broadband were at the bottom of the table with only 60% customer satisfaction.
They scored poorly for ease of contact, customer service, communication, technical support and value for money.
2
Meanwhile at the top of the table was Zen Internet, which had a satisfaction score of 77%.
Broadband bills set to rise in April
The survey came as broadband and mobile prices are set to rise from next month.
Providers have confirmed prices will rise for millions of customers.
How much your bill goes up by will depend on what you pay already and who your provider is.
You can check what your provider is doing in our guide.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
The increases will come into effect either on March 31 or April 1.
This means the new rate will kick in from your next bill after that date.
How to save on broadband and TV bills
HERE'S how to save money on your broadband and TV bills:
Audit your subscriptions
If you've got multiple subscriptions to various on-demand services, such as Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Sky consider whether you need them all.
Could you even just get by with Freeview, which couldn't cost you anything extra each month for TV.
Also make sure you're not paying for Netflix twice via Sky and directly.
Haggle for a discount
If you want to stay with your provider, check prices elsewhere to set a benchmark and then call its customer services and threaten to leave unless it price matches or lowers your bill.
Switch and save
If you don't want to stay with your current provider check if you can cancel your contract penalty free and switch to a cheaper provider.
A comparison site, such as BroadbandChoices or Uswitch, will help you find the best deal for free.